Pragmatism emphasizes the practical use of language, suggesting that infants learn to communicate through social interaction rather than formal instruction (Gobet, 2015; Tomasello, 2000). Babies are inherently social and emotional beings, relying on others for their survival (Croker, 2012). In this view, emotional expression is more significant than the specific words used in early language development. Before children can speak, they engage in non-verbal communication with their parents, which includes smiling, eye contact, and vocal sounds, with parents treating them as genuine conversational partners.
Simplify the following
Pragmatism refers to the practical use of something, in this case language. According
to this theory, social stimuli and not explicit learning is involved in the learning of language
(see Gobet, 2015; Tomasello, 2000). Therefore, infants communicate because they are
social and emotional beings and are dependent on others for their survival (Croker, 2012).
According to this viewpoint, the emotional messages of language and not the words as
such, are important in early language development. Babies and their parents engage in
conversation before the child can produce words. These conversations include reciprocal
smiling, eye contact, and various vocalisations. Parents often converse with their babies
as though they are true conversational partners.
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