Please join us by Zoom for the next MMM and MAC event. Presenting first will be Dr Hannah Sarvasy discussing 'children's speech', followed by Dr Celia Harris on 'memory scaffolding'. Professor Kate Stevens will also provide a Director's Update in between the sessions. NOTE: Both sessions will take place via Zoom.
PROGRAM
12pm - MARCS Monday Meeting Topic: How children learn extra-long sentences: cross-linguistic acquisition of clause chaining
Speaker: Dr Hannah Sarvasy, ARC DECRA Research Fellow
Abstract:
In hundreds of languages outside Western Europe, sentences and longer discourse units can differ dramatically from English sentences. ‘Clause chains’ in these other languages are the preferred mode of expressing sequences of related events and actions. Clause chains are morphosyntactically-demarcated discourse units comprising a minimum of two and as many as 100 or more clauses, or mini-sentences. Clause chains have special associated prosody, and likely involve enhanced sentence planning by speakers. In this talk, I summarize new findings on the development of clause chaining in six languages of diverse stocks with child speech databases spanning 1;1 and 11 years (Sarvasy & Choi, under review), and speculate on ramifications for early literacy education (Sarvasy & Ögate, 2019). 12.50pm – Institute Update by Professor Kate Stevens
1pm – MARCS Afternoon Colloquium
Topic: Memory Scaffolding: What, Who, and How?
Speaker: Dr Celia Harris, Vice Chancellor’s Senior Research Fellow in Cognitive Neuroscience
Abstract:
I have demonstrated that memory benefits are possible when older couples reminisce together, but even in these highly intimate and experienced groups, not all collaborative remembering is successful. We don’t know what “active ingredients” of collaboration drive memory benefits in older couples: is it their shared history, their intimacy, their need for cognitive support, their skill and practice at reminiscing together, or some combination of these? In this talk, I discuss a range of possible active ingredients contributing to benefits of shared remembering; different factors that may underlie the heterogenous outcomes. I sketch early findings from across a series of experiments in which I isolate and test particular aspects of group remembering – the cues provided, characteristics of the individuals within the group, and group communication processes – to determine which of these “ingredients” modulate group success. I highlight considerations for attempts to apply findings from collaborative recall experiments to intervention development. MARCS staff and students are reminded that all meetings and workshops have an important role in building and maintaining the sense of community which is central to the success of MARCS as a cooperative and energetic research institute. Your attendance is both welcomed and expected. The zoom ID is: 627 146 998. Link to zoom https://uws.zoom.us/j/627146998 |
