Methodology
We have followed the language-learning journey of two age-cohorts of children. “Cohort A” were approximately 20 months old in January 2005 and “Cohort B” were approximately 36 months old in January 2005.
Each child in the study was video-recorded for approximately 45 minutes once every two weeks. In this way, over time, we obtain regular hour-long “snapshots” of their linguistic progress. Our Methodology section will tell you more about actual procedure. By “naturalistic,” we mean that the children are video-recorded in a natural setting -- at home, or playing in a familiar area. We don’t administer any language tests to the children -- this study merely follows the natural development of each child’s language skills, each learning at his or her own pace, until the child has “acquired” the adult Cree grammar.