TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF COTOPAXI

HUMAN SCIENCES AND EDUCATION PEDAGOGY OF NATIONAL

AND FOREIGN LANGUAGES

NAME:

NATALY ROSERO

SUBJECT:

PSYCHOLINGUISTICS

TEACHER:

PhD. RODRIGO TOVAR

PERIOD:

APRIL-AUGUST 2022

LATACUNGA – ECUADOR

ACTIVITY 4. LANGUAGE AND THE BRAIN 

Task 1. Read Lightbown P., & Spada, N. (2006) “Language in the brain”, pp. 27-
77.  Individual differences in second language acquisition. Then, describe the
anatomy of the  brain and its main parts.
THE ANATOMY OF THE BRAIN

The brain works surprisingly. It processes the information it receives from the senses and
the body, and sends messages to the body. The brain is divided into the cerebrum,
brainstem and cerebellum. So, the cerebrum comprises the cerebral cortex and white
matter at its center. This part initiates and coordinates movement and regulates
temperature. Other areas of the cerebrum enable speech, judgment, thinking and
reasoning, problem-solving, emotions and learning.
The brain has a right half and a left half, known as the right and left hemispheres. The
two hemispheres are connected by a thick bundle of nerve fibers called the corpus
callosum. Each hemisphere is made up of six areas (lobes) that have different functions.
The brain controls movement and processes sensory information. Conscious and
unconscious actions and feelings take place here. It is also responsible for speech,
hearing, intelligence, and memory.
The brain needs a constant flow of sufficient oxygen, glucose, and other nutrients. For
that reason, it has a particularly good blood supply. Each side of the brain receives blood
through three arteries: the cerebral artery, the middle cerebral artery, and the posterior
 cerebral artery that supplies the back of the head, the lower brain, and the cerebellum.
Moreover, in the language learning the brain regions are enhanced. This is reflected in an
increase of white and gray matter (that contains most of the brain's neurons and synapses)
in said regions.

TASK 2. Based on what your reading understanding about “The language in the
brain”,  respond the following questions: 

According to the neurobiological basis of brain activity, explain how does the
brain  work? 
So, the brain sends and receives chemical and electrical signals throughout the body.
Different signals control different processes, and your brain interprets each. Some make
you feel tired, for example, while others make you feel pain.
Some messages are kept within the brain, while others are relayed through the spine and
across the body’s vast network of nerves to distant extremities. To do this, the central
nervous system relies on billions of neurons (nerve cells).
What does language lateralization mean? and what is the mismatch in
explaining its  function in the brain activity?
Lateralization is referred to as the localization of functions in the brain, commonly
attributed to its left hemisphere and right hemisphere. Each of these functions are
localized to either the right or left side. So, the left hemisphere is associated with
language functions and the right hemisphere is associated with more visuospatial
functions.

What are the research methods for investigating language and brain? 

Observational studies, speech error analysis to experiments and neuroimaging

techniques, Questionnaires, ethnography and case study.

CRITICAL AND REFLECTIVE LEARNING 

THINKING…! 
What did you learn from this unit? Make a list of the most relevant to the least relevant 
contents or topics.

most relevant  least relevant

 Language, linguistics, and  Psychological mechanisms

psychology: academic interfaces.  Main avenues to language
 Psychological process in language  attainment.
acquisition
 Biological basis of language
(POL)
 Speech perception: linguistic
processing
 Words and the mental lexicón
 Speech comprehension
 Speech productions
 Language and brain