Theory vs. practice
In this track, you will study language from both a theoretical and a practical point of view. In one class, you will find yourself studying theories about the cognitive processes that take place in the brains of children when using language, while in another class you will make a linguistic analysis of a story told by a young child. Combining the two leads to discovering differences between theory and practice, leading to the next step: trying to explain these differences.
Questions that you may try to answer in a paper or in your thesis could be, for example: What happens in our brain when we grow up bilingually? Can we explain how our brains process written language based on our eye movements? How can a test for preschoolers be reworked in such a way that it is also reliable and valid for children with a migration background? Which factors make one reading aloud programme more suitable for children with dyslexia than another programme?
Language acquisition as focal point
This track focuses on two types of language learning. First: language acquisition by children - typical development as well as those with an atypical pattern of language development (e.g. dyslexia, a hearing impairment, or a communicative impairment); and second or foreign language learning by both children and adults.
A unique programme
VU Amsterdam is the only university in the Netherlands that offers a bachelor programme which combines various language learning processes by different learner populations with human cognition. Moreover, Language and Mind has a small-scale setup, which means you benefit from personal contact with lecturers. Starting date of the track is September 1.
