Is the acquisition of a first grammar guided by an innate, grammar-specific device?

Research Paper (undergraduate) from the year 2005 in the subject Speech Science / Linguistics, grade: A-, University of London (School of Languages, Linguistics and Culture), course: Linguistic Anakysis, language: English, abstract: Children all over the world seem to acquire their first language in much the same manner. The stages in their highly structured First Language Acquisition (FLA) process that involve making hypotheses and testing them against the linguistic input they are exposed to, appear to be universal in all children. However, Chomsky¿s nativist theory of a Language Faculty that is innate in every healthy human being has been challenged vigorously - especially by advocates of the behaviouristic school.

Alas, there are certain arguments that strongly support the Innateness Hypothesis (IH) and the existence of a Language Faculty1:

1. FLA is uniform

2. FLA is untutored

3. FLA is underdetermined by exposure/data

4. FLA draws from degenerated input

5. FLA features no negative evidence

6. FLA is always successful