ABSTRACT
Theorists of language acquisition are divided into two opposing camps. There are those who believe that the adult linguistic system as described by generative grammar must serve as the starting point for explaining language acquisition, and arrive at the conclusion that such an explanation requires the postulation of specifically linguistic innate constraints. The contending view is that semantics provides an entry wedge into the grammatical system and makes it unnecessary to postulate such innate knowledge. The two schools of thought represent two scientific cultures. In each, different kinds of data are looked at for evidence, and the way these data are interpreted and the kinds of arguments deemed relevant differ.
