Aspects of a language which develop in a particular sequence, regardless of input variation, learner motivation, or instructional intervention are called

• A. Developmental Features
• B. CPH
• C. Cross-Linguistic Influence
• D. Corpus

Answer: (A)

Aspects of language that develop in a relatively fixed order as learners acquire the language, moving from simpler to more complex forms regardless of how they are exposed to input, motivated, or taught, show a predictable progression shaped by internal learning processes. This pattern is described by developmental features—the idea that certain elements appear in a typical sequence during acquisition. The other terms describe different ideas: the Critical Period Hypothesis focuses on a time window for language learning rather than the order of developmental stages; Cross-Linguistic Influence is about how a learner’s first language affects second-language learning, which can vary with context and input; a corpus is simply a collection of language data used for analysis, not a developmental pattern. So developmental features best capture the concept of a universal, input-insensitive sequence in language development.