Predykatyw modalny należy w audycji radiowej Dzieci wiedzą lepiej

Abstract

In a sample text, consisting of about 32,000 word forms, excerpted from the utterances of preschoolers participating in the radio show Children Know Better (26,432 word forms in preschoolers’ utterances) and approximately 5600 forms in the utterances of the journalist presenting the talk show (on the Third Programme of the Polish Radio) there appeared only two uses of the modal verb należy [should be done], which together with the number of appearances of synonymic modal predicate trzeba [must be done] (41 word forms) can be considered as a significant (negative) distinguishing mark of the transient (developmental) competence of a child in pre-school age. What is meant here is an everyday-use dative-case construction ... bo im się to po prostu należy [… because they simply deserve to get it]—in the utterance of a four-year-old Szymon—and the formula of courtesy: A co należałoby zrobić, aby czas dobrze wykorzystać? [And what should be done to make a good use of time?]—in the question asked by the editor Katarzyna Stoparczyk who moderated the show. Are the proportions of the uses of the parts of the synonymic sequence trzeba (41)—należy (2) to be treated as incidental, or do they reflect the actual tendency of the spoken utterances of the contemporary Polish language, or should they be treated as a developmental trait associated with the acquisition (assimilation, acquiring) of vocabulary by preschool-aged children?