Why we Respect our Teachers A Note on Language Learnability and Active Learning

Language acquisition especially in human infants is a problem that intrigues the layman and baffles the expert. This article takes a computational viewpoint toward the problem and investigates the problem of learnability of languages. We look at some results that show that learning is impossible even under very weak criterion. We next look at a framework in which learning takes place with a helpful teacher and demonstrate the role such a teacher can play in easing the learning problem. The discussion would define language learning formally, survey classical results and point toward recent advances in the field.