One of the most remarkable accomplishments of early childhood is the development of language. Even more extraordinary are those children who become proficient in more than one language. However in the past, childhood bilingualism has been met with skepticism and criticism from parents, educators, and other experts due to conflicting beliefs about the impact of learning more than one language simultaneously. Initially, my parents spoke their native language to me but decided that once I started school, I might get confused so they stopped speaking Hindi to me. Thus, I developed bilingual language skills later in life when it was much more time consuming and difficult. All children are capable of learning more than one language during early childhood, and research has shown that there is a critical period in early childhood during which language is learned most readily. Brain plasticity is largely responsible for this phenomenon. Brain plasticity can be defined as the learning that takes place as new cells are developed in the brain (there is an increase in the density of synaptic connections around the time of a child’s vocabulary spurt). Thus, infants have inborn abilities and predispositions that help them detect information needed for language learning. Along with these innate abilities, the environment also plays a large role in language acquisition. Without exposure to language, children cannot even begin to learn to speak. Given the fact that brain pathways are so receptive to language during the first 4 years of life, children should be exposed to languages very early in development.
Many parents are concerned about confusion if they teach a child two languages before the child has even mastered the primary one. One aspect of bilingual language development is mixing of the languages. Research has demonstrated that it is normal for young children to mix both languages due to their limited vocabulary. In fact, it is actually very common for adult bilinguals to mix languages. Most people will find that it is extremely difficult to keep the languages separate. The social context that the child is in determines how much the child will mix the two languages (i.e., if the child is around someone who speaks both languages, he is more likely to mix the two languages). The mixing of words will likely pass once the child is 4 or 5 and has built a large enough vocabulary. I once had lunch with a 4-year-old child who was able to speak French with his mother, Bengali with his father, and English with me. In fact, learning and maintaining the language of one’s parents is an integral component to developing one’s cultural and ethnic identity as well as sense of belonging. Abruptly ceasing the use of one of the languages by a child’s parents may lead to emotional and psychological difficulties for the child. Language is linked with emotion and identity, and abandoning a language can be quite traumatic for a child.
Other disadvantages to bilingualism may include speech delay (e.g., bilingual children may start talking 3-6 months later than their peers). In addition, once children start attending school and are exposed less to their native language, parents may have to put in more effort at home to reduce any language loss. However, research has shown that learning more than one language does not lead to significant delays or disorders in language acquisition. There are a number of benefits to bilingualism such as a) superior reading and writing skills in both languages, b) higher analytical, social, and academic skills, c) increased performance on cognitive tests, and d) sounding like a native when speaking. When children maintain their bilingualism, they gain a deeper understanding of language and how to use it more effectively. Research has also shown that children may develop more flexibility in their thinking due to processing information through two different languages.
For parenting tips on how to raise a bilingual child, please visit:
http://www.brainy-child.com/article/bilingual.shtml
For information on immersion schools, please visit:
http://www.publicschoolreview.com/articles/25
http://www.ericdigests.org/2004-4/parents.htm
Great Blog, Anju!
ReplyDeleteI believe your are right. I wish more bilingual parents would considers bilingualism as a standard procedure for their children. There are several bilingual preschools and schools. It's soo much easier to learn languages from the beginning. We are definitely underestimating the learning ability of the kids.