Bilingualism Is A Multi Dimensional Human Phenomenon Essay

This trend was also prevalent in the right hemisphere for bilinguals however not seen in monolinguals (x = 56, y = -53, z = 42; Z-score = 3.4; P<0.001). Voxel-based morphometry revealed that overall proficiency correlated negatively with age of acquisition (P<0.01; r=-0.855) and second-language proficiency correlated with grey-matter density in exactly the same left inferior parietal region previously identified by a different study (x = -48, y = -59, z = 46; Z-score = 4.1; P<0.05). (Mechelli, 2004)

Bilingualism is becoming more and more common as countries like the United States and Canada attract large amounts of immigration. In the 2011 Census, it indicated that 21% of the U.S. population aged 5 and over were speaking a language other than English. Our brain is constantly reorganizing itself as we experience stimuli from our environment, one may also expect neural plasticity when exposed to variations in language. To obtain a more in depth look at how the cognitive process language can affect the structure of our brain, this paper will address the research question: To what extent does bilingualism affect brain structure.

The benefits of bilingualism is something that is well understood in the literature spawning the term, “the bilingual advantage,” which is supposed to encompass enhanced performance control as well as overall mental flexibility culminating in an overall slower decline in executive function as aging continues. Such claims are well supported by evidence from young to old in a multitude of studies spanning decades. What is just as well understood and researched but less often talked about are the negative effects of bilingualism on the brain. Second language acquisition, while potentially providing some benefits to memory and executive control, negatively impacts vocabulary size and linguistic recall tasks of bilinguals compared to monolinguals resulting in less language and verbal fluency.

Each time a bilingual speaks its brain functions in slightly different ways than that of a monolingual’s. Bilinguals deal with constant dual-language activation as they are able to switch between two sometimes very different languages. The ability to use one language without intrusions from the other language is seen as an important topic of study (Van Assche, Duyck, and Gollan, 2013). However, one of the costs of being bilingual is the reduced exposure to each language. Studies show that both sequential and simultaneous bilinguals score lower on vocabulary measures than monolinguals (Rosselli et al., 200 as cited in Kaushankaya, Blumenfeld and Marian, 2011). Strong evidence for weakened vocabulary performance in bilinguals comes from

Bilingualism refers to speaking two languages fluently, where one is a native language and the other is a secondary language either learned through family, school or by other means. It is not true that introducing a new language to children will affect their language development and delay. Instead, it has the benefits of improving cognitive and literacy skills, which means that children will become smarter when they are bilingual. Nonetheless, the languages should be spoken constantly and need an equal amount of exposure to the children. If not, the children’s brain will be damaged. This will cause lack of confidence if one language is exposed more than other. Furthermore, speaking two languages improves the development of the brain structure. In the present day, I believe that every individual child is either bilingual or monolingual. It is because many families moved to a foreign land where the language is different, so their children have no choice but to learn a new language. In addition, the children can also be exposed to a new language in numerous ways. For example, they can be taught by watching TV shows, cartoons in a different language from their mother tongue. In my opinion, children will learn a new language faster when they watch cartoons. It is because the children will copy what they see on the TV, and absorb the information into their brain. Furthermore, children can learn a language through play. When children play with adults and other children, they will

Simultaneous acquisition of bilingualism and multilingualism means a person starts learning two or more languages from birth. After the child is born, they start to hear the languages spoken at home. As an example, my cousin married an Italian. Their son at home experiences a bilingual influences as his mother speaks English to him and the father speaks Italian to him. During the weekend, the child stays in the grandparents’ house. The grandparents speak Chinese to him. In this fashion, he is learning three languages simultaneously. So, his first languages are English, Italian and Chinese. He knows which language is appropriate when he talks to different people. When his grandmother came to visit from Italy, he spoke Italian to her. He is four years old and attends school. The teacher only speaks English. Since he spends additional time learning English, therefore his fluency in English is advanced over the other two languages he speaks.

According to Psychology Today, around eighteen percent of Americans are bilingual. While eighteen percent may seem like a small portion of the population, this translates to fifty one million Americans who speak a second language. The steady growth of bilingualism in America has made way for many debates surrounding the role of multiple languages in society and education. Martin Espada, a poet and advocate for the Spanish language, uses his works to defend the right of Latinos to speak their own language. He defines bilingualism as a link between people and culture, allowing them to adopt their cultural identities. Meanwhile, Richard Rodriguez holds a different viewpoint on the debate. According to Rodriguez, Spanish is a private language and English is a public one. Rodriguez portrays bilingualism as a pathway to public society, allowing social connections to take place. While the word itself simply means the ability to speak more than one language, the idea behind bilingualism exceeds this definition. Bilingualism allows people to preserve the language of their ancestors and tie them to their roots. Culture can be kept alive when bilingualism is present in our modern society.

Twenty percent of the population can be considered bilingual in the U.S today. They’re over 311 different languages spoken in the United States. Living in the States, there has become a popular belief that English is the only language that should be spoken. It’s astonishing people don’t apprehend they’re thousands of languages worldwide and U.S citizens are trying to be self centered around one language, English. Therefore, this has generated tension throughout by cultural warfare. Cultural warfare has been brought to this world created from individuality and creating own identities. Bilingualism has created a window to connect with others around us from all over the world. Without knowing more than one language, we would be restricted from many people and opportunities of living an extraordinary, passionate culture.

Have you ever had a family member or someone you know experience Alzheimer's Disease, but you just wish you knew how to reduce the risk before you will eventually retrieve it. Many health professionals, universities, medical labs, and scientist have studied the connections between bilingualism and the decrease in the chance of developing Alzheimer’s Disease. Accordingly, there is a higher abundance of people becoming bilingual than ever. Individuals who speak more than just one primary language could reduce their chances of developing Alzheimer’s.

A group of over 200 researchers, split in six from the BRAINGLOT group have further investigated the acquisition of language and the organisation of the different neural networks in the human brain. This is a project based in Spain, which is actively investigating the differences between a monolingual and bilingual brain. (Brumley, 2012) According to Nuria Sebastian-Galles, who is the coordinator of the BRAINGLOT group believes that Spain is the ideal place to conduct such research due to the high number of both bilinguals and monolinguals available. There are individuals who speak two languages which are very similar e.g. Spanish and Catalan, but also who speak two languages completely different e.g. Basque and Spanish. Apart from bilinguals, there is also a high number of monolinguals, which allowed the researches to examine all three types of

Es posible que tú no sepas que estoy diciendo en este oración si solamente hablas Ingles y it is possible that you don't understand what I'm saying in this sentence if you only speak Spanish. Most people could look at that sentence and say only someone who is bilingual can understand the sentence above. Which is true. In the stories by Richard Rodriguez and Martin Espada, they explain their thoughts on bilingualism,both ideas are very different. For me, bilingualism is very important to me, as a tool and a way of expression for family and friends. Bilingualism can enhance lives, and incorporate a better understanding between others in different cultures. Bilingualism is a bridge to connect us culturally and idealistically.

With the amount of raging debate America faces as the melting pot of cultures, the topic of multilingualism polarizes the nation to either hate it or love it, making it hard to compromise. Speaking on my part, being Hispanic, or simply one that the U.S identifies as a person with Spanish ethnic traits, I came to learn English as a second language. Learning English felt like a survival while also being a quest, the common case of speaking English at school and Spanish at home became a ritual. Occupied with learning English to feel acceptance, I didn’t find the necessity for schools to implement bilingual studies since I’m already a fluent Spanish-speaker. But, after reading Philip Carter’s article, Why this bilingual education ban should have repealed long ago, it also came to my consciousness that I’m not as “fluent” as I thought I was. Since the time I immigrated, I’ve lost most of my Spanish literacy skills, feeling distant to my mother tongue. In Franklin Raff’s article, American ‘multilingualism: a national tragedy, though I have some disagreements, I do find some reasonable points. Raff claims that different languages make conversation between people difficult and undesirable. There have been a few instances where I witness store clerks, be it cashier or associates, and most commonly nannies or housekeepers that solely speak Spanish. This brings difficulties when communicating with customers that only speak English. Even though having a communal language makes

What does it mean to be bilingual? Is it as simple as having the ability to speak two languages? Or does it have a deeper meaning? Martin Espada and Richard Rodriguez have opposite views on the concept of bilingualism. Espada feels Latinos have the right to speak Spanish anywhere, considering language is intertwined with identity. Conversely, Rodriguez believes that to truly understand a language, you must forget the language that is already known to feel accepted in society. These ideas, similar to mine are not as simple as speaking two languages. To me the idea of bilingualism is respecting the two languages that are spoken by having the courage to speak them anywhere, at anytime.

I am not bilingual. My entire family has been American for several generations. I have family records of long dead relatives traveling across the Atlantic Ocean on the MayFlower. I might be as American as one can get; however, I am not blind to the struggles of the bilingual community. I see my friends unable able to speak to their relatives and watch as their parent’s culture slowly drift away from them. I can see how upset they are because at an early age they were forced to learn English rather than celebrate their own language. Martin Espada and Richard Rodriguez view this problem quite differently. Espada grew up speaking English while Rodriguez was taught Spanish. Espada sees negativity and hate towards the bilingual community and chooses to oppose the zealotry with his words. Rodriguez on the other hand grew up with Spanish and had to learn that languages don’t decide your place in society. Espada and Rodriguez address these arguments in their essays The New Bathroom Policy at English High School and Hungry of Memory.

Growing up, bilingualism did not play a very prevalent role in my life. My family, friends, and everyone else I interacted with spoke fluent English, and because of this, I became sheltered from other languages. But as I grew older I began to realize that other languages did in fact exist in our community and they played a large role in most people's lives. I also began to witness the struggles others faced with language and soon understood the importance of bilingualism. Bilingualism not only allows people to communicate, but it also allows people to connect with each other. Accredited authors, Martin Espada and Richard Rodriguez both explore the necessity of bilingualism in their essays. Espada, a poetry professor at University of Massachusetts Amherst, uses his poems and essays to fight against xenophobia and promote bilingualism. Richard Rodriguez attended Stanford, Berkeley, and University of California and he uses his writing to explain the necessity of bilingualism in his own and others lives. Both authors care deeply about their languages and argue passionately about the importance of bilingualism.