The Effects Of Bilingualism

Dual language learners are children learning two or more languages at the same time, as well as those learning a second language while continuing to develop their first (or home) language (Dual language learning, 2008). The number of children being raised in bilingual homes is large and growing, however the mechanism of language development in children from bilingual homes is not well described or understood (Hoff et al., 2011). A large body of research has refuted the opinion that dual language input may confuse children, and other research indicates that children exposed to two languages can distinguish those languages from infancy, learn two phonological systems, two vocabularies and two grammars (Kova´cs & Mehler, 2009a; Petitto,

In America, there is a predominant growth in multiple ethnicities and cultural backgrounds; leading to the usage of multiple languages in the American culture. There is a growing need for many people to learn and utilize multiple languages within the workplace and within one 's own personal life. The importance of bilingualism and the knowledge of multiple languages is ever increasing, and therefore becoming more important for the younger generations. The push for knowing multiple languages and becoming bilingual has many potential negative and positive effects.

Bilingualism is a very debated concept today. The idea of bilingualism varies from person to person. For known poet Martín Espada, bilingualism allows a sense of identity for multiple language speakers. To compare, writer Richard Rodriguez views bilingualism as a right and obligation. Bilingualism is a right all citizens should have. Yet, citizens of the United States face discrimination every day for their ability to speak multiple languages.

Bilingualism is the ability to communicate in two different languages. Bilingual education is the use of two different languages in classroom instruction. According to the Encyclopedia of Children’s Health, and many other researchers, “languages are learned the easiest during a child’s youngest years. Therefore, when a child is growing up in a bilingual home or is receiving bilingual education, can easily speak both languages. Children who grow up in a household where two languages are spoken, usually acquire both languages simultaneously. Although their ability quality and skill of each language may be somewhat slower than a child that is

Thesis - According to both Rodriguez and Espada, bilingualism is the separation of public and private language in society. to protect the rights of Spanish speakers.

Bilingualism has to do with an individual being fluent in two or more languages at work or educational facilities.

According to oncology nurse, Suzanne Robin in her article “Why Is It Easier for a Child to Learn a New Language Than an Adult,” “Young children are hard-wired to learn language in the first few years of life. When frequently exposed to two languages, they unconsciously acquire the second language naturally, applying the same skills they use to acquire their native language. Older children and adults have to learn the language consciously by studying it.” (2014, para. 2).

There are many factors that influence a bilingual’s position. One of the most important factors in determining fluency is the age. Scholars state that the best time to learn a language is after the age of one and before puberty. During this time, children will become fluent without requiring any extra instruction. However, “the child gets to adolescence, the harder it becomes for this ease of fluency to be accomplished” (Hagen 45). The most famous study to demonstrate the importance of age in learning multiple languages was done by Eric Lenneberg. He discovered that children who developed aphasia under the age of eight almost always made a full recovery and were able to speak fluently and continue

Language is used every day in our everyday lives all over the world. Marian and Shook state that “language is used to communicate our thoughts and feelings, connect with others, identify culture, and understand the world around us” (Marian & Shook ,2012,para.1) There are many languages all over the world and some people understand more than one language such as understanding both English and Spanish. People that are Bilingual are exceptional in a way that they are intelligent, helpful, and have advantage openers.

Raising kids in bilingual environment has more advantages than disadvantages. This parenting tip is highly recommended by some bilingual parents

Many people do not believe in bilingual education because they think that the student would confuse the two languages and in the end speak neither one correctly. A closer look at when the two language mixes reveals that most of them master one of the languages to the same degree as a monolingual speaker (Korth 3). Through their bilingualism, they can use linguistic means creatively in accordance with the demands of the situation. This flexibility is a cognitive ability, which monolingual speakers can achieve only through effortful learning and training. Switching from one language to the other can be interpreted as an indication of the speaker’s fluency (Korth 3). In some cases, the languages are only spoken in specific places. If a child speaks

The following terms may be used in readings and research publications to describe second-language learners: bilingual leaner, English as a second-language student, student with limited English proficiency, language-minority learner, English-language learner, and linguistically diverse student. A bilingual child can be described as a child younger than 3 years of age who learns two (sometimes more) languages at the same time or a child who learns a second language after age 3. Sequential acquisition describes what occurs when a child starts to learn a second a language after the first language is only partially established- such as when a young child enrolls in a school where his native language is not spoken. Bilingual children initially might have smaller vocabularies when each language is considered separately. But when one considers that the memory capacity of young children is limited and this restricts their rate of vocabulary acquisition, it is understandable. Bilingual children have two sets of vocabularies to learn. At any particular point during development, one would expect them to know fewer vocabulary items in each language but approximately the same number when both languages are considered. Many experts suggest that if more than one language is spoken in the home and both languages are spoken well, the infant should be exposed to both from the beginning. However, if, as is so

Bilingualism is a subject that has triggered trillion of debates worldwide. There are those who argue that no specific period of time that is designated to learn a certain language. They stress that anybody can learn a new language at whatever age. Others do argue that using bilinguals is prepositioning the child on a wrong footing on how to learn the first language and the second language. Whether this people have a point or not is the major point of writing this paper.

The ability to speak and understand more than one language has several benefits for adolescents and adults, but there are several concerns that arise when children are brought up in a home where two languages are spoken or if they use different languages in different settings. Bilingualism a common speech and language category that people are falling into within the United States. Bilingualism, according to ASHA is, “the use of at least two languages by an individual and is a dynamic and fluid process across a number of domains, including experiences, tasks, topics, and time” (ASHA, 2004).Within bilingualism are two subcategories: simultaneous and sequential bilingualism. Simultaneous bilingualism, “occurs when a young child has had significant and meaningful exposure to two language from birth and, ideally, the child will have equal quality experiences with both languages” (ASHA, 2004). Sequential Bilingualism, occurs when an individual has had significant meaningful exposure to a second language, usually after the age of three and after the first language is well establish. These second language learners are referred to as ‘English Language Learners’ in U.S. schools” (ASHA, 2004). The state of learning two or more languages at once has resulted in several

Bhatia (2013), states that “bilingualism and multilingualism is an interdisciplinary and complex field”. As is self-evident from the prefixes (bi- and multi-), bilingualism and multilingualism phenomena are devoted to the study of production, processing, and comprehension of two or more languages, respectively.