Even babies who cannot speak can benefit from a second language. Some education experts say that children who learn more than one language before kindergarten are more likely to understand math concepts and develop their thinking skills. use logic. Concentrate, memorize, and make decisions.
And the sooner you start, the better.
This is according to research conducted by Associate Professor Maria Arredondo of the University of Texas at Austin. Her research findings reveal how bilingual infants aged 6 to 10 months think and learn differently than infants exposed to only one language.
Arredondo led the experiment By observing over 100 children and administering attention tests to their brains. The babies wore wired hats and she sang songs and shared toys to keep them comfortable throughout the process. This task measured how infants learn, inhibitory control, memory and attention, and compared brain activity in bilingual and monolingual subjects.
Her research results, published in 2022, show that bilingual babies displayed different neural activity than monolingual babies. This suggests that early exposure to language can alter a baby’s brain development and even affect non-verbal cognitive function in the first year of life.
Does early childhood bilingualism benefit the brain?
Bilingualism has been controversial over the years, with some opposing it and others defending its benefits. There is so much conflicting information and myths about parenting in a bilingual home that some pediatricians advise against exposing children to her two languages.
Basically, bilingual people split their time between learning two languages, so they have to learn twice as many languages. words and phrases When I was a kid who knew only one language. The level of mastery and proficiency in each language may vary among bilingual learners.
Arredondo’s research suggests that bilingual children can distinguish between languages before their first word. This skill helps strengthen the part of the brain responsible for managing and planning behavior.
Bilingual children performed the same level of tasks as monolingual children, but used different parts of the brain, even when doing errands not related to language. “Bilinguals utilized the left frontal cortex much more than monolinguals,” Arendondo explained. Stanford Psychology Podcast. “[The monolinguals] It attacked the right front of the head. Some people worked their left frontal area, but not as much as bilinguals. “
Similarly, Arendundo also noticed from her research Bilinguals don’t necessarily do the job better than monolinguals, she said, but they do have some surprising advantages. “Bilingual Babies [6-10 months] They show more developmental progress than monolinguals,” Arendondo said. “Monolingualism and bilingualism improve with age, but bilingualism is showing its power faster.”
At 6 months, both monolinguals and bilinguals utilized two areas of the brain, or “channels,” but by 10 months, the bilingual brain’s hidden psychic powers were revealed. . “Bilinguals used more channels than monolinguals. I think they used eight channels and monolinguals used four,” Arendondo explained on the podcast.
“More activity was manifested in bilingual than in monolingual, which correlated with performance. Thus, improved performance after 6 months was correlated with more activity. brains are beginning to show adaptation very early on, just showing the neuroplasticity of the bilingual brain.”
When she looked at correlations with school-aged children, she found that this greater activity was associated with improved verbal skills.
Bilinguals think and learn differently
Bilingual children have a special ability to mix words from two different languages when speaking. This is known as code mixing and can often make children look confused. However, research suggests that this may indicate bilingual language use. Originality and ingenuity.
In some language communities, this kind of code mixing is common among adults, and children imitate what they hear. Additionally, code mixing is also a way for bilinguals to quickly use words from more familiar languages when they cannot easily find suitable words in another language. So it’s important to understand that this behavior doesn’t necessarily indicate confusion, but rather that he’s a general adaptation from speaking two languages.
Remarkably, bilingual babies with the most pronounced elevations in left frontal brain activity were exposed to higher levels of ‘code exchange’ between multiple languages at home and were less likely to accomplish the task. It means that it was also a successful baby. To the discovery of Arredondo. This suggests that code switching between languages may help increase attention and facilitate learning in bilinguals.
“These papers show that bilingual brains and attention are adapting to their environment and improving over time,” Arredondo said. University of Texas at Austin. “It’s possible that this code exchange environment is improving learning, but this data doesn’t quite tell. It’s all correlated.”
Should I start learning a language early?
Arredondo hopes to use her research to encourage more parents to adopt a second language early. But is faster really better?
“This is a question that the field is still trying to understand. There are numerous studies that show that executive functioning supports academic performance. Improved executive functioning has been shown to improve reading and math skills. ,” Aledodo said on the podcast. “We know that bilingual children are more sensitive to the linguistic features of their language, which is also related to academic achievement.”
according to National Library of MedicineA person exposed to two languages from birth tends to have a better accent, a richer vocabulary, and better grammatical proficiency than a sequential bilingual. In addition, it has a higher ability to process language in real time.
For example, people who learned Spanish and English from birth are much more adept at using grammatical gender than those who didn’t. study spanish as a second language when they are old.
Arredondo believes that being bilingual not only helps you improve academically, but also helps you develop important social skills. research revealed that immersion in multiple cultures can increase awareness of other people’s emotions and social behaviors that are relevant to improving social competence. Learning two languages early on, he said, may provide children with valuable tools for navigating social interactions with others.
Although the ability to learn language declines with age, the ability to learn is still there. learn a new language At any age. By using and working with the right methods, anyone can become a proficient bilingual, regardless of age.
This article was created by TPR guidance Syndicated by Wealth of Geeks.
Caitriona is a language tutor and founder of TPR Teaching. Caitriona has been teaching English since 2016. She has taught in schools in Spain and England and now teaches online. Her blog is filled with articles, worksheets, resources, tips and advice for learners and teachers about her language.
