Upload
darrell-gallagher
View
222
Download
3
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Bilingualism
Growing up Bilingual
Vancouver, Canada. A multicultural, multilingual city
• ~ 60% of school children speak English as a L2
• Sizable immigrant groups from many countries
• Canadian culture encourages maintenance of home language & culture, along with adoption of new language & culture
• Official policy of bilingualism
Questions and fear….
– Will it hurt my baby if we speak more than one language at home?
– Does exposure to more than one language delay language acquisition?
– My doctor said my husband and I should both speak English to our child, but I don’t speak it very well
– I’m concerned about having my mother babysit because she doesn’t speak English
Thinking points…
• More than half of the world’s population is bilingual
• In most places in the world, it is the norm to grow up with > one language
• Different types of bilingualism
Important Distinctions
• Bilingual First Language Acquisition– De Houwer (Meisel) sets at acquiring two
languages simultaneously < 2mos of age– Others up to 2 years
• Bilingual Second Language Acquisition– Acquiring two languages simultaneously, but
the second starts later
• Second Language Acquisition
Neuroimaging work
• Equivalent activation in both languages – Chee, et. al., 1999; Klein, et. al., 1999
• Different activation for second language in BSLA but similar areas in BFLA subjects– Kim, et. al., 1997; Dehaene, et. al.., 1997
• Equivalent areas of activation even in lateL2 learners IFF expertise equated – Perani, et. al., 1998
• Aphasia, and selective loss of only 1 language– Moretti, 2001 (Croatian-Italian bilingual)
•
Kim, Reilkin, Lee, & Hirsch, 1997
• Early bilinguals (childhood, before age 8)
• Late bilinguals (adulthood, mostly after age 20)
• Task, imagine describing a scenario in one language vs. another
• fMRI scans during imagined speaking task
late bilingual brain
early bilingual brain
Behavioural Studies w/adults
• Most studies, age of acquisition predicts results, with BFLA adults like Monolinguals
• Some, even simultaneous bilinguals show a language dominance – Cutler, et. al.: Fr faster at detecting syllable,
English at phonemes – the “ba” in balance– Sebastian, et. al: Gating task in vowel perception
• Best predictor of performance is maternal language
But are bilinguals delayed?
• Most studies, no.
• Some studies, yes– First words– Age of beginning to combine words– Maybe even some speech perception
• BUT the delays are minor, and do not occur in all children
Are there Advantages?
• Being able to speak > 1 language!
• Perhaps more attention to/awareness of– The structural properties of the languages– The phonology of the languages
• Cognitive Flexibility
• Problem Solving
Reasons to do bilingual research
• To understand the process of bilingual language acquisition– Is it the same as acquiring two languages, or is
it different from the beginning?
• But also, as a perfect vehicle for studying the role of the input on language acquisition– As a within subject design, differences in
cognitive development, personality factors, etc. are held constant
Difficulties in Doing Bilingualism Research
• Definition of bilingualism
• Varieties of bilingualism– Differences in exposure conditions (discuss and
show questionnaires we use)– Language separation or not in the input
• Sometimes called “interlocuter principle”
• But is this even possible?
– Changes in input, including language loss
Sociolinguistic Factors
• Parenta discourses styles– How do they use their languages
• Parental discourse strategies– How do they expect the child to
• Social attitudes– Support or not for bilingualism in the
community
Do children confuse their languages?
• Theoretical issues:– Do children start with a single undifferentiated
system that then gradually pulls apart– Or do they start with a different representation
for each language acquired?
• Empirical issues:– Is there evidence of language mixing?– Is there evidence of language separation?
Code Switching
• What it is
• When it occurs
• Does it indicate confusion (or fusion)?
• Or is it pragmatically correct?
Evidence for two systems
• Morphosyntax
• Translation Equivalents
• Sociolinguistic use
Challenges
• Doing bilingualism research RIGHT
• How to design studies
• How to assign children to groups
• How to control for in home factors
• How to control for sociolinguistic factors
• How to identify and treat language delay in a bilingual child?