Transcript Bilingualism - University of British Columbia

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)
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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
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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
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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?