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Pros of a Bilingual Education
1. Motivates Kidsโ Skills In Their Native Language
Years ago, peoยญple believed that learnยญing a secยญond lanยญguage would conยญfuse a child.
Now, research shows that chilยญdren who study a forยญeign lanยญguage perยญform betยญter in their native lanยญguage than non-bilinยญgual stuยญdents, and the advanยญtage increasยญes the earยญliยญer you expose them to the secยญond lanยญguage.
2. Encourages Wisdom, Empathy, Curiosity, Cultural sensitivity & Tolerance
Wisยญdom develยญops from perยญsonยญal expeยญriยญences. Bilinยญgual eduยญcaยญtion proยญvides stuยญdents with more of those perยญsonยญal expeยญriยญences over time.
With greater wisยญdom, improved deciยญsions are easy to make, which can creยญate the founยญdaยญtion of a betยญter life.
The first sevยญen years of a childโs life are when a childโs belief sysยญtem starts to grow. Learnยญing a difยญferยญent lanยญguage can make them more aware of culยญturยญal difยญferยญences; they also come to underยญstand why those difยญferยญences exist and the imporยญtance of respectยญing culยญtures difยญferยญent from their own experiences.
3. Improves Kidsโ Brain Function ( Bilinguals Are Smarter! )
Many acaยญdยญeยญmยญic studยญies showed that bilinยญgual peoยญple are betยญter at tasks requirยญing mulยญti-taskยญing and attenยญtion-focusยญing than monolinguals.
Brain scans show they have more gray matยญter in the regions of their brains, which is vital for execยญuยญtive funcยญtions skills ( Emoยญtionยญal Conยญtrol, Workยญing Memยญoยญry, Inhiยญbiยญtion, Iniยญtiยญaยญtion, Planยญning and priยญorยญiยญtiยญzaยญtion, Shift, Orgaยญniยญzaยญtion, and Self-monitoring )
These benยญeยญfits show up earยญly โ new research shows that even babies less than a year old exposed to mulยญtiยญple lanยญguages show difยญferยญent cogยญniยญtive patยญterns in their brains comยญpared to monolinguals.
Some researchers argue that the best way to have smarter kids is to expose them to mulยญtiยญple lanยญguages when they are young.
Many jobs in eduยญcaยญtion, healthยญcare, tourism, transยญlaยญtion, social work, nationยญal secuยญriยญty, and interยญnaยญtionยญal busiยญness require or favour bilinยญgual candidates.
And speakยญing a forยญeign lanยญguage can make it easยญiยญer for your kids to be eliยญgiยญble for internยญships and work-study proยญgrams in othยญer counยญtries, espeยญcialยญly if they have critยญiยญcal skills like Medยญiยญcine or Engineering.
4. It Improves Test Scores In English, Mathematics And Science
Nobody can doubt the powยญer of lanยญguage. But who would have imagยญined that the words we hear and the senยญtences we speak might leave that skillยญful touch in our minds?
Studยญies of thouยญsands of high school stuยญdents have found that stuยญdents who have studยญied forยญeign lanยญguages perยญform betยญter on the Amerยญiยญcan Colยญlege Test (ACT) for Engยญlish and Mathematics.
Addiยญtionยญal studยญies have found that SAT-verยญbal scores improve with the length of time stuยญdents have studยญied the forยญeign lanยญguage. So if you want your kids to nail those tests, encourยญage them to learn a forยญeign language!
4. It Can Be Turned Into An After-School Activity
Many school disยญtricts across the Unitยญed States and Canaยญda have startยญed enrichยญment proยญgrams that introยญduce stuยญdents as young as 5 to a secยญond lanยญguage. Although these proยญgrams are not as long or involved as full bilinยญgual eduยญcaยญtion, they can be the start of the learnยญing progress.5. It Prepares Children For More Future Career Opportunities
6. It Helps Train A Childโs Ear For Music
Studยญies showed that speakยญers of tonal lanยญguages, like Manยญdarin and Canยญtonese, were betยญter at idenยญtiยญfyยญing musiยญcal pitchยญes than speakยญers of non-tonal lanยญguages like Engยญlish and French.
7. Helps Connecting Kids To Their Heritage
Many parยญents want their chilยญdren to learn a forยญeign lanยญguage so they can speak to famยญiยญly memยญbers in their native tongue.
Learnยญing a herยญitage lanยญguage will not only improve comยญmuยญniยญcaยญtion, but it also comes along with havยญing a good view of the culยญturยญal traยญdiยญtions. That can help chilยญdren appreยญciยญate their famยญiยญlyโs approach and points of view, which could be a corยญnerยญstone for your kidsโ future!
8. It Makes Travel More Fun, Exciting Travel Adventures And Deeper Insights Into How Others See The World
Being able to speak the lanยญguage of the counยญtry theyโre visยญitยญing unlocks the posยญsiยญbilยญiยญty of deepยญer conยญnecยญtions and underยญstandยญing. And most forยญeignยญers will appreยญciยญate the effort your chilยญdren are makยญing even if they arenโt fluยญent yet. Putting their lanยญguage skills to use in โreal lifeโ can also motiยญvate kids.
Even knowยญing basics like helยญlo, bye, please, and thank you can go to make a trip more fun!
9- It Helps Prevent Age-Related Cognitive Decline
Some studยญies showed that peoยญple who regยญuยญlarยญly speak a secยญond lanยญguage might be able to delay Alzheimerโs disยญease and othยญer types of demenยญtia by 4โ5 years.
The hypothยญeยญsis is that by improvยญing the brainโs execยญuยญtive funcยญtion, bilinยญguals develยญop a โcogยญniยญtive reserve,โ which helps delay sympยญtoms of dementia.
Cons of a Bilingual Education
The truth is that there are only 10 potenยญtial disยญadยญvanยญtages of learnยญing a forยญeign lanยญguage, and even those are not true in every case:1- Additional Effort For The Parents
That is probยญaยญbly the biggest issue. Raisยญing a mulยญtiยญlinยญgual child is a comยญmitยญment and a long-term investยญment in your child!
It will require extra effort on your part to proยญvide enough lanยญguage expoยญsure and extra encourยญageยญment and keep your lanยญguage use conยญsisยญtentยญly. At some points, you will need to change the lanยญguage you use durยญing your homeยญโs daiยญly routine.
It can feel a bit awkยญward at first if you introยญduce a new lanยญguage into the famยญiยญly but rest assured that it simยญply becomes a part of your daiยญly rouยญtine after a few weeks.
Itโs easยญiยญer to raise a mulยญtiยญlinยญgual secยญond child if your first child is raised that way. Your first will end up doing a lot of the work for you by simยญply being a blabยญberยญmouth all the time!
2- Speaking Later
While thereโs no sciยญenยญtifยญic eviยญdence that proves mulยญtiยญlinยญgual begin speakยญing latยญer. Howยญevยญer, many parยญents estiยญmate that there is a three to six-month delay comยญpared to monoยญlinยญgual chilยญdren the same age. Even so, six months is a small price to pay for your kidโs abilยญiยญty to speak two or three languages!3- Mixing Languages
Mixยญing words are prevaยญlent in chilยญdren learnยญing more than one lanยญguage at a time. But this is a temยญpoยญrary phenomenon.
At the age of four or five, it has mostยญly disยญapยญpeared. Rememยญber that chilยญdren learnยญing only one lanยญguage often use the wrong word until they know the right one.
The best remยญeยญdy is to be conยญsisยญtent when talkยญing to your child and nevยญer forยญget that pracยญtice makes perfect!
4. Education In A Second Language Can Be Inconsistent
Some school disยญtricts stop their bilinยญgual eduยญcaยญtion in high school. Some school disยญtricts donโt even offer a bilinยญgual eduยญcaยญtion as an option.
Because of this inconยญsisยญtenยญcy, some stuยญdents may lose some of their secยญond lanยญguage abilยญiยญties simยญply because they arenโt using it every day.
5. Bilingual Education Is Not Cheap
Many schools are already cutยญting their creยญative classยญes for fundยญing issues. So, the cost of adding bilinยญgual coursยญes is someยญthing that many schools donโt have on their planยญning list. Experts statยญed that a sinยญgle-lanยญguage proยญgram is easยญiยญer and cheapยญer to operยญate and can still proยญvide the essenยญtial skills that the stuยญdent may require by adding some art and creยญative activยญiยญties to the lanยญguage classes!6. Bilingual Education Can Shift A Studentโs Focus
If a bilinยญgual eduยญcaยญtion proยญgram is dividยญed into a stanยญdard 50/50 split durยญing the school day, stuยญdents who strugยญgle with the new lanยญguage may find themยญselves focused on the secยญond lanยญguage only.
For the schools that proยญvide creยญative or athยญletยญic classยญes. If the stuยญdent falls behind on the secยญond lanยญguage and strugยญgles to keep up with their classยญwork, their only option is to try to catch up on the secยญond lanยญguage instead of learnยญing essenยญtial life skills.
7. There May Be A Lack Of Qualified Teachers And Assistants
For bilinยญgual eduยญcaยญtion to be effecยญtive, it must be immerยญsive. We need to have teachยญers and teachยญing assisยญtants who are fluยญent in both languages.
With Modยญern eduยญcaยญtionยญal requireยญments, many teachยญers are strugยญgling to meet the minยญiยญmum requireยญments in many subยญjects. There isnโt time to add anothยญer lanยญguage to the mix.
The Younger, The Better!
Studยญies by Harยญvard Uniยญverยญsiยญty conยญfirm that creยญativยญiยญty, critยญiยญcal thinkยญing skills, and flexยญiยญbilยญiยญty of the mind are sigยญnifยญiยญcantยญly improved if chilยญdren learn a secยญond lanยญguage at a younger age. Preschool years, espeยญcialยญly the first 3 years of life, are believed to be vital in a childโs life. That is when the founยญdaยญtions for attiยญtudes, thinkยญing, and learnยญing, among othยญers, are laid down. Research has shown that 50% of our learnยญing abilยญiยญty is develยญoped by age 4 and anothยญer 30% by age 8. That is why three-year-olds are encourยญaged to learn a secยญond lanยญguage. Howยญevยญer, this doesnโt mean that 80% of oneโs knowlยญedge or intelยญliยญgence is formed until they are eight years old. It simยญply means that chilยญdren develยญop their main learnยญing pathยญways durยญing their first few years of life. Although chilยญdrenโs minds are known for being โlike a sponge,โ which absorbs everyยญthing, it is recยญomยญmendยญed to give them enough time to acquire and fulยญly underยญstand one lanยญguage before introยญducยญing anothยญer one. Othยญerยญwise, they might go through a conยญfusยญing time in which they wonโt know how to express themselves.Some Tips For Beginning Bilingual Education In Early Age
1- Surround The Child With More Than One Language Through Conversations And Social Groups
Expose chilยญdren to mulยญtiยญlinยญgual expoยญsure and give them lots of opporยญtuยญniยญties to play and chat with chilยญdren who speak a secยญond lanยญguage. Mainยญtain home (herยญitage) lanยญguage when a secยญond lanยญguage is learned outยญside the home.
Proยญvide fun and enterยญtainยญing lanยญguage-learnยญing resources ( music, dance and DVDs) in both lanยญguages, often with chilยญdren of simยญiยญlar ages.
Always proยญmote readยญing and stoยญryยญtelling in mulยญtiยญple lanยญguages; try to find out a favourite stoยญry for your kid in mulยญtiยญple lanยญguages and start to read and see how they will be so excitยญed about that!
2- Do Not Create False Expectations
Chilยญdren who are in conยญtact with a secยญond lanยญguage canยญnot reach the results as bilinยญgual chilยญdren withยญout the intenยญsiยญty of truยญly bilinยญgual education. Parยญents must be clear and not have false expecยญtaยญtions, for examยญple, thinkยญing that the chilยญdren with a few hours of Engยญlish a week will be able to speak this lanยญguage fluยญidยญly after a month or even ten!3. A second Language Is Best Learned In Close Contact With A Native Speaker
For sucยญcessยญful anticยญiยญpaยญtion of a secยญond lanยญguage at an earยญly age, it is vital to have your kid in direct conยญtact with a native speakยญer. Such conยญtact can be through the famยญiยญly, dayยญcare, or a priยญvate teacher.4. Take Advantage Of Varied Materials To Intensify And To Motivate The Learning
There are varยญiยญous prodยญucts in the marยญket, like books, CDs, DVDs, and games, that can help with learnยญing a secยญond lanยญguage.
All these mateยญriยญals are ideยญal for mainยญtainยญing the childโs interยญest in a lanยญguage because they reinยญforce learnยญing playfully.
Perยญfect
Beauยญtiยญfulยญly explained, thanks for the effort!