Raising Bilingual Children: Myths vs. Facts

In my experience, we Americans often put bilingualism on a pedestal:

• “Wow, he speaks five different languages. That’s crazy!”
• “Ana just started learning English this year at school, and she’s already pretty fluent!”
• “You must be so smart since you know both English and French.
  
  

Yet many myths about bilingualism still exist in America, even among healthcare and educational professionals (including some well-meaning speech-language pathologists!) For the bilingual or multilingual families out there, how many times have you heard that:

• Your children will “get confused” from learning more than one language?
• You should stop speaking your native language at home?
• Children who have speech and/or language delays should only learn 1 language?

The truth is that there is NO research supporting these opinions! Here’s what the research DOES say:

• Learning more than one language does NOT cause language delays or disorders. It also does NOT cause confusion or additional difficulties for people with disabilities.
• Everyone can learn more than one language, even a child who has a significant disorder and only speaks a handful of words (e.g., “water” in English, “Mommy” in Spanish, “baby” in sign language).
• Bilingualism provides tremendous cognitive and linguistic benefits.
• The best thing that parents can do for their children is to continue speaking their native language(s) at home. It’s necessary for children to have a very strong first language that they can build additional languages onto. It’s much more important for a parent to speak fluent Vietnamese at home than incorrect English (even if no one else at school speaks Vietnamese).
• Learning their families’ native language(s) also provides a cultural connection to family and roots. A common saying is that “a loss of language is a loss of culture.” If Spanish isn’t promoted at home, how is a child going to communicate with Abuela during the annual summer trip to Mexico?
  
  

There is a caveat, though.
Although bilingualism doesn’t cause delays or problems, children who are immersed in a foreign language often demonstrate “normal phenomena” that might be interpreted as language delays. For example, many children who attend school in a new foreign language go through a “silent” or “nonverbal” period. Since they do not talk much at this stage, some teachers and other professionals unfamiliar with bilingual language development might wonder if the children have language delays.

This is where a bilingual certified speech-language pathologist (SLP) comes into play. Regardless of whether we speak the same language as the child or family (for which we would need a knowledgeable interpreter), bilingual SLPs are able to assess whether a child presents with a language delay/disorder or a language difference. A language delay/disorder impacts all of the child’s languages, whereas a language difference means that the child is making errors because he is learning English. For example, a three-year-old girl who only speaks 50 words total in English and Mandarin would have a significant language delay or disorder. But let’s say that the girl has a twin sister. The twin has 1,000 words in both languages and speaks impeccable Mandarin but has a hard time using past-tense verbs in English. This girl would have a language difference because the skills in her first language—Mandarin—are developmentally appropriate. She is making errors in English because she is still learning the language.

What should you do if you have questions or concerns?
Bilingualism, as well as typical and disordered language development, are all tricky subjects with many nuances. If you have questions or concerns that your bilingual child is not learning or using languages like other children their age, please contact a certified bilingual SLP, such as ChitChat Therapies. We are passionate about bilingualism and language development, and will help guide you in the right direction for your family!

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