According to the Migrant Policy Institute, almost one in three children under the age of nine are considered dual language learners, meaning they have at least one parent or caregiver their home who speaks to them in a language other than English. Increasingly, research shows that these students have numerous advantages over their monolingual peers. Here are some advantages that dual language learners have over students who grow up speaking or hearing only one language.
- Better executive functioning. Multilingual children who switch between languages at home and in other environments – including, but not limited to school – have daily opportunities to practice flexible thinking. They’re also better able to focus than their monolingual peers, and often have stronger working memories. All these traits improve their executive functioning and contribute to academic success.
- Better self-control. Children who code switch between multiple languages must learn to suppress the urge to speak in one language while activating the other. Not only is this a form of flexible thinking, it is also a form of self-control.
- Stronger abstract thinking. Early on, children learn that language is abstract, and that multiple words can be associated with the same concrete thing. This early ability for abstraction puts them at a cognitive and developmental advantage over their peers.
- Able to see multiple perspectives. Perhaps because they are able to communicate with many different types of people, multilingual learners are also skillful at understanding perspectives that are different than their own. This is a practice that helps kids develop empathy, and makes them better citizens.
- More positive view of home culture. Children who grow up around a second language are more likely to value the culture they have at home. This strong sense of self is important not only in the development of social skills, but also for building a strong radar for sensing racism and xenophobia and realizing that it is a structural, rather than a personal, issue.
- Increased future opportunities. In an increasingly connected world, children who speak multiple languages will be at a professional advantage when they are old enough to hold jobs.
- Better brain health throughout the lifespan. Recent research suggests that multilingualism can reduce the effects of Alzheimer’s disease. In fact, according to one study, people who spoke multiple languages contracted Alzheimer’s four years later than their monolingual peers, and experienced milder initial symptoms.
In some families, children may not learn the home language before the age of eight or nine, or may forget their home language due to a move or a change in family situation. If this is your situation, don’t fret! Many of these advantages are true throughout the lifetime, which means it’s never to late for you – or your children – to learn another language.
