Raising Bilingual/Bicultural Children

[gzregorz]

~ If they want to learn the second and third language they will. It is all a matter of creating the environment where they are incentivised(sp?) to do so.
~ And despite the myth of kids learning languages easier than adults, most of my linguist friends and associates and colleagues would disagree. Adults learn easier and in a shorter time, presuming we are willing to get rid of some of those other nasty preoccupations like work and bills and relationships...
~ Continue to discuss amongst yourselves...

Peace,

Leimeng

Flatulo Ergo Sum ~~~

Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?

(***Insert Personal One Liner Here***)

There are studies that suggest that toddlers learn 200 words a day. I have yet to meet an adult who can do that.

Also the thing with adults is that the keep comparing the new grammar with their native language, children don't have this problem.

Although it may or may not be true that adults learn quicker, adults rarely learn a foreign and sound like a native. Yet there are children who naturally pick up the nuances of a native accent.

[gzregorz]

In other words teach them while their young.

[Steve James]

I think we're talking about separate things. Language acquisition in general is relative. Babies in China learn Chinese as quickly as Canadian kids learn Quebecois or English. Otoh, it is unclear how quickly an adult learner of Chinese as a second language can learn relative to an adult Chinese speaker of Chinese who tries to learn English. This also depends on what we intend the result to be. I.e., are we talking about going to the restaurant or supermarket and ordering food or do we expect the ability to hold an intelligent discussion on economics, philosophy or just current events? A toddler might be able to "learn" 200 words in one day, but I'm not sure about 1,400 words in a week or 4x that in a month? I don't think most adults "would" do it ... frankly because few of us use more than 200 different words on most days.

Personally, I think if a person can speak a language as well as a 10 year-old native speaker, he can handle himself more than adequately. If we're talking about literacy, that adds another level. Children learn by trial error, beginning when they want someone to give them something to eat. Adults deliberately desire to learn a language, unless they're forced to by necessity. Unless they're immersed, it usually takes them longer. However, any motivated individual can learn faster than someone who is just taking a class. In the States, most people who take classes speak in ways that leave native speakers scratching their heads. So, even though they may learn "faster", they don't learn as well as children do.

[meeks]

I am bilingual, both in speech and reading/writing

Fong - and I completely understood you in the bar after a few beers when you were speaking to me in Canadian...

There are studies that suggest that toddlers learn 200 words a day. I have yet to meet an adult who can do that.

and I have yet to meet a toddler that can do that. that would equate to a complete language in about 3 weeks.

I think it's easier for adults to learn a new language because we already have a point of reference for the new word, while a child has to figure out through trial and error what the word truly represents.
eg: our 21 month old says to me 'open door, daddy' (pulling on the fridge) but says to mommy 'kai bing xiang mama' (open fridge, mama). so she hasn't quite figured out 'fridge' in english. I know this because even though she knows the word 'door' in chinese (men) when she wants a door open she says 'kai bing xiang' to mommy in chinese.
for an adult with a point of reference you say "fridge is bing xiang. door is men" and they can learn it a lot faster. Someone already made an excellent point that as adults we usually learn a language 'part time' when work and life doesn't get in the way. If you immerse yourself in a new language where you need to speak it all day every day (eg move to china) you'll learn the language REAL fast.

I disagree with Ian about English being an easier language. Most people have an issue with tones because our language is grammar based instead of tone based. Once they nail down the tones (come on - it's just pronunciation) the grammar of Chinese is like tarzan speak - 'bring bowl rice' vs 'could you please bring me a bowl of rice'. Then there's the different verb tenses (eat, ate, eaten) that don't exist in Chinese - which is why they always speak like 'are you eat now?' after living in North America for so many years. Personally I still need to nail down the different references (1 bu truck, 2 zhi tigers, 1 ben shu) but it never really came up in my experiences in China so I never bothered to get past just using 'ge' as a counter reference. It's just a matter of putting your mind to it though.
So there's give n take on both sides - chinese tones and english grammar. But I cringe when I hear "you must be exceptionally smart because chinese is a much more difficult language to learn". I always say "well, yes and no... " *grin*

[gzregorz]

Studies Show That Children Learn Foreign Languages Better Than Adults

I have been observing my 6 Filipino grandchildren and even their parents since they were toddlers and learning how to speak. In my observation, children really learn different languages (dialects and foreign) faster and better than adults. I even recall an episode of the national Geographic Channel where it dealt with how the brain works and develops when human beings are still very young. According to NatGeo, babies/toddlers recognize sound patterns more receptively than adults, hence better in learning languages.

Here in the Philippines, young Filipino children in the provinces are taught at least two languages – the local dialect and Tagalog. Add to that English, which is the country’s second language. It is not uncommon to see Filipinos to speak 3 languages. Some even speak 5-10. This is brought about by early orientation to different languages spoken by elders and the influence of friends or migration to another province or country.

On the other hand, it was found out that adults learn languages slowly because for many, their brains have absorbed all the information that they can handle. Children, however, are quite the opposite. Their brains are thirsting for knowledge, and absorb languages, such as French, with an astonishing rapidity. Studies show that children learn language skills many times faster than the average adult. Learning to speak French, or any other second language, at an early age is important and has become very popular because globalization is right around the corner.

Because children learn language skills so easily, some parents are introducing a second language to their children themselves, such as French learning, instead of waiting for when they begin school. Studies have shown that a child of about 6 weeks of age can begin to learn small phrases from more than one language.

While no child can speak at that age, when they do speak, they can speak both languages. Because children start learning language skills at birth, they do have the capacity to learn more than one language at once without confusion. Your two year old might speak English, yet can learn how to speak French as well!

Some parents don’t even wait until their children are school aged before teaching them a second language, such as French. Children learn language skills easily at an incredibly young age. Even a child as young as six weeks of age can be taught words from the French vocabulary or other language.

Many people do not believe that a baby can learn how to speak French or even their native language at such a young age, but it is true. The basis for language starts from the very beginning of life. It is just as easy to teach a baby French and English at the same time, as it is to just teach them just their native vernacular. Their brain will absorb both languages with equally amazing competence.

Now, there are even schools designed for babies to help them learn foreign languages. Because of the huge benefits to the child, these schools are now quite popular. Most of these schools have a very high success rate and these facts can be attributed to the fact that children learn language skills so quickly and easily.

Some areas of the world do not offer classes for foreign languages, such as French for babies and small children. For these unlucky people, it would be advisable to start a language program in your own home because learning how to speak French and other languages is such a developmental boost for children.

http://www.blog2learn.com/family/studie ... an-adults/