What are the advantages and disadvantages of bilingualism? Are there more pros than cons in raising a bilingual child? Is it true that children who are exposed to more than one language will grow up confused and will have speech issues?
Let’s try to clarify our ideas. As a matter of fact, many experts agree on the fact that bilingualism has more advantages than disadvantages. As Professor Sorace from the Ca’ Foscari University of Venice says, the human brain is naturally multilingual and bilingual children are not only able to easily distinguish between different languages but they are also advantaged in many areas.
What are these advantages?
First of all, there is a linguistic advantage: children who are exposed to more than one language from birth or from a very young age, will find it easier to learn other languages, as they have a stronger intuitive awareness of the linguistic structure. Furthermore, they have more metalinguistic abilities compared to monolingual children, which means that they find it easier to learn new words, sounds and sentences.
Secondly, there is a cognitive advantage: research demonstrates that bilingual children have more mental flexibility and are able to mainly focus on the relevant details. This ability is extremely useful in the students’ learning process.
Research also proves that bilingual children are more aware of others’ points of view and perspectives and show a larger flexibility and ability to adapt to new situations.
At Chatterbox we witness this kind of behaviour in our pupils on a daily basis. The gradual immersion of the child into an English speaking environment easily leads to spontaneous learning and the second language naturally becomes part of their individuality.
Unfortunately, there are still a lot of inaccurate prejudices about bilingualism, especially in young children, and it is essential to look for accurate and up to date information on the topic.
Professor Sorace is certainly an authoritative point of reference in the field of bilingualism in children and we invite you to watch her full interview (Italian) if you’d like to find out more on the subject:
I vantaggi cognitivi del bilinguismo - Antonella Sorace - YouTube
