The Benefits of Early Learning of Second Language

09.10.09

How can we equip our children for the increasingly pluralistic society and multilingual world they are entering?

One answer, according to recent research on learning first and second language, is to expose children to a second language as early in life as possible.

Within the last five years, brain research revealed that the window for learning language is widest at the outset, from birth to seven years. The brain's ability to recognize speech is most acute during this period, while the building of vocabulary emerges at 18 months and continues through life. Studies of immigrants have shown that children who are immersed in a foreign language before puberty can achieve a near native pronunciation of the target language". After puberty, the window for learning perfect pronunciation is lost.

Another key ingredient to early language is movement. Dr. James Ashe, a psychologist, has observed that babies naturally learn language by hearing limited vocabulary repeated hundreds of times, by seeing movements that define vocabulary and by making their own physical-rather than oral-responses to the language heard. The child's kinesthetic response to the word heard increases long-term memory of the word.

It is becoming more apparent that our future generations will need to be bilingual, so the earlier we begin to introduce our children to the second language, the better off they are to undertake the multi-cultural world that surrounds them.

Source: MA Ansara, Karen, The Reporter of The National Center of Montessori Education

What was the first language you spoke to your child in? How many languages is your child exposed to? Submit your comments below and tell us about your experience - positive and negative.