Cross-language comparisons of maze use in Spanish and English in functionally monolingual and bilingual children

2006 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 233-247 ◽  
Author(s):  
LISA M. BEDORE ◽  
CHRISTINE E. FIESTAS ◽  
ELIZABETH D. PEÑA ◽  
VANESSA J. NAGY
Keyword(s):  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Bilingual Speakers ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Mean Length Of Utterance ◽  
Cross Language

Maze use appears to be higher in bilingual speakers than in their functionally monolingual peers. One question is whether this is due to the speaker's bilingual status or to the characteristics of the bilingual's language(s). Narratives for 22 Spanish–English bilingual 4–6-year-olds and their functionally monolingual age-matched peers were analyzed for maze use. Bilingual and functionally monolingual children used similar percentages and patterns of mazes. Children produced more grammatical revisions in Spanish than English. Bilingual and functionally monolingual children used similar grammatical revision strategies in Spanish and English. Children's maze use in each language was correlated with measures of language productivity such as mean length of utterance and number of words used in the sample. These findings suggest that the role of language is important in maze use and that bilingual children do not necessarily have greater levels of linguistic uncertainty than do their functionally monolingual peers.

Polish–English bilingual children overuse referential markers: MLU inflation in Polish-language narratives

2020 ◽  
pp. 014272372093376
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Otwinowska ◽  
Marcin Opacki ◽  
Karolina Mieszkowska ◽  
Marta Białecka-Pikul ◽  
Zofia Wodniecka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Overt Pronouns ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Cohesive Devices ◽  
Dp Structure ◽  
Polish Language ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Mean Length Of Utterance ◽  
Cross Language

Polish and English differ in the surface realization of the underlying Determiner Phrase (DP): Polish lacks an article system, whereas English makes use of articles for both grammatical and pragmatic reasons. This difference has an impact on how referentiality is rendered in both languages. In this article, the authors investigate the use of referential markers by Polish–English bilingual children and Polish monolingual children. Using the LITMUS-MAIN picture stories, the authors collected speech samples of Polish–English bilinguals raised in the UK ( n = 92, mean age 5;7) and compared them with matched Polish monolinguals ( n = 92, mean age 5;7). The analyses revealed that the bilinguals’ mean length of utterance (MLU) in Polish was significantly higher than that of the monolinguals because the bilinguals produced significantly more referential markers (especially pronouns) which inflated their MLU. The authors posit that the non-standard referentiality used by the bilinguals in Polish is caused by cross-language transfer at the syntax–pragmatics interface. When producing narratives in Polish, Polish–English bilinguals overuse referential markers as cohesive devices in their stories, which is not ungrammatical, but pragmatically odd in Polish. Bilinguals tend to do this because they are immersed in English-language input, rich in overt pronouns. Thus, in the process of realizing the surface features of the Polish DP they partly rely on an underlying English DP structure.

An Introductory Examination of Speech Disfluencies in Spanish–English Bilingual Children Who Do and Do Not Stutter During Narratives

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-141
Author(s):  
Cristina Rincon ◽  
Kia Noelle Johnson ◽  
Courtney Byrd
Keyword(s):  
Diagnostic Criteria ◽  
Preliminary Data ◽  
Diagnostic Information ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Developmental Stuttering ◽  
Mean Length Of Utterance

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the frequency and type of speech disfluencies (stuttering-like and nonstuttering-like) in bilingual Spanish–English (SE) children who stutter (CWS) to SE children who do not stutter (CWNS) during narrative samples elicited in Spanish and English to provide further diagnostic information for this population and preliminary data toward an expansion of this study. Method Participants included six bilingual SE children (three CWS, three CWNS) ranging in age from 5 years to 7;5 (years;months) and recruited from the surrounding Houston, Texas area. Participants provided a narrative sample in English and Spanish. The frequency of speech disfluencies was tabulated, and mean length of utterance was measured for each sample. Results Results indicate that both talker groups exceed the diagnostic criteria typically used for developmental stuttering. Regardless of the language being spoken, CWS participants had a frequency of stuttering-like speech disfluencies that met or exceeded the diagnostic criteria for developmental stuttering that is based on monolingual English speakers. The CWNS participants varied in meeting the criteria depending on the language being spoken, with one of the three CWNS exceeding the criteria in both languages and one exceeding the criteria for percentage of stuttering-like speech disfluencies in one language. Conclusion Findings from this study contribute to the development of more appropriate diagnostic criteria for bilingual SE-speaking children to aid in the reduction of misdiagnoses of stuttering in this population.

Vowel development in young Mandarin-English bilingual children

Phonetica ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Yang
Keyword(s):  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Vowel Duration ◽  
Formant Frequency ◽  
High Group ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
English Vowels ◽  
Vowel Systems ◽  
Phonetic Features ◽  
Cross Language ◽  
L1 And L2

Abstract This study examined the development of vowel categories in young Mandarin -English bilingual children. The participants included 35 children aged between 3 and 4 years old (15 Mandarin-English bilinguals, six English monolinguals, and 14 Mandarin monolinguals). The bilingual children were divided into two groups: one group had a shorter duration (<1 year) of intensive immersion in English (Bi-low group) and one group had a longer duration (>1 year) of intensive immersion in English (Bi-high group). The participants were recorded producing one list of Mandarin words containing the vowels /a, i, u, y, ɤ/ and/or one list of English words containing the vowels /i, ɪ, e, ɛ, æ, u, ʊ, o, ɑ, ʌ/. Formant frequency values were extracted at five equidistant time locations (the 20–35–50–65–80% point) over the course of vowel duration. Cross-language and within-language comparisons were conducted on the midpoint formant values and formant trajectories. The results showed that children in the Bi-low group produced their English vowels into clusters and showed positional deviations from the monolingual targets. However, they maintained the phonetic features of their native vowel sounds well and mainly used an assimilatory process to organize the vowel systems. Children in the Bi-high group separated their English vowels well. They used both assimilatory and dissimilatory processes to construct and refine the two vowel systems. These bilingual children approximated monolingual English children to a better extent than the children in the Bi-low group. However, when compared to the monolingual peers, they demonstrated observable deviations in both L1 and L2.

scholarly journals Spanish-English Bilingual Children’s Relative Use of English Tense and Agreement Morphemes

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Irina Potapova ◽  
Sonja L. Pruitt-Lord
Keyword(s):  
Best Practice ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Language Ability ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Past Tense ◽  
Comprehensive Understanding ◽  
Bilingual Speakers ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Third Person

Best practice for bilingual speakers involves considering performance in each language the client uses. To support this practice for young clients, a comprehensive understanding of how bilingual children develop skills in each language is needed. To that end, the present work investigates relative use of English tense and agreement (T/A) morphemes—a skill frequently considered as part of a complete language assessment—in Spanish-English developing bilingual preschoolers with varying levels of language ability. Results indicate that developing bilingual children with both typical and weak language skills demonstrate greater use of copula and auxiliary BE relative to third person singular, past tense and auxiliary DO. Findings thus reveal a relative ranking of T/A morphemes in developing bilingual children that differs from that of English monolingual children, who demonstrate relatively later emergence and productivity of auxiliary BE. In turn, findings demonstrate the importance of utilizing appropriate comparisons in clinical practice.

scholarly journals Narrative abilities in early successive bilingual Slovak–English children: A cross-language comparison

2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 145-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
SVETLANA KAPALKOVÁ ◽  
KAMILA POLIŠENSKÁ ◽  
LENKA MARKOVÁ ◽  
JAMES FENTON
Keyword(s):  
Narrative Research ◽  
First Language ◽  
Nonword Repetition ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Skill Transfer ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Narrative Skills ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Narrative Performance ◽  
Cross Language

ABSTRACTThis study investigates macrostructure skill transfer in successive bilingual children speaking Slovak and English, a new language combination for narrative research. We examined whether narrative performance reflected language dominance and assessed relationships between nonword repetition (NWR) and narrative skills within and across languages. Forty typically developing Slovak–English bilingual children (mean age = 5 years, 10 months) were evaluated for microstructure and macrostructure performance in both languages through story telling and retelling tasks. In addition, NWR was assessed in Slovak, the children's first language (L1). Macrostructure scores were higher in their L1 than in their second language (L2), but comprehension did not differ across languages. L1 NWR was significantly related to L1 microstructure scores, but not to L1/L2 macrostructure or L2 microstructure. Implications for assessing bilingual children's language are discussed.

The role of person in subject auxiliary inversion in English wh-questions: Evidence from Korean-English bilingual children

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 313-328
Author(s):  
Sunny K Park-Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Elicitation Study ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Main Effect ◽  
Wh Questions ◽  
Third Person ◽  
New Evidence

Aims: The present study investigates whether Korean-English (K-E) bilingual children develop subject auxiliary inversion (SAI) in English wh-questions differently from monolingual English (M-E) speaking children. Specifically, an experimental study was designed to determine whether there is an effect of subject person in their acquisition of SAI in English wh-questions, a factor that had been suggested but not tested as a contributing factor in SAI in a previous study. Design: Twenty-six K-E bilingual and 20 M-E preschool-aged children were recruited for an elicitation study testing the effect of person on the use of SAI in wh-questions in English. The experiment consisted of having children interact with puppets in a guessing game that elicited first, second, and third person object- what questions in English. Data and analysis: Data from the experiment were analyzed through a binomial logistic regression, which accounts for the binary nature of the data (auxiliary inversion: present or absent) and identified which variables contribute significantly to the presence and absence of SAI. Findings/conclusions: Results indicated a significant difference between K-E and M-E groups and a significant main effect for person on SAI for the K-E group. The paper proposes that the [prs] feature is part of the bundle of features that drives the movement of the features in T to C. Originality: The paper contributes evidence for a link between the person feature and SAI, a link that has not been seen before for wh-question research. Significance/implications: The new evidence of a possible link between subject person and auxiliary inversion may open a window to new avenues for wh-question acquisition research.

Decontextualized language production in two languages: An investigation of children's word definition skills in Korean and English

2011 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 211-231 ◽  
Author(s):  
JENNIFER YUSUN KANG
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Production ◽  
First Language ◽  
Home Language ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Korean And English ◽  
Schooling Experience ◽  
Cross Language ◽  
Word Definition

ABSTRACTThis study aimed to identify factors that contribute to bilingual children's decontextualized language production and investigate how schooling experience and bilingualism affect the development of this skill. The word definition skills of seventy Korean–English bilingual children whose first language was Korean, yet who had been schooled in English, were analyzed. The findings indicate that contrary to the results from previous studies, the participants' decontextualized language production was much better in their home language than in their school language, when considering both the formal linguistic structure and the communicative adequacy of their word definitions. In addition, limited cross-language transfer across tasks was present and cross-language contribution was observed only in the children's ability to achieve communicative adequacy, but not in their ability to construct conventional definition syntax. The results are discussed in terms of the linguistic and typological distance between the two languages and the potential effects of language-learning contexts.

Polysyllabic shortening in Spanish-English bilingual children

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 437-454
Author(s):  
Todd A Gibson ◽  
Carolina Bernales
Keyword(s):  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Spanish Speakers ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
English Only ◽  
Primary Stress ◽  
Language History ◽  
Bilingual Speakers ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Comparison Groups

Aims and objectives: Polysyllabic shortening is thought to contribute to the perception of stress-timed rhythm in some languages. Little is known about its use in the speech of children exposed to a language that incorporates it more frequently (e.g. English) and one that incorporates it less frequently (e.g. Spanish). The purpose of the current investigation was to explore polysyllabic shortening in bilingual children’s two languages compared to monolingual Spanish and English comparison groups. Method/Design: We performed a group-level, cross-sectional study comparing the magnitude of polysyllabic shortening for monolingual English- and Spanish-speaking children and Spanish-English bilingual children. Data/Analysis: Sixteen monolingual English speakers, 23 monolingual Spanish speakers, and 16 Spanish-English bilingual speakers produced two- and four-syllable words in English only, Spanish only, or both English and Spanish, respectively. Ages ranged from 4;5 to 7;7 ( M = 5;10, SD = 7 months). English and Spanish words had the same syllable shapes and primary stress locations. Articulation rate was measured by syllables per second. A language history questionnaire and standardized vocabulary test were also administered. Comparisons were made both between and within groups. Results: Both monolingual English and Spanish speakers utilized polysyllabic shortening to similar degrees. Bilingual children produced polysyllabic shortening in English and Spanish to the same degree as their monolingual peers, but they produced it to a greater degree in their own Spanish than in their own English. Conclusion: Polysyllabic shortening might be a universal feature of speech that results from universal phonetic constraints. For the bilingual children, greater use of polysyllabic shortening in Spanish than English may be related to better Spanish than English articulatory control.

The effects of language immersion on the bilingual lexicon

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 614-636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peggy P.K. Mok ◽  
Alan C.L. Yu
Keyword(s):  
Reaction Time ◽  
English Proficiency ◽  
Language Immersion ◽  
Priming Effects ◽  
Bilingual Lexicon ◽  
Bilingual Speakers ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Translation Priming ◽  
Cross Language

Abstract Previous studies have consistently found an asymmetry where priming in the L1-L2 direction is stronger than that in the L2-L1 direction. However, some studies showed that an L2 immersion environment could attenuate bilingual speakers’ access to the L1 and result in a ‘bilingual disadvantage’. This study investigated how language immersion modulates the priming effects of late adult bilingual speakers. We compared late Chinese-English bilingual speakers with high L2 (English) proficiency in an L1 environment and those in an L2 immersion environment. Both semantic and translation priming in same-language and cross-language conditions were investigated. The results showed no ‘bilingual disadvantage’ of the immersed participants. The priming asymmetry was weakened for the immersed participants who were more comparable in their reaction time to different language conditions. Both semantic and translation priming were found in L1-L2 and L2-L1 directions, suggesting that both types of priming are similar in nature in the bilingual lexicon.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document