Effect of speaker certainty on novel word learning in monolingual and bilingual children

In the present study, we examined the effect of speaker certainty on word-learning performance in English-speaking monolingual (MAge = 6.40) and Spanish–English bilingual (MAge = 6.58) children. No group differences were observed when children learned novel words from a certain speaker. However, bilingual children were more willing to learn novel words from an uncertain speaker than their monolingual peers. These findings indicate that language experience influences how children weigh cues to speaker credibility during learning and suggest that children with more diverse linguistic backgrounds (i.e., bilinguals) are less prone to prioritizing information based on speaker certainty.

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Word Learning in Adults With Second-Language Experience: Effects of Phonological and Referent Familiarity

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/1092-4388(2012/11-0084) ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 56 (2) ◽

pp. 667-678 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Margarita Kaushanskaya ◽

Jeewon Yoo ◽

Stephanie Van Hecke

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Language Learning ◽

Word Learning ◽

Learning Experience ◽

Recognition Task ◽

Language Experience ◽

Learning Condition ◽

Experience Effects ◽

Novel Word Learning ◽

Novel Words

Purpose The goal of this research was to examine whether phonological familiarity exerts different effects on novel word learning for familiar versus unfamiliar referents and whether successful word learning is associated with increased second-language experience. Method Eighty-one adult native English speakers with various levels of Spanish knowledge learned phonologically familiar novel words (constructed using English sounds) or phonologically unfamiliar novel words (constructed using non-English and non-Spanish sounds) in association with either familiar or unfamiliar referents. Retention was tested via a forced-choice recognition task. A median-split procedure identified high-ability and low-ability word learners in each condition, and the two groups were compared on measures of second-language experience. Results Findings suggest that the ability to accurately match newly learned novel names to their appropriate referents is facilitated by phonological familiarity only for familiar referents but not for unfamiliar referents. Moreover, more extensive second-language learning experience characterized superior learners primarily in one word-learning condition: in which phonologically unfamiliar novel words were paired with familiar referents. Conclusions Together, these findings indicate that phonological familiarity facilitates novel word learning only for familiar referents and that experience with learning a second language may have a specific impact on novel vocabulary learning in adults.

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Word learning in monolingual and bilingual children: The influence of speaker eye-gaze

Bilingualism Language and Cognition ◽

10.1017/s1366728920000565 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-11

Author(s):

Ishanti Gangopadhyay ◽

Margarita Kaushanskaya

Keyword(s):

Word Learning ◽

Eye Gaze ◽

Target Object ◽

Bilingual Children ◽

Bilingual Advantage ◽

Word Retention ◽

Novel Word Learning ◽

The Impact ◽

First Time ◽

Novel Words

Abstract The current study examined the impact of a speaker's gaze on novel-word learning in 4-5-year old monolingual (N = 23) and bilingual children (N = 24). Children were taught novel words when the speaker looked at the object both times while labeling it (consistent) and when the speaker looked at the object only the first time (inconsistent). During teaching, bilingual children differentiated between the target object (that matched the label) and non-target object (that did not match the label) earlier than the monolingual children on trials without eye-gaze information. However, during testing, monolingual children showed more robust retention of novel words than bilingual children in both conditions. Findings suggest that bilingualism shapes children's attention to eye-gaze during word learning, but that, ultimately, there is no bilingual advantage for utilizing this cue in the service of word retention.

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Effects of Speech Practice on Fast Mapping in Monolingual and Bilingual Speakers

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/2013_jslhr-l-13-0045 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 57 (3) ◽

pp. 929-941 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Pui Fong Kan ◽

Neeraja Sadagopan ◽

Lauren Janich ◽

Marixa Andrade

Keyword(s):

Young Adults ◽

Fast Mapping ◽

Language Experience ◽

Bilingual Speakers ◽

English Bilingual ◽

Mapping Experiment ◽

Novel Objects ◽

English Speaking ◽

Mapping Task ◽

Novel Words

Purpose This study examines the effects of the levels of speech practice on fast mapping in monolingual and bilingual speakers. Method Participants were 30 English-speaking monolingual and 30 Spanish–English bilingual young adults. Each participant was randomly assigned to 1 of 3 practice conditions prior to the fast-mapping task: (a) intensive speech practice, (b) moderate speech practice, or (c) no practice. In a fast-mapping experiment, each participant was briefly exposed to novel objects and their corresponding novel words. Participants' knowledge of the target novel words was assessed immediately after the exposures. Results There were significant effects of speech practice on fast mapping for both monolingual and bilingual adults. It is important to note that participants' language experience also played a role in their fast-mapping performance. Conclusion The findings suggest that speech practice, interacting with language experience, facilitates the processes for fast mapping.

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Measuring Word Learning Ability in Sequential Bilingual Children

Perspectives on Communication Disorders and Sciences in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Populations ◽

10.1044/cds17.1.25 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

pp. 25-32 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Pui Fong Kan

Keyword(s):

Word Learning ◽

Learning Ability ◽

Bilingual Children ◽

Word Knowledge ◽

Typically Developing ◽

Learning Skills ◽

Word Forms ◽

The Individual ◽

Novel Word Learning ◽

L1 And L2

Abstract The purpose of this article is to look at the word learning skills in sequential bilingual children—children who learn two languages (L1 and L2) at different times in their childhood. Learning a new word is a process of learning a word form and relating this form to a concept. For bilingual children, each concept might need to map onto two word forms (in L1 and in L2). In case studies, I present 3 typically developing Hmong-English bilingual preschoolers' word learning skills in Hmong (L1) and in English (L2) during an 8-week period (4 weeks for each language). The results showed gains in novel-word knowledge in L1 and in L2 when the amount of input is equal for both languages. The individual differences in novel word learning are discussed.

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Phonological awareness in young second language learners

Journal of Child Language ◽

10.1017/s0305000900009806 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 22 (2) ◽

pp. 307-324 ◽

Cited By ~ 129

Author(s):

Maggie Bruck ◽

Fred Genesee

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Phonological Awareness ◽

Language Learners ◽

Second Language Learners ◽

Phoneme Awareness ◽

Bilingual Children ◽

Group Differences ◽

Bilingual Group ◽

English Speaking

ABSTRACTEnglish-speaking children (N = 91) who were attending French schools (bilingual group) were given a battery of phonological awareness tests in kindergarten and in grade 1. At the time of kindergarten testing the mean age of the children was 5:9. Their performance was compared to age-matched English-speaking children (N = 72) attending English schools (monolingual group). The bilingual children showed heightened levels of phonological awareness skills in kindergarten in the area of onset-rime awareness. By grade 1, the pattern of group differences was more complex. The monolingual and bilingual children performed similarly on onset-rime segmentation tasks. The monolingual children had higher phoneme awareness scores than their French-schooled peers; this result is interpreted to reflect the role of literacy instruction on phoneme awareness development. In comparison, the bilingual children had higher syllable segmentation scores than their monolingual peers. This result is interpreted to reflect the role of second language input on phonological awareness.

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Do Bilingual Children Have an Executive Function Advantage? Results From Inhibition, Shifting, and Updating Tasks

Language Speech and Hearing Services in Schools ◽

10.1044/2018_lshss-17-0107 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 49 (3) ◽

pp. 356-378 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Genesis D. Arizmendi ◽

Mary Alt ◽

Shelley Gray ◽

Tiffany P. Hogan ◽

Samuel Green ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Executive Function ◽

Bayes Factor ◽

Second Graders ◽

Bilingual Children ◽

Ongoing Debate ◽

Bilingual Advantage ◽

School Aged Children ◽

English Bilingual ◽

English Speaking ◽

Potential Factors

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine differences in performance between monolingual and Spanish–English bilingual second graders (aged 7–9 years old) on executive function tasks assessing inhibition, shifting, and updating to contribute more evidence to the ongoing debate about a potential bilingual executive function advantage. Method One hundred sixty-seven monolingual English-speaking children and 80 Spanish–English bilingual children were administered 7 tasks on a touchscreen computer in the context of a pirate game. Bayesian statistics were used to determine if there were differences between the monolingual and bilingual groups. Additional analyses involving covariates of maternal level of education and nonverbal intelligence, and matching on these same variables, were also completed. Results Scaled-information Bayes factor scores more strongly favored the null hypothesis that there were no differences between the bilingual and monolingual groups on any of the executive function tasks. For 2 of the tasks, we found an advantage in favor of the monolingual group. Conclusions If there is a bilingual advantage in school-aged children, it is not robust across circumstances. We discuss potential factors that might counteract an actual advantage, including task reliability and environmental influences.

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Effects of past language experience and present language context on the shape bias in Spanish–English bilingual children

Developmental Science ◽

10.1111/desc.12879 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 23 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Christina C. Schonberg ◽

Emily E. Russell ◽

Michelle L. Luna

Keyword(s):

Bilingual Children ◽

Language Experience ◽

English Bilingual ◽

Shape Bias ◽

Language Context

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The role of speaker eye gaze and mutual exclusivity in novel word learning by monolingual and bilingual children

Journal of Experimental Child Psychology ◽

10.1016/j.jecp.2020.104878 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 197 ◽

pp. 104878

Author(s):

Ishanti Gangopadhyay ◽

Margarita Kaushanskaya

Keyword(s):

Word Learning ◽

Eye Gaze ◽

Bilingual Children ◽

Mutual Exclusivity ◽

Novel Word Learning

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Song and infant-directed speech facilitate word learning

Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology ◽

10.1177/1747021819888982 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 73 (7) ◽

pp. 1036-1054

Author(s):

Weiyi Ma ◽

Anna Fiveash ◽

Elizabeth Hellmuth Margulis ◽

Douglas Behrend ◽

William Forde Thompson

Keyword(s):

Language Learning ◽

Word Learning ◽

Word Association ◽

Learning Task ◽

Learning Performance ◽

Long Term Memory ◽

Term Memory ◽

English Speaking ◽

The Relationship

Two separate lines of research have examined the influence of song and infant-directed speech (IDS—a speech register that includes some melodic features) on language learning, suggesting that the use of musical attributes in speech input can enhance language learning. However, the benefits of these two types of stimuli have never been directly compared. In this investigation, we compared the effects of song and IDS for immediate word learning and long-term memory of the learned words. This study examines whether the highly musical stimuli (i.e., song) would facilitate language learning more than the less musical stimuli (i.e., IDS). English-speaking adults were administered a word learning task, with Mandarin Chinese words presented in adult-directed speech (ADS), IDS, or song. Participants’ word learning performance was assessed immediately after the word learning task (immediate word learning) and then 1 day later (long-term memory). Results showed that both song and IDS facilitated immediate word learning and long-term memory of the words; however, this facilitative effect did not differ between IDS and song, suggesting that the relationship between the degree of musicality and language learning performance is not linear. In addition, song and IDS were found to facilitate the word association process (mapping a label to its referent) rather than the word recognition process. Finally, participants’ confidence in their answers might not differ among ADS, IDS, and sung words.

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