scholarly journals Stern, gwiazda or star: Screening receptive vocabulary skills across languages in monolingual and bilingual German–Polish or German–Turkish children using a tablet application

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-38
Author(s):  
Blanca Schaefer ◽  
Hanna Ehlert ◽  
Lisa Kemp ◽  
Kristina Hoesl ◽  
Verena Schrader ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Maternal Education ◽  
Receptive Vocabulary ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Strong Correlations ◽  
Lexical Knowledge ◽  
Turkish Children ◽  
Vocabulary Skills ◽  
Polish Version ◽  
L1 And L2

There is a need to provide bilingual assessments and reference data to identify those who struggle to acquire their heritage language (L1) or the language spoken in the country of residence (L2). However, bilingual assessments and data are still sparse. Therefore, the aim was to use a tablet application to screen receptive vocabulary in different languages and discuss this data in the context of lexical acquisition theories. Forty-four monolingual German, 15 bilingual German–Polish and 21 German–Turkish-speaking children aged between 3;5 (3 years and 5 months) and 6;1 were assessed. All children completed the German version of the Receptive Vocabulary Screener (RVS), a tablet application testing 20 nouns and 20 verbs, and two standardized vocabulary sub-tests. Additionally, the bilingual children completed the Turkish or Polish version of the RVS. Internal consistency showed that the RVS is a reliable tool for research purposes and validity was confirmed by significant and moderate to strong correlations with the two standardized vocabulary sub-tests. Monolingual children outperformed bilingual children when performance comparisons were solely based on the German items. However, group differences were not significant when total vocabulary was used, i.e. the number of words bilingual children named across both versions. For bilingual children, L1 and L2 scores did not differ, i.e. they showed a similar performance on the L1/L2 subtest. Paternal education, but not maternal education, was significantly correlated to vocabulary scores. Children with more translation equivalents, i.e. words they know in both languages, and with a higher level of language proficiency showed higher scores on the screener. The app provided a valuable opportunity to assess lexical knowledge across different languages. Results indicated that total vocabulary and translation equivalents must be considered to evaluate bilingual children’s lexical knowledge.

scholarly journals Linguistic interdependence of receptive vocabulary skills in emergent bilingual preschool children: Exploring a factor-dependent approach

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (05) ◽  
pp. 1269-1297 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sven Sierens ◽  
Stef Slembrouck ◽  
Koen Van Gorp ◽  
Orhan Agirdag ◽  
Piet Van Avermaet
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Maternal Education ◽  
Explanatory Models ◽  
Receptive Vocabulary ◽  
Immigrant Status ◽  
Vocabulary Size ◽  
Emergent Bilingual ◽  
Vocabulary Skills ◽  
L2 Vocabulary ◽  
At Home

AbstractThis study investigates the extent to which internal and contextual factors moderate the linguistic interdependence between receptive vocabulary skills in emergent bilingual children. Such factors are frequently related to first (L1) and second language (L2) skills, but few studies have examined their concurrent influence on the cross-language relationship, or have linked the results to the two main explanatory models for interdependence: common underlying proficiency or individual differences. Using a cross-sectional correlational design, concept comprehension was bilingually assessed in 154 children of Turkish background (aged 4 to 6), attending Flemish preschool. Regression analyses revealed that Turkish L1 vocabulary size significantly predicted Dutch L2 vocabulary size, which is in line with interdependence theories. Age, preschool grade, and L2 use at home positively predicted L2 vocabulary. Newly arrived immigrant status and maternal education (partly) predicted L2 vocabulary negatively, the latter especially in 3rd preschool grade. Concerning moderation, indications were found for weakening interdependence for high L2 use at home (3rd preschool grade) and newly arrived immigrant status. Overall, our findings implicate that interdependence in emergent bilinguals’ vocabulary depends on the examined factors to a limited degree only. Finally, our data point to the individual differences model, rather than the common underlying proficiency model of linguistic interdependence.

scholarly journals The home language environment of monolingual and bilingual children and their language proficiency

2009 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANNA F. SCHEELE ◽  
PAUL P. M. LESEMAN ◽  
AZIZA Y. MAYO
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Home Language ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Language Environment ◽  
Cross Language ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Dutch Children

ABSTRACTThis study investigated the relationships between home language learning activities and vocabulary in a sample of monolingual native Dutch (n= 58) and bilingual immigrant Moroccan–Dutch (n= 46) and Turkish–Dutch (n= 55) 3-year-olds, speaking Tarifit-Berber, a nonscripted language, and Turkish as their first language (L1), respectively. Despite equal domain general cognitive abilities, Dutch children scored higher than the bilingual children on a L1 vocabulary test, and Moroccan–Dutch children had higher second language (L2) vocabulary skills compared to Turkish–Dutch children. Multigroup analyses revealed strong impact on both L1 and L2 skills of language specific input in literate and oral activities. Finally, indications were found of positive cross-language transfer from L1 to L2 as well as competition between L1 and L2 input.

Is Oral Bilingualism an Advantage for Word Learning in Children With Hearing Loss?

2021 ◽  
Vol 64 (3) ◽  
pp. 965-978
Author(s):  
Beatriz de Diego-Lázaro ◽  
Andrea Pittman ◽  
María Adelaida Restrepo
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Word Learning ◽  
Maternal Education ◽  
Recognition Task ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Receptive Vocabulary ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Auditory Recognition ◽  
Learning Tasks ◽  
Children With Hearing Loss

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine whether oral bilingualism could be an advantage for children with hearing loss when learning new words. Method Twenty monolingual and 13 bilingual children with hearing loss were compared with each other and with 20 monolingual and 20 bilingual children with normal hearing on receptive vocabulary and on three word-learning tasks containing nonsense words in familiar (English and Spanish) and unfamiliar (Arabic) languages. We measured word learning on the day of the training and retention the next day using an auditory recognition task. Analyses of covariance were used to compare performance on the word learning tasks by language group (monolingual vs. bilingual) and hearing status (normal hearing vs. hearing loss), controlling for age and maternal education. Results No significant differences were observed between monolingual and bilingual children with and without hearing loss in any of the word-learning task. Children with hearing loss performed more poorly than their hearing peers in Spanish word retention and Arabic word learning and retention. Conclusions Children with hearing loss who grew up being exposed to Spanish did not show higher or lower word-learning abilities than monolingual children with hearing loss exposed to English only. Therefore, oral bilingualism was neither an advantage nor a disadvantage for word learning. Hearing loss negatively affected performance in monolingual and bilingual children when learning words in languages other than English (the dominant language). Monolingual and bilingual children with hearing loss are equally at risk for word-learning difficulties and vocabulary size matters for word learning.

scholarly journals Vocabulary development in Norwegian L1 and L2 learners in the kindergarten–school transition

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 402-426 ◽  
Author(s):  
JANNICKE KARLSEN ◽  
SOLVEIG-ALMA HALAAS LYSTER ◽  
ARNE LERVÅG
Keyword(s):  
Maternal Education ◽  
First Language ◽  
Vocabulary Development ◽  
Vocabulary Skills ◽  
Vocabulary Growth ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Path Models ◽  
L2 Vocabulary ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Books In The Home

AbstractThis study examined the vocabulary development of Norwegian second language (L2) learners with Urdu/Punjabi as their first language (L1) at two time-points from kindergarten to primary school, and compared it to the vocabulary development of monolingual Norwegian children. Using path models, the associations between number of picture books in the home, maternal education, and previous L1 and L2 vocabulary on the development of L2 vocabulary breadth and depth were investigated. The results indicate that despite the weaker vocabulary skills of the L2 sample, the growth trajectories of the L2 learners and the monolingual comparison group did not differ. For the L2 learners, we identified both concurrent and longitudinal predictors of vocabulary: the number of books in the home and the time of introduction of the L2 predicted concurrent vocabulary. L1 vocabulary, number of books in the home, and the time of introduction of the L2 predicted vocabulary growth.

Effects of home language input on the vocabulary knowledge of sequential bilingual children

2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 986-1004 ◽  
Author(s):  
SHIRLEY CHEUNG ◽  
PUI FONG KAN ◽  
ELLIE WINICOUR ◽  
JERRY YANG
Keyword(s):  
Family Involvement ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Home Language ◽  
Book Reading ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Vocabulary Skills ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Older Siblings ◽  
At Home

The current study examined whether the vocabulary skills of sequential bilingual children who learned Cantonese as a home language (L1) and English as a second language (L2) were predicted by the amount of L1 and L2 used at home. Ninety-two preschool children who learned Cantonese as L1 were recruited from a Head Start program. The amounts of L1 and L2 used at home were measured using parent questionnaires. Mixed patterns of L1 and L2 use were found across family members and home activities. After controlling for time spent in preschool, regression analyses showed that the amount of L1 and L2 used by individual family members, with the exception of older siblings, was not significantly linked to children's vocabulary skills. In contrast, the language used during some home activities such as dinner and book reading significantly predicted children's vocabulary knowledge. Implications for family involvement in facilitating children's vocabulary development are discussed.

Receptive vocabulary size and its relationship to EFL language skills

2018 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Imma Miralpeix ◽  
Carmen Muñoz
Keyword(s):  
Word Frequency ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
Receptive Vocabulary ◽  
Vocabulary Size ◽  
Lexical Knowledge ◽  
Advanced Learners ◽  
Proficiency Level ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Listening And Speaking

AbstractThis study analyses the relationship between receptive vocabulary size in upper-intermediate/advanced learners and EFL proficiency and the skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking. Little research has been conducted on this dimension of lexical knowledge and the four skills (Staehr, 2008; Milton et al., 2010), in spite of the fact that previous studies of separate language skills have highlighted the importance of vocabulary size for language proficiency development. A sample of 42 participants was assessed by means of a receptive vocabulary size test on ten word-frequency levels (1k to 10k), and on both receptive and productive skills (oral and written). Results reveal that vocabulary size explains language proficiency to a large extent, even in learners with vocabularies of more than 5,000 words, though its influence on performance is not as strong as in learners with smaller vocabularies. At a high proficiency level, vocabulary size is closely linked to writing and is moderately correlated with reading, speaking and listening. The findings help to provide a more complete picture than earlier research by including more proficient learners in EFL settings.

Predictors of language proficiency in school-age Spanish–English bilingual children with and without developmental language disorder

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Kerry Danahy Ebert ◽  
Madeline Reilly
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Maternal Education ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
School Age ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Learning Abilities ◽  
Analytical Reasoning ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
L1 And L2

Abstract Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) have impairments in their language-learning abilities that may influence interactions with environmental opportunities to learn two languages. This study explores relationships between proficiency in L1 and L2 and a set of environmental and personal variables within a group of school-age Spanish–English bilingual children with DLD and a group of typically-developing peers. Within each group, current usage in the home, length of L2 exposure, gender, maternal education, analytical reasoning, and number of L1 conversational partners were used to predict proficiency in each language. Results showed that home language environment, particularly home L2 usage, strongly predicted L1 proficiency but had less influence on the L2. Female gender predicted L1 skills in both groups, whereas analytical reasoning predicted both L1 and L2 but only for children with DLD. This study expands the limited literature on how children with DLD interact with their environment to learn two languages.

scholarly journals Is There an Association between Executive Function and Receptive Vocabulary in Bilingual Children? A Longitudinal Examination

Children ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 44
Author(s):  
Vanessa Diaz ◽  
Maria Borjas ◽  
M. Jeffrey Farrar
Keyword(s):  
Executive Function ◽  
Executive Functioning ◽  
Cognitive Flexibility ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Dual Language ◽  
Receptive Vocabulary ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Language Management ◽  
The One ◽  
Longitudinal Examination

Dual language management has been proposed as the reason for bilingual children’s sometimes enhanced executive functioning (EF). We sought to identify the directionality of the relation between language proficiency and EF, using measures of receptive vocabulary, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility. Data were collected twice, a year apart, on 35- to 66.8-month-old bilingual (n = 41, M = 49.19 months) and monolingual preschool children (n = 37, M = 47.82 months). The longitudinal results revealed that while the monolingual children’s vocabulary at Time 1 predicted EF at Time 2, EF at Time 1 did not predict vocabulary at Time 2. In contrast, for bilingual children the relation was not present at all. The results were similar after the one-time analyses. The absence of relations between EF and language in bilinguals, while present in monolinguals, challenges the current conceptualization of the EF advantage in bilinguals, and emphasizes the need for more research on the development of bilingual children.

scholarly journals A PSYCHOLINGUISTIC STUDY OF THE “THEORY OF MIND” OFTURKISH BILINGUAL CHILDREN

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-82
Author(s):  
Hristo Kyuchukov
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Lexical Knowledge ◽  
Language Tests ◽  
The One ◽  
L1 And L2

This article presentsthe results of a study with Turkish preschool bilingual children living in Berlin, Germany. This article aims to examine the influence between the level of proficiency in the mother tongue (first language L1) and the official language (second language L2) on the one hand and the “theory of mind” on the other, or more precisely, how the lexical knowledge of L1 and L2 and the understanding of interrogative sentences used with a verb indicating mental states helps to understand the ToM.Research methods and techniques. The study included 18 Turkish-German bilingual children attending a kindergarten in Berlin, Germany. The children were divided into two age groups: 1 g of 4–5 year-olds (8 children) and 2 gr. of 5-6 year-olds (10 children) and were tested in their native Turkish and then in German. The testing was performed in the kindergarten in a separate room, where only the experimenter and the examined child were present. The children are offered the classical tests for “theory of mind”, as well as language tests related to the comprehension of interrogative sentences, containing a verb showing a mental state and comprehension and production of vocabulary in native Turkish and German as a second language for them.The resultsshow that vocabulary is not an important factor, and mastery of interrogative sentences is the factor that helps to understand the “theory of mind”. The results obtained were analyzed statistically by means ofthe t-test.Children with German-Turkish bilingualism understand the vocabulary of their mother tongue well and it is obviously in their passive vocabulary, but this knowledge has not yet passed into their active vocabulary. German vocabulary predominates in the children's active vocabulary. With regard to the level of mastery of interrogative sentences, children are equally good at interrogative sentences in both languages.

A View of the Lexical–Grammatical Link in Young Latinos With Specific Language Impairment Using Language-Specific and Conceptual Measures

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (6) ◽  
pp. 1775-1786 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucía I. Méndez ◽  
Gabriela Simon-Cereijido
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Specific Language Impairment ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Specific Language ◽  
Vocabulary Skills ◽  
In The Beginning ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
L1 And L2

Purpose This study investigated the nature of the association of lexical–grammatical abilities within and across languages in Latino dual language learners (DLLs) with specific language impairment (SLI) using language-specific and bilingual measures. Method Seventy-four Spanish/English–speaking preschoolers with SLI from preschools serving low-income households participated in the study. Participants had stronger skills in Spanish (first language [L1]) and were in the initial stages of learning English (second language [L2]). The children's lexical, semantic, and grammar abilities were assessed using normative and researcher-developed tools in English and Spanish. Hierarchical linear regressions of cross-sectional data were conducted using measures of sentence repetition tasks, language-specific vocabulary, and conceptual bilingual lexical and semantic abilities in Spanish and English. Results Results indicate that language-specific vocabulary abilities support the development of grammar in L1 and L2 in this population. L1 vocabulary also contributes to L2 grammar above and beyond the contribution of L2 vocabulary skills. However, the cross-linguistic association between vocabulary in L2 and grammar skills in the stronger or more proficient language (L1) is not observed. In addition, conceptual vocabulary significantly supported grammar in L2, whereas bilingual semantic skills supported L1 grammar. Conclusions Our findings reveal that the same language-specific vocabulary abilities drive grammar development in L1 and L2 in DLLs with SLI. In the early stages of L2 acquisition, vocabulary skills in L1 also seem to contribute to grammar skills in L2 in this population. Thus, it is critical to support vocabulary development in both L1 and L2 in DLLs with SLI, particularly in the beginning stages of L2 acquisition. Clinical and educational implications are discussed.

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