As a bilingual speech-language pathologist, I'm often contacted by concerned parents who are worried that exposing their children to two languages is confusing.  If you are a parent who is concerned about this, you are certainly not alone.  Here, we set the record straight for you and all other concerned parents out there; learning two languages, whether simultaneously or sequentially, does not confuse children. 

The concept that learning more than one language causes confusion for children is frequently spread by unknowing professionals and members of the community.  There are a number of myths that contribute to this idea.  I’ve listed a few of these myths below along with the facts.

Top Myths About Bilingual Child Development

1. Myth: Bilingual Children Confuse Languages

Many bilingual children speak phrases or sentences wherein they switch between languages; this is also known as code switching.  Code switching leads many people to believe that children are confused about which language(s) to use.  Although switching between languages may make it seem like a child is confused, code switching is actually a normal part of bilingual language development and is not a cause for concern. 

• Genesee, Paradis, and Crago (2004) reported that children with exposure to two languages have the innate ability to learn both without negative implications for successful development of either language.
• Bilingual children may have vocabularies that are smaller in each language compared to norms for those languages, however, their overall vocabulary knowledge (from both languages) will be equal to that of their monolingual peers (Hoff & Core, 2015).
• Research shows that monolingual and bilingual children meet speech and language milestones at similar rates (Genesee, Paradis & Crago, 2004).
• Switching back and forth between languages in a given phrase or sentence (AKA code switching/code mixing) is indicative of normal bilingual development and is not a sign of confusion. Additionally, code mixing may reflect the cultural norms of the child’s environment (Genesee, Paradis & Crago, 2004).
• Bilingual infants can easily differentiate between their two languages (Bosch & Sebastian-Galles, 2001).

2. Myth: Bilingual Children Exhibit Delayed Speech

There is a common misconception that children who learn more than one language will be delayed in talking.  This idea is disproven by research time and time again.  Bilingual children develop communication skills at similar rates and ages as monolingual children and are not at a higher risk for communication delays. 

• Research shows that strong language skills in a child’s first language (L1) can assist with development of the second language (L2) (Genesee, et al., 2004).
• A 1992 study conducted by Perozzi and Sanchez looked at bilingual children with language delays and found that children learned prepositions and pronouns in English (L2) twice as fast if instruction was first provided in Spanish (L1) compared to children who only received English instruction.

3. Myth: Children with Developmental Disabilities Cannot Learn Two Languages

Similar to the belief that being bilingual will lead a child to have speech delays, there is also a misconception that children who have developmental disabilities will be confused by hearing two languages and, as such, will be incapable of learning them. 

Numerous researchers have examined this misconception with children exhibiting specific language impairments, autism spectrum disorder, and Down syndrome. All conclusions were the same: children with developmental disabilities are not confused by two languages and are capable of learning both languages.

Researchers have investigated bilingualism in children with developmental disabilities, such as autism and down syndrome, and have found that learning more than one language will not harm these individuals. Instead, bilingualism will enhance their overall language and socialization skills and improve their interactions with their parents and families (Kremer-Sadlik, 2005; Bird, et al., 2005; Genesee, et al., 2004).

4.Myth: Non-English Speaking Children  Will Be Confused by In-School English Use

Another common bilingualism myth is that  a non-English speaking child will be confused when hearing English for the first time upon entering school.  Again, this myth is not supported by evidence.  In fact, researchers have found that if a child has a strong base in their native language (e.g., Spanish), they will learn the second language (e.g., English) that much more quickly and easily.

Although these myths and concerns are still prevalent, the truth is that learning more than one language does not cause confusion and, instead, has many advantages.  First and foremost, encouraging children to learn more than one language will allow them to engage in conversations with family and friends from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds.  Additionally, research shows that bilingualism helps children to better understand others’ perspectives. 

Bilingual children are also found to have stronger cognitive skills than their monolingual counterparts.  When thinking about setting your child up for future success, it’s also important to recognize that a person who is bilingual or multilingual is more marketable in the workforce. 

The key takeaways here are that:

1. Families should be encouraged to use their native language at home because it is advantageous to their children’s speech and language development, as well as their cultural and linguistic identity.

2. Learning more than one language does not cause confusion or delays. With this in mind, the next time you meet a bilingual family in your professional or personal life, make sure that you are educating them on the benefits of bilingualism rather than continuing to perpetuate myths that have been unfounded for decades. I promise you that those families and their children will benefit from your sound advice.

References:

Bird, E. K., Cleave, P., Trudeau, N., Thordardottir, E., Sutton, A., & Thorpe, A. (2005). The language abilities of bilingual children with down syndrome. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 14, 187-199.

Bosch L, & Sebastian-Galles N. (2001). Evidence of early language discrimination abilities in infants from bilingual environments. Infancy, 2, 29–49.

Genesee, F., Paradis, J., & Crago, M. B. (2004). Dual language development and disorders: A handbook on bilingualism and second language learning. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.
Hoff, E., & Core, C. (2015). What clinicians need to know about bilingual development. Seminars in Speech and Language, 36(2), 89–99.

Kremer-Sadlik, T. (2005). To be or not to be bilingual: Autistic children from multilingual families. Paper presented at the 2003 at the ISB4: Proceedings of the 4th International Symposium on Bilingualism. Retrieved from www.cascadilla.com/isb4.html

Perozzi, J. A., & Sanchez, M. C. (1992). The effect of instruction in L1 on receptive acquisition of L2 for bilingual children with language delay. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 23(4), 348–352.

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