Voices en Español

As “Raising Bilingual Kids” Week continues here at Voices en Español, we turn to a very interesting book that was recently published. It’s called “The Bilingual Edge: Why, When and How to Teach Your Child a Second Language“, written by Kendall King and Alison Mackey. The third and final podcast in this weeklong series will be an interview with Dr. Mackey, a Georgetown University professor and one of the book’s co-authors. I will podcast that interview on Friday.

The Bilingual Edge identifies 10 myths related to raising bilingual children. Here are four that I think are particularly important. You’ll have to buy the book to read the other six myths.

Myth 1: Only bilingual parents can raise bilingual children.

Not true. Bilingual parents don’t always raise bilingual children. A case in point: The United States. There are millions of immigrant family households where one or both parents are bilingual and their children don’t always wind up having the same native level of fluency as their parents. The reasons? Well, English is the official language of the U.S. and monolingualism is considered the norm. Also, most children automatically pick up on which language is considered the dominant language in the society in which they are raised and quickly learn it.

The truth: Monolingual parents can raise bilingual children but to learn a second language takes planning, organization and consistency.

Myth 2: You have to start while the child is still in diapers.

False. It’s a common misconception that the younger a child is, the more able he or she is to learn a foreign language. That’s not necessarily the case. According to research, what matters most is motivation as well as the amount and type of exposure children get to the second language that counts most. An older child or even an adolescent can be a better candidate for becoming bilingual than a toddler, depending on the circumstances.

The primary reason why it’s good to start early is because young children aren’t really expected to know much or to have big vocabularies.

“Learning a language from a young age is advantegeous because older children, adolescents, and adults have to deal with higher expectations and more sophisticated social situations while learning a second language,” says a passage in the book.

Myth 3: Only native speakers can teach children a second language.

Wrong again. According to The Bilingual Edge, “the truly critical factor is rich, dynamic, and meaningful interaction with speakers of those languages” (and that can come in many different forms).

Myth 4: TV shows, DVDs and “edutainment” like talking toys, are a great way to learn a foreign language.

Not necessarily. They can be a great supplement but should not be relied upon to teach a child a foreign language.

So, what are the best ways to raise bilingual children? Check back tomorrow for the special podcast and some specific tips.

¡Hasta pronto!