Dual language profiles of Latino children of immigrants: Stability and change over the early school years

Collins, Brian A.; O'Connor, Erine E.; Suárez‐Orozco, Carola; Nieto-Castañón, Alfonso; Toppelberg, Claudio O.

doi:10.1017/s0142716412000513

Cited by 38 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 87 publications

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“…Our findings support results from Collins, O' Connor, Suárez-Orozco, Nieto-Castañón, and Toppelberg in the sense that a specific linguistic context can facilitate language use [67]. As the young HSs of the study had access to both English and Spanish in their interactions at home and school, they benefited from the input received in both languages.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

A Comparison of the Grammatical Production of Child Heritage Speakers of Spanish across Language and Grade: Kindergarten and Grade 1

et al. 2017

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Abstract:In this study, we elicited grammatical forms (oral production) from a group of child heritage speakers of Spanish (N = 45) in English and Spanish, using the morphosyntax subtest of the Bilingual English-Spanish Assessment (BESA), (Peña et al. 2014). A cross-sectional design was used with 25 participants in kindergarten and 20 in first grade. All children spoke Spanish at home and attended English rural schools. We controlled for L2 class environment and socio-economic status. Research findings indicated children produced more target structures in L1 Spanish. This project supports the view that sequential bilingualism and continuous exposure to the heritage language may assist heritage speakers to maintain some L1 structures (Miller and Cuza 2013; Pascual y Cabo and Gómez Soler 2015). Patterns of L2 development are also addressed.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

A Comparison of the Grammatical Production of Child Heritage Speakers of Spanish across Language and Grade: Kindergarten and Grade 1

et al. 2017

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“…Children in the present study who began school with higher dual language proficiencies made greater gains in both languages, which also has been evidenced in other studies (Burchinal et al, 2012). In previous work, we have identified factors related to different dual language profiles at the time of school entry (Collins, O’Connor, Suárez-Orozco, Nieto-Castañon, & Toppelberg, 2014). It may be that children with higher dual language abilities purposely entered into schools with bilingual instruction in an effort to maintain and develop dual language proficiencies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dual language development of Latino children: Effect of instructional program type and the home and school language environment

Collins

2014

Early Childhood Research Quarterly

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Latino dual language children typically enter school with a wide range of proficiencies in Spanish and English, many with low proficiency in both languages, yet do make gains in one or both languages during their first school years. Dual language development is associated with how language is used at home and school, as well as the type of instructional program children receive at school. The present study investigates how changes in both Spanish and English proficiencies of Latino, second-generation immigrant children (n =163) from kindergarten to second grade relate to instructional program type as well as language use at home and school. A series of MANCOVAs demonstrated significant dual language gains in children who were in bilingual classrooms and schools where Spanish was used among the teachers, students, and staff. Furthermore, only in classrooms where both Spanish and English were used did children reach age-appropriate levels of academic proficiency in both languages. Home language use was also significantly associated with dual language gains as was maternal Spanish vocabulary knowledge before controlling for maternal education. Educational implications and potential benefits associated with bilingualism are discussed.

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“…Not surprisingly, virtually all studies have found that amount of English input as measured by time in English preschool/school positively predicts higher English L2 abilities (e.g. Blom, Paradis & Sorenson Duncan, ; Bohman, Bedore, Peña, Mendez‐Perez & Gillam, ; Chondrogianni & Marinis, ; Cobo‐Lewis et al ., ; Collins, O'Connor, Suárez‐Orozco, Nieto‐Castañon & Toppleberg, ; V.M. Gathercole, ; Paradis, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Higher family socioeconomic (SES) background and greater richness of the L2 environment outside school (e.g. frequency and diversity of reading, media use, organized activities and playing with friends in the L2) are input quality factors associated with stronger L2 abilities in the early stages of development (Bohman et al ., ; Collins et al ., ; V.M. Gathercole, ; Golberg, Paradis & Crago, ; Hammer, Komaroff, Rodriguez, Lopez, Scarpino et al ., ; Jia & Fuse, ; Cobo‐Lewis et al ., ; Paradis, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bilingual children's long‐term outcomes in English as a second language: language environment factors shape individual differences in catching up with monolinguals

Paradis

Jia

2016

Developmental Science

137

126

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Bilingual children experience more variation in their language environment than monolingual children and this impacts their rate of language development with respect to monolinguals. How long it takes for bilingual children learning English as a second language (L2) to display similar abilities to monolingual age-peers has been estimated to be 4-6 years, but conflicting findings suggest that even 6 years in school is not enough. Most studies on long-term L2 development have focused on just one linguistic sub-domain, vocabulary, and have not included multiple individual difference factors. For the present study, Chinese first language-English L2 children were given standardized measures of vocabulary, grammar and global comprehension every year from 4 ½ to 6 ½ years of English in school (ages 8½ to 10½); language environment factors were obtained through an extensive parent questionnaire. Children converged on monolingual norms differentially according to the test, with the majority of children reaching monolingual levels of performance on the majority of tests by 5 ½ years of English exposure. Individual differences in outcomes were predicted by length of English exposure, mother's education, mother's English fluency, child's use of English in the home, richness/quality of the English input outside school and age of arrival in Canada. In sum, the timeframe for bilinguals to catch up to monolinguals depends on linguistic sub-domain, task difficulty and on individual children's language environment, making 4-6 years an approximate estimate only. This study also shows that language environment factors shape not only early-stage but also late-stage bilingual development.

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Dual language profiles of Latino children of immigrants: Stability and change over the early school years

Cited by 38 publications

References 87 publications

A Comparison of the Grammatical Production of Child Heritage Speakers of Spanish across Language and Grade: Kindergarten and Grade 1

A Comparison of the Grammatical Production of Child Heritage Speakers of Spanish across Language and Grade: Kindergarten and Grade 1

Dual language development of Latino children: Effect of instructional program type and the home and school language environment

Bilingual children's long‐term outcomes in English as a second language: language environment factors shape individual differences in catching up with monolinguals

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