Bilingual Babies

Summary of "Benefits for babies exposed to two languages found in Singaporean birth cohort study" by A*Star (Agency for Science, Technology, and Research)

According to A*STAR, multilingual infants show more early signs of cognitive development than monolingual infants. In the experiment to test the babies' abilities, they each were shown two pictures of a bear and a wolf. The bear was the familiar image shown, and later, the novel image, the wolf, would be shown. Bilingual babies grew bored of the familiar image more quickly than the monolingual ones, and they also showed a strong preference for the novel image. These results were later linked with high IQ scores and levels of vocabulary. Because adults know learning a language to be so difficult, it is widely believed that these infants must not be able to handle two languages. However, studies show that babies are extremely susceptible to new languages, which gives them a specifically unique view when it comes to learning them (A*STAR, 2014).

Although the benefits to being bilingual are undeniable, I have to wonder what the downsides are. Perhaps there won't be full development in a single language, making it difficult to develop strong vocabulary in both languages. The person's cognition may be exceptional, however there could be a difference the the children's social development. I have always wondered how bilingual kids not only managed both languages, but often performed remarkably in other subjects. This article also outlines the complications when researching children is compiling data. Lead author of the study, Leher Sing, says "Visual habituation works wonderfully because it...capitalises on what babies do so naturally, which is to rapidly become interested in something new and then rapidly move on to something else."So, to any parents who want their children to be bilingual, it is important to start at an early age, and it will surely bring many benefits.

A*Star Agency for Science, Technology and Research. (2014, September 2). Benefits for babies exposed to two languages found in Singaporean birth cohort study. ScienceDaily. Retrieved September 9, 2014 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140902115032.htm