Bilingual Diversity in Children

Language Development in Children

There are a number of languages spoken throughout the world. Every person knows at least one language, which he/she learns in his/her childhood which is routinely used for speaking and writing. However, many people are fond of learning two or more languages. It may be another language in the same country or totally different language from another country. The number of children speaking non-English languages in the United States is expected to increase in the next decade. Therefore, parents and pediatricians should become, more familiar with the normal patterns of bilingual language development and able to identify abnormal language in a bilingual child. Being bilingual offers children the unique opportunity of speaking them fluently without even having to learn them at school, but also exposes children to the danger of confusing the languages and not being able to speak either perfectly.

Considering how much babies have to learn in their first years of life, another language really does not add much to the load. As long as the child is getting regular interactions in the second (or third) language, there would not be problems. (Bosemark, 2004). It is true that some mixing will occur, but that is both harmless and temporary. As the child builds her/his vocabulary in each language, this phenomenon automatically disappears. How many monolingual children automatically fix mistakes after correct usage has been learned? For example, children begin by saying things like "Me want," when they mean "I want." Eventually, the multilingual child learns correct usage in the same fashion as any other child.

The bilingual children can have some specific advantages in thinking. They have two or more words for any idea and object. Hence, a bilingual child can develop a creative thinking and an ability to think for flexibly. The bilinguals are aware about which language should be spoken with which person in a particular situation. Therefore, they are more sensitive to the needs of the listener than the monolingual child. Being bilingual has a positive effect on intellectual growth. It enhances and enriches a person's mental development. The latest research has proved that the bilinguals are better at IQ test as compared to the monolinguals. (Jirage, 2009). Being bilingual creates a powerful link in different people from different countries.

A bilingual education offers better curriculum results. The bilinguals tend to show a higher performance in examinations and tests. It is associated with thinking benefits of bilingualism. Being bilingual offers potential employment benefits. It offers a wider choice of jobs in various fields. The bilinguals can get prosperous career opportunities in the retail sector, transport, tourism, administration, secretarial work, public relations, marketing and sales, banking and accountancy, translation, law