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BILINGUALISM AND ITS EFFECT ON FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNING
Bekbosinova Dilfuza Kuralbayevna
Karakalpak State University
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15621331
ANNOTATION.
In this article explores the relationship between bilingualism and foreign
language achievement. we pay special attention to factors that affect this relationship, namely
background factors, varying bilingual profiles and differential patterns of grow.
ANNOTATSIYA.
Ushbu maqolada ikki tillilik va chet tilini o‘zlashtirish o‘rtasidagi
munosabat o‘rganiladi. Biz aynan ushbu munosabatga ta’sir ko‘rsatadigan omillar, ya’ni ikki tillilik
profillarining turli ko‘rinishlari va ikki tillilar hamda bir tillilar o‘rtasidagi rivojlanishdagi farqli
tendensiyalarga alohida e’tibor qaratamiz.
АННОТАЦИЯ.
В данной статье исследуется взаимосвязь между билингвизмом и
успехами в изучении иностранного языка. Особое внимание уделяется факторам,
влияющим на эту взаимосвязь, а именно: фоновые факторы, различные профили
билингвизма и различные модели развития билингвов и монолингвов.
Key words:
Bilingual education, language, discuss, transitional, maintenance and
enrichment models.
Kalit so‘zlar:
Ikki tilli ta’lim, til, muhokama, o‘tish, saqlash va boyitish modellari.
Ключевые слова:
билингвальное образование, язык, обсуждение, модели перехода,
сохранения и обогащения.
Bilingualism is a range of different patterns and combinations of acquiring and knowing
multiple languages. Despite the wide breadth of bilingualism – worldwide bilinguals make up
roughly 60% of the world’s population– and the numerous studies investigating this phenomenon,
there is little agreement on what exactly a bilingual person is, and definitions are derived from
various theoretical and methodological perspectives with specific problems and contexts in
mind[1, p 282].
However, there is consensus that bilingualism is psychologically and sociologically unique
from monolingualism, the state of knowing and using a single language.
Definitions of bilingualism tend to take several approaches, but most incorporate either a
competency or a functional approach. Many have stressed the importance of competency, like
Bloomfield who argues that a bilingual person has native-like control of two languages”. Steiner
takes competency one step further by suggesting that a bilingual person is one that does not
proceed laterally when translating but rather reaching inward to the “symbiotic core”[7, p.125].
Considering the variety of characteristics and contexts associated with bilingualism,
theorists have proposed different categories of bilingualism. Hamers and Blanc in their discussion
of bilingualism distinguish between six psychological and sociological dimensions of bilingualism,
while Edwards identifies eight interacting psychological, cognitive, linguistic and cultural
dimensions. These subcategories can influence the development of a bilingual’s linguistic,
neuropsychological, cognitive and sociocultural language profile and, consequentially, should be
taken into account when comparing findings as well as in generalizing about the greater
phenomenon of bilingualism[2,p 25].
A central subdivision of bilingualism is the age at which both language are acquired, as in the
case of simultaneous and sequential bilingualism. Simultaneous bilingualism begins from the
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onset of language acquisition (August & Hakuta, 2005). A simultaneous bilingual learns two
linguistic systems that can serve the same social function and therefore develops discrimination
as well as perceptual skills early on[3, p 342]. In contrast, sequential bilinguals learn one language
after another. The exact age boundary between simultaneous and sequential bilinguals is rather
arbitrary, although August and Hakuta (2005) suggest age five as a possible onset of sequential
bilingualism when it is argued the basic components of language are already in place. Proposed
distinctions between the groups include maturation and acquisition differences as well as
attainment and proficiency differences.
Another category which may overlap with the simultaneous/sequential typology is that of
balanced and dominant bilingualism. Balanced bilingualism refers to bilinguals who have similar
proficiencies in both languages, while dominant bilingualism is when an individual has a higher
proficiency in one language over the other. This dichotomy is often related to functional
differences as well as age of acquisition.
This distinction plays a role in Cummins’ Interdependence Hypothesis and the construct of
underlying proficiency, in which it is hypothesized that first and second language knowledge are
linked, and that a first language needs to be sufficiently developed in order to transfer skills to the
second language successfully.
Another distinction is additive and subtractive bilingualism. First proposed by Lambert
(1973) at a symposium entitled ‘cultural factors in learning,’ this dichotomy has been used widely
across the literature to explain a variety of phenomena from cognitive to ethnolinguistic
differences. In its original conception, additive bilingualism is when a second language is
developed without the loss of the first. Juxtaposed to this is subtractive bilingualism, which is
when the two languages are in competition with each other, resulting in one language being
replaced by the other.
The consequences of bilingualism
Bilingualism as an individual and societal phenomenon has long been a topic of interest for
researchers across a variety of disciplines such as psychology, linguistics, and education. For over
fifty years, research has investigated the possibility that bilingualism may have facilitating effects
on cognitive and metalinguistic outcomes.
To frame this discussion, it is useful to begin with an overarching theoretical model to
explain these processes. Despite the plethora of literature on the topic, there is a dearth of
theoretical models explaining the relationship between bilingualism and cognitive and linguistic
processes, including metalinguistic awareness. Building on the theoretical basis of Vygotsky, Ben-
Zeev, and Cummins, all of whom associated bilingualism with heightened metalinguistic processes
and cognitive development, Mohanty provides a general model to structure the effects of
bilingualism on cognitive and linguistic processes and to show how this, in turn, influences
learning outcomes
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Figure 1. A model of the relationship between bilingualism, metalinguistic processes
and cognitive development, Based on Mohanty, 1994
In this model, bilingualism is developed within a certain social context. Although often
interpreted as a marginal component, the wider social context directly impacts how bilingualism
is developed and may affect the development of cognitive and metalinguistic processes [4.p96].
Building on the social context, knowing and speaking two languages has consequences for
cognitive development and in turn, can impact how an individual is able to reflect on linguistic
knowledge. This, in turn, can have an effect on scholastic achievement. As Mohanty states: In the
context of bilingualism, it can be said that, as a result of the demands of the complexities involved
in bilingual communication, the bilingual child develops certain coping strategies which boost his
metalinguistic development in particular and metacognitive development in general. Better
development of metalinguistic and metacognitive processes, in turn, help the child exercise
greater control over his cognitive processes and make them more effective improving the level of
performance of the child in a variety of intellectual and scholastic tasks. [4,p 92].
The bilingual variation in cognitive and metalinguistic development ultimately has
consequences for scholastic achievement. Several analogous explanations have been proposed for
why bilinguals demonstrate these advantages. One perspective suggests that suppressing one
language when speaking the other trains bilinguals to suppress the irrelevant part of the task and
control their attention better than monolinguals. Another claims that a bilingual’s ability to hold
two languages simultaneously in the mind, resisting intrusions of the other language, might
explain the greater control. In other words, while the first explanation stresses the suppression of
one language which forces enhanced attention, the latter emphasizes a stronger separation
between languages which results in enhanced control process.
These findings have been shown to be robust across varying language groups with different
immigration background and cultural history. Other background factors, like socio-economic
status as well as parental education, have been found to influence executive functions of
monolingual and bilingual children. However, when comparing monolingual and bilingual
children, both from low socio-economic status families, bilingual children still outperform their
monolingual peers. This suggests that although socio-economic status is an important factor, it
does not necessarily interact with group membership and bilinguals still have an advantage in
executive functioning once socio-economic status is taken into account.
Language proficiency seems to play a role in the advantage of bilinguals in executive
functioning. For example, bilinguals with higher proficiency have been found to have greater
ability to inhibit interferences than bilinguals with lower proficiency[6,p 256].
Similarly, simultaneous bilinguals who had more balanced proficiencies outperformed not
only monolinguals but also language minority children who had been attending bilingual
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immersion classes for six months. This result not only replicates earlier findings which link
bilingual proficiency and enhanced cognitive abilities, but also suggests that bilinguals must reach
a certain level of bilingual proficiency to have cognitive advantages.
In conclusion, the experience of knowing and using two languages affects cognitive
development. Specifically, bilingualism has been found to have an impact on executive functioning.
This heightened executive functioning, although robust across varying language combinations,
cultural backgrounds, and socio-economic statuses, may be affected by bilingual language
proficiency.
Bilingualism and its effect on metalinguistic awareness
As depicted in the theoretical model above (Figure 1), another aspect important to the study
of bilingualism is its effect on metalinguistic awareness. As a subcategory of metacognition[5,p
77], metalanguage utilizes conscious control of knowledge as opposed to unconscious acquisition.
Despite its various interpretations as a construct, metalinguistic awareness can be defined as the
ability to reflect upon and manipulate the structural features of spoken language, treating
language itself.
References:
Используемая литература:
Foydalanilgan adabiyotlar:
1.
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Hakuta, K., & Diaz, R. M. (1985). The relationship between degree of bilingualism and
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4.
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5.
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(
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After Babel: Aspects of Language and Translation
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