Cognitive in multilingual speakers

1. Cognitive control in bilingual and multilingual children
Implications for language in education policy
Feda Negesse
Department of linguistics
Addis Ababa University
June 2019
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2. Outline
• Introduction
• Cognitive control
Cognitive control in bilingual children
Cognitive control in multilingual children
• Implications
• Recommendations
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3. Introduction
Purpose
• To thoroughly review research and review articles, and related
documents on cognitive control and to draw implications for language
in education policy.
Methods
• Resources were first located in authoritative database of academic
publications.
• More 100 journal articles were reviewed to get deep insights into
cognitive language processing in different populations of speakers.
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4. Introduction
Facts about language
• Languages with large number of speakers are fewer
but often powerful.
• Impartial in language acquisition
• Number of languages to be acquired or learned 1< x
> 65)
• Bilinguals are more common across the globe.
(Apeltauer 1993; Kaji 2013;Schroeder & Mariam 2017; Bhaskaran 2017)
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5. Introduction…
Language structure in the brain
• Language experiences influence brain functions.
• Right hemisphere: second language speakers
• Left hemisphere: bilingual & multilingual, but more
lateralized in bilinguals.
(Bialystok, Craik &Luk 2012 ; Sabourin 2014)
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6. Introduction …
• Both bilingual and multilingual speakers tend to
employ similar regions (e.g., Broca’s area).
• 2nd language and lack of proficiency recruit more
brain areas
• More activation in effortful processing
• Effortful processing needs more neural networks to
obtain sufficient mental resources.
(Abutalebi et al., 2001; Wattendorf & Festman 2008)
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7. Introduction…
Language structure in the brain
• Debatable, many proposals or hypotheses
Single (integrated system)
Separate systems for each language
Shared system with subsystems
• In bilingual studies, a separate system is often assumed.
• Multilingual brain is often glossed over.
(Highboy et al. 2013 ; Kroll, Gullifer & Russi 2013)
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8. Cognitive control
Cognitive control
• “refers to a range of high-level control functions
that support goal-directed behaviors” (Verreyt et
al., 2015, pp. 184) .
• Main control functions: inhibition, updating and
shifting.
• Controversial : language control or cognitive
control for verbal behaviors ?
(Bialystok & Viswanathan 2009; Green & Abutalebi 2013)
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9. 3. Cognitive control in bilinguals9
Parallel activations in both mental lexicons
• Failure to manage : communication breakdown due to
interference, confusion
• Generally, bilinguals outperform monolinguals in cognitive
control
• Bilinguals can successfully allocate limited cognitive resources to
suppress wrong information.
• Early bilinguals excel late bilinguals and 2nd language speakers.
(Dijkstra & vanHeuven 2002; Goral, Campanelli &Spiro 2015; Heldlmayr et al. 2019)

10. Cognitive control in bilinguals …
• Th 2nd language is weakly activated as opposed to the 1st
language.
• Dominant bilinguals experience more cross-linguistic
interference than do balanced ones.
• Proficient bilinguals are more effective in suppressing
unwanted information from non-target language.
• Cognitive control gets enhanced with age.
(Isurin 200; Dijkstra & vanHeuven 2002; Peristeri, Tsimpli & Tsapkini 2018 )
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11. Cognitive control in multilingual speakers
Multilingualism
• Takes more opportunities, motivation and time to be multilingual
• Multilingual speakers are not monolingual speakers of different
languages!
• Very complex and unique linguistic system
• Activations in all available language systems during production
and perception
• How do multilingual speakers manage cross-linguistic
interference from non-target languages ?
(Conoz 2013; Higby et al. 2013)
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12. Cognitive control in multilingual…
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• The same cognitive control is at work.
• Intrusion from unwanted language is suppressed by
an inhibitory control.
• Both proactive and reactive inhibitory controls
• More mental resources are needed to inhibit non-
target languages.
• More brain regions get involved.
(Finkbeir, Gollan & Caramazza 2006; Goldrick et al. 2016)

13. Cognitive control in multilingual ….
• All factors affecting cognitive control in bilinguals are
also relevant here.
• Do multilingual ( trilingual) speakers gain more
advantage than do bilinguals in cognitive control ?
• Yes but too small.
• Why ?
(Poach & vanHell 2012)
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14. Cognitive command…
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Supply-Demand Cognitive Plasticity Framework
• Reason 1: Cognitive plasticity at its peak
• Reason 2 : Already enough supply
• Reason 3: Threshold not yet reached from trilingual
experience
• Reason 4 : Languages have not been engaged to
enhance cognitive control.
(Schroeder & Mariam 2017; Cat et al. 2018)

15. Implications for language in education policy
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Challenges
• Contradicting findings from past studies
• Too theoretical to be used for practical applications
• Full of debatable issues
• Why ? ? ?

16. Implications …
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Possible main reasons:
• Lack of correctly mapping neural activities onto behaviors
• Lack of precisely defining concepts (late, early, bilingual, multilingual, etc.)
• Failure to isolate confounding/ correlating factors ( age, experience,
exposure )
• Heterogenous nature of the population
• Small sample size
• Researchers’ biases ( against and in favor of bilingual or multilingual
advantages in cognitive control)
• Elusive and complex nature of the concept to be studied ( cognitive control ?)
(Bedore et al. 2012; Antonio 2018

17. Implications
Points of convergence albeit conflicting reports
1.Parallel activations from target and non-target languages in
bilinguals
2.Multiple activations in multilingual speakers
3.Effortful processing recruits more brain regions and incurs
more cognitive costs.
4. Cognitive control is inevitably involved.
( Dijkstra & vanHeuven 2002; Valian 2015;Branzi et al. 2018)
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18. Implications…
• Schooling usually brings with itself a new language (s)
and a new linguistic experience.
• A school child may be faced with second, third or fourth
language.
• But at least a child starts schooling monolingual.
• For this child, an optimal language learning requires an
addition of one new language ( L2 added to L1).
( Bale 2010; Evans 2013)
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19. Implications…
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• Two languages are relatively easier to manage.
• Conducive environment for enhancing cognitive control
if introduced early.
• Prepares the child for the addition of the third language
• More importantly, if the new language is to be used later
as LOLT, the child will have enough time to achieve the
level of proficiency needed.
(Bale 2010; Paradis & Blom 2016; Schroeder & Mariam 2017)

20. Implications …
• Introduction of another language ( L1, L2 + L3 [?])
• Bilinguals would be multilingual children.
• Multilingual children would remain the same but
with one more language
• Raises concerns: WHEN ? COGNITIVE COSTS ?
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21. Implications…
• Could it be introduced with L1 and L2 ?
• No easy answer
• Simultaneous acquisition of L2 and L3 is rare.
• Countries have not introduced three languages simultaneously
L1 (mother tongue usually and preferably)= grade 1
L2 (very useful in academic setting and later)= grade 1 or
later
L3 ( Link language in social, business and other domains)=
sometime after L1 and L2
(Lafon 2010; Kohler 2017; Zein 2017; Kirkpatrick 2019)
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22. Implications …
Simultaneous introduction of two new ( other than those already
acquired) languages
• Cognitively demanding
• Children may not have sufficient mental resources to cope with.
• Denies monolingual children to slowly develop cognitive control.
• Early introduction of the 3rd language is also bad.
• B/c it competes with L1 and L2, which are more useful in
academic settings.
(Bialystok & Feng 2009; Bialystok et al. 2012; Russelli et al. 2016)
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23. Implications…
Optimal conditions for learning of language
• Rich and best input ( like that of total immersion)
• Sufficient time to practice ( like that of immersion )
• Sequential introduction of new languages
• Schroeder & Mariam (2017) point out that “ while
sequential second-to-third-language leaners face a gradual
increase in [cognitive] demands, simultaneous leaners face
a steep change” P. 158.
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24. Recommendations
• Piloting a program before a mass implementation
• Behavioral experiments (e.g., Effects of four
languages on cognitive control of children)
• Survey (e.g., proportion of monolingual, bilingual
or multilingual children)
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25. Thank you
Questions Comments
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