This document discusses bilingualism and language acquisition in children. It defines bilingualism as the ability to use two or more languages. Child bilinguals are those who learn two languages from birth, such as from parents who speak different native languages. Bilingualism in children can be simultaneous, learning both languages from birth, or successive, learning a second language after already learning the first. Factors that can lead to child bilingualism include being born into a bilingual family, acquiring a second language at school, or intentional planning by parents to raise their child bilingually. While some debate the effects of bilingualism, it may provide benefits like improved cognitive awareness.

1. BILINGUALISM AND LANGUAGE
ACQUISITION
BY
Zwidzai Chinyowa

2. Presentation line up
• What is bilingualism
• What is called child bilinguals
• Classification of child bilinguals
• Factors that lead to child bilingualism.
• Aspects of bilingualism of a child.
• Problems faced by bilingual children
• Summary

3. DEFINATION OF TERMS
• The generalized definition of the word
bilingualism, is the ability to use two/ more
languages languages.
• However scholars like Peter A Hornby (1997;
3) quoted Bloomfield’s definition which says
“the term bilingualism should be applied to
those individuals who possesses a native-like
like ability in both languages,

4. Who are child bilinguals
• Child bilingualism is a world wide
phenomenon and most of adult about 75 % of
adult bilingualism results from child
bilingualism
• It refers to child who is able to speak two or
more languages in home since birth and who
are spoken to in only or both of those two
languages at daycare or school,
• The Bilingual Child, is intended to refer
generically to a child who learns two

5. Most raised questions about child
bilinguals
• Are two languages too many for a child? Yes/
No
• Do children confuse the two languages?
Yes/No
Can they be equally proficient in both? Yes/No
• If children have a ‘language instinct’ as has
often been suggested, how does Yes/No
• this instinct cope with two languages at the
same time? Yes/No
• For each answer explain why why

6. Classification of child bilingualism
• Mclaughlin (1978)
• Simultaneous
• simultaneous bilingualism occurs in
situations when a child learns two languages
at the same time, before the age of three. This
often produces a strong bilingualism
• Successive/sequential

7. Types continues
• sequential bilingualism occurs in situations
when a child who has already partially
acquired a L1 (first language) and then learns
a L2 (second language) early in childhood but
after the age of four; an example can be when
a child moves to another place where the
dominant language is not his native language.
This usually results in the production of a
strong bilingualism, but the child needs time
to learn the L2.

8. Aspects of child bilinguals
The person-language bond
• This normally happens when someone uses
the unmorally used language, for example
when someone used to talk to his/her child in
English and then he decide to use the local
Ndebele the child will be distressed and
annoyed

9. Factors that lead to child
bilingualism
• What is it like being a bilingual child? How do
children cope with learning two languages
simultaneously in the first years of life? Many
children, like those of cross-cultural marriages,
grow up in families where more than one
language is spoken on a regular basis. Their
parents may each speak a different language
natively, thus exposing these children to two
languages from birth.

10. Factors continues
• Some children acquire their second language
at school, this normal happen when the
language used at school is different from the
one that is used at home.
• However all the points account for the fact
that if a child is exposed to any language
he/she will acquire that language without fail.
This is sometimes called natural language
acquisition, whereby a child just become a
bilingual without the input of anyone for

11. Factors continues
• In some instances, parents plan whether to
raise their child bilingual or not.
• In this case thus were parents agree on talking
to their babies using both languages they
know but mainly, with a the division of
languages. e.g. father will be using English to
communicate with the child……. Mommy will
be using Shona to speak to their children this
is called planed bilingualism/ also known as
one person one language

12. Factors continues
• Sometimes children become bilinguals due to
a policy of the state or society, where by the
majority language will be taught and to all
and but also recognizing the minority
language, examples are derived from
Grosjean India and Singapore, these are called
societal bilingualism

13. Continues
• Translating, whenever a child learns a
language which her/his parents cannot
understand he will be happy to translate for
them
• Language choice; bilingual child chose a
language they want to use.
• Code switching; they do code switch
whenever they run out of vocabulary, or trying
to express themselves

14. Effect of bilingualism on the child
• There has been debate and there is still
debate among scholars on the effects of
bilingualism on the child some of the effect
are as follows
• Negative effects
• Stuttering; they can hardly finish a sentence
with one language but, it happens before the
age of three.

15. Effects continues
• Unusual word order
• Errors in morphology
• Hesitations
 Positive effects
• Motivation
• Better awareness

16. Study Questions
• Briefly explain using examples how does a child
become bilingual.
• Most child bilinguals are balanced bilinguals and
most adult bilinguals are dominant, using examples
explain and evaluate how valid is this assertion?
• Are two languages too many for a child to learn
• Using a case study write a short story of a bilingual
child how he become bilingual, the type of
bilingualism and age of the child.

17. References
• Bhatia, T. K., & Ritchie, W. C. (Eds.). (2012).
The handbook of bilingualism and
multilingualism. John Wiley & Sons.
• Bialystok, E. (2001). Bilingualism in
development: Language, literacy, and
cognition. New York, NY: Cambridge University
Press.
• Carlson, S. M., & Meltzoff, A. N. (2008).
Bilingual experience andexecutive functioning
in young children. Developmental Science,11,

18. References
• Christian, D., Howard, E. R., & Loeb, M. I.
(2000). Bilingualism for all: Two-way
immersion education in the United States.
Theory into Practice, 39, 258-266.
• Cummins, J. (2009). Bilingual and immersion
programs. In The Hand Book of Second
Language Teaching, ed. M Long and CJ
Doughty. Oxford: Wiley Blackwell.