The document discusses various perspectives on bilingualism from different studies:
- Thompson (1952) argued that bilingual children are handicapped in their language development.
- McLaughlin (1987) suggested that first and second language acquisition follow common principles.
- Later studies classified bilinguals into different types based on factors like early vs late acquisition, balanced vs dominant proficiency levels, and additive vs subtractive impacts on the first language.
- The importance of maintaining the mother tongue for bilingual children's personal and educational development was also emphasized.