Seventh International Conference on Immersion and Dual Language Education

Plenary Session

Bilingual language

All

Recent research on language development in bilingual and multilingual children can provide rich sources of information concerning the nature of linguistic and cognitive skills and the processes of development in bilingual populations.  Language acquisition in normally developing bilingual and multilingual children is influenced by a multitude of interrelated factors, some external to the child (e.g., exposure), some internal (e.g., learned attention).  This talk will discuss such factors and the best explanations for the complex underlying mechanisms whereby bilinguals acquire their languages.  Ramifications and implications for practice, especially for program leaders, teachers, and families, will be laid out.  Best practices hinge crucially on an understanding of these mechanisms, which, in turn, can both allay often misplaced fears and, at the same time, guide us towards optimal ways forward.