The cognitive development of young dual language learners
Barac, R., Bialystok, E., Castro, D. & Sanchez, M. (2014). The cognitive development of young dual language learners: A critical review. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, DOI:10.1016/j.ecresq.2014.02.003
This article provides an overview of existing research on the cognitive development of bilingual pre-school children. 102 peer-reviewed articles between 2000 and 2013 were analysed, showing relatively consistent 'bilingual advantage' in certain areas of cognitive development. For example, bilingual children typically demonstrate more advanced 'executive control skills' (e.g. ability to resist a habitual response or information that is not relevant; ability to hold information in mind and mentally manipulate it; cognitive flexibility) than their monolingual peers. Bilingual children also outperform their peers in 'theory of mind understanding', which is the metacognitive ability to ascribe mental states to other people.The authors conclude that the exercise of managing two linguistic systems generally leads to cognitive advantages, and that the outcomes of bilingualism depend on both the level of linguistic proficiency and the extent of language use. (Abstract adapted from Barac, R., Bialystok, E., Castro, D. & Sanchez, M.)