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Phonological patterns in Mandarin-English bilingual children.
Lu-Chun Lin1, Cynthia J Johnson
1National Chiao Tung University, Taiwan, ROC. regine1217@gmail.com
Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics
|March 30, 2010
Summary
This study examined Mandarin and English phonological patterns in 5-year-old bilingual children. Results showed comparable phoneme accuracy and phonological processes, with some Mandarin influence on English patterns.
Area of Science:
- Linguistics
- Developmental Psychology
- Speech-Language Pathology
Background:
- Limited research exists on phonological development in children from diverse linguistic backgrounds.
- Adele Miccio highlighted the need for specialized phonological measures for bilingual children.
- Advances in bilingual phonological research can inform clinical practice.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate Mandarin and English phonological patterns in 5-year-old bilingual children.
- To assess phoneme accuracy and phonological processes in both languages.
- To identify potential Mandarin influences on English phonological patterns.
Main Methods:
- A single-word assessment was used to evaluate consonant and vowel accuracy.
- Phonological processes were analyzed for type and frequency.
- Participants were typically-developing 5-year-old bilingual children in an English-immersion program in Taiwan.
Main Results:
- Bilingual children demonstrated comparable phoneme accuracy to monolingual peers.
- Rates and types of phonological processes were similar between bilinguals and monolinguals.
- Some English phonological processes in bilinguals suggested a Mandarin influence.
Conclusions:
- Bilingual children's phonological development is comparable to monolinguals, but language-specific influences exist.
- Further interdisciplinary collaboration is needed to understand bilingual language acquisition.
- This research supports the development of tailored interventions for bilingual children.
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