Relationships Between Home and School Language Exposure and Changes in Bilingual Oral Language Performance From...

Area of Science:

• Developmental Psychology
• Bilingualism Research
• Linguistic Development

Background:

• Over one-third of US students experience bilingual home environments.
• Growing need to understand bilingual language acquisition across diverse settings.
• Examining the impact of home vs. school language exposure is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the longitudinal relationship between home/school language exposure and bilingual oral language performance.
• To track changes in Spanish-English bilinguals' language skills from kindergarten to first grade.
• To differentiate the effects of home and school language exposure on specific language domains.

Main Methods:

• 164 Spanish-English bilingual children assessed in kindergarten and first grade.
• Standardized oral language assessments used.
• Caregiver and teacher reports collected on home and school language exposure.

Main Results:

• Kindergarten Spanish home exposure predicted first-grade Spanish semantics.
• Kindergarten Spanish school exposure predicted first-grade Spanish morphosyntax.
• High Spanish home exposure correlated with greater gains in Spanish semantics and overall performance, with no negative impact on English.

Conclusions:

• Home and school language exposures have differential impacts on bilingual language development.
• Spanish home and school exposure are vital for heritage language growth.
• Bilingual development can be supported without compromising proficiency in the majority language.