Language Proficiency and Narrative Macrostructure in Spanish-English Bilingual Children

Area of Science:

• Linguistics
• Developmental Psychology
• Psycholinguistics

Background:

• Bilingual children exhibit varying narrative abilities based on language exposure.
• Understanding the influence of proficiency in each language on narrative skills is crucial for bilingual education and development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effects of Spanish and English language proficiency on the narrative macrostructure of bilingual children.
• To analyze how proficiency in each language influences specific elements of oral story retell tasks.

Main Methods:

• The study involved 40 typically developing Spanish-English bilingual children aged 5-7 years.
• Five multiple regressions were used to assess the impact of Spanish and English proficiency on narrative macrostructure in both languages.

Main Results:

• Spanish proficiency predicted narrative macrostructure in most measures, except initiating events and actions.
• English proficiency predicted narrative macrostructure in most measures, except outcomes.
• Differential effects of language proficiency were observed across narrative elements in each language.

Conclusions:

• Both Spanish and English proficiency influence the oral narrative skills of bilingual children.
• The impact of language proficiency on narrative macrostructure varies depending on the specific linguistic context (Spanish vs. English).
• Findings underscore the importance of considering individual language proficiency when assessing bilingual children's narrative development.