As parents, we’ve witnessed how fast our children learn. We’ve even been amazed at how quickly children learn new words, shapes, colors, places—to the point of us referring to their dramatic learning ability as little sponges. Research has shown that there is a crucial period to learn another language. This would be when the brain is actually primed to learn a new language starting as early as 8 months of age. When a child gets to be around 8 years of age, they began to slowly decline in their ability to master a foreign language. Not saying that it is not possible, because we all know that it is; it’s just that the gap is beginning to become smaller and smaller as the years go on.
This article we will focus on the top 5 reasons your child should learn another language. Enjoy!
1. As a child, it’s easier to learn another language
As stated in the introduction paragraph, learning languages at an early age is set at a level of ease far more than in the later years of life. Dr. Patricia Kuhl at the Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences at the University of Washington has performed research that shows that babies 8-12 months begin to lose the welcome of a new language due to a focus on the sounds they hear in their native language. Once a foreign language is learned, it’s easier to learn another.
2. Learning another language boosts career opportunities and salary
When it comes to our graduates looking for jobs, they are in competition with the next graduate and the next and the next. Wouldn’t it be swanky if there was a way to have an upper-hand? Well, with language there is! Those who fall within favorable candidates for job opportunities are bilingual. Albert Saiz, an MIT Economist states that there is a 2% salary premium for college graduates who can speak a second language versus those who do not. In addition, speaking a foreign language can make it easier for opportunities in many industries including business, education, national security, healthcare, and social work.
3. Knowing a foreign language increases out-of-the-box thinking
There has been several studies performed regarding the benefits of being bilingual. One such study has revealed that greater creativity and problem solving skills are demonstrated amongst children who are bilingual. When a child learns another language, they are able to see multiple viewpoints when it comes to certain events or occurrences. This ability fosters creative problem solving by being able to consider multiple viewpoints.
4. Learning a second language grows brains and boosts test scores
There has been brain scans performed that show there is more gray matter in the regions of the brain when bilinguals are performing tasks that require multitasking. This can be related to bilinguals focusing their attention on which language to speak at each specific moment, giving them benefits of having extra “brain practice” than children who do not speak another language. And when it comes to test taking, bilinguals tend to perform better in English and Mathematics.
5. Empathy is boosted in children who are bilingual
Wouldn’t it be grand to have little Susan or Billy have more empathy? When it comes to considering someone else’s perspective to understand their meaning, bilingual children perform better. Cornell University tested both bilingual children and children who only speak one language on a particular task that asked for empathy. Dr. Kinzler stated, “children in multilingual environments have social experiences that provide routine practice in considering the perspective of others: they have to think about who speaks which language to whom, who understands which content, and the times and places in which different languages are spoken.”
