Being able to speak more than one language is a huge asset. It means you can communicate with more people from around the world, it can open you up to job opportunities, and it can provide several cognitive advantages. However, when a child is growing up in a multilingual home and learning more than one language, there can be concerns about their speech development.
Some parents worry that exposure to multiple languages at an early age may confuse children and lead to speech impediments.
But there’s no denying that this is actually the best time for them to seamlessly learn these new linguistic skills, as picking up languages becomes harder when you get older.
So what should you do?
If you’re concerned about your child or a child you care for growing up in a multilingual environment, we’re here to help.
In this guide, we’ll discuss the likelihood of speech impediments, the difference between normal language development and speech disorders, and the myths surrounding growing up multilingual.
Read on to find out more.
Understanding Speech Impediments
In order to continue, it’s important to understand what a speech impediment is and what causes it.
A speech impediment is a disorder that affects a person’s ability to produce certain sounds correctly or fluently. This might include articulation, phonological and fluency disorders.
These disorders can be the result of a variety of factors, such as genetic predisposition, neurological conditions, hearing impairments or other environmental influences.
However, it’s worth knowing that exposure to multiple languages in itself is not a known cause of speech disorders
Common Myths About Growing Up in Multilingual Home and Speech Impediments
There are several common misconceptions around multilingualism and speech impediments and it is these misconceptions that can cause parents to worry. These include:
1. Multilingualism Confuses Children
Some believe that children become confused by exposure to multiple languages. However, research shows that children’s brains are highly adept at distinguishing between languages and do not experience confusion when exposed from an early age.
In fact, infants as young as six months can differentiate between distinct linguistic systems and adjust their speech patterns accordingly.
2. Multilingual Children Will Always Experience Delayed Speech Development
While it is true that some multilingual children can take slightly longer to produce their first words or sentences, this is because they need to learn and manage multiple language systems rather than just one.
Therefore, this is not a sign of a speech impediment but a delay that usually resolves itself as the child gains proficiency in both languages.
3. Code-Switching Indicates a Speech Disorder
Lastly, multilingual children can sometimes engage in code-switching, which is where they mix words from different languages in a sentence.
Some parents and educators become concerned about this as a sign of confusion or language difficulties.
However, research shows that code-switching is a normal and even sophisticated behaviour. This reflects the child’s ability to navigate multiple languages effectively and will resolve itself over time.
Factors that Can Influence Speech Development in Multilingual Children
While growing up in a multilingual home in itself does not cause speech impediments, there are certain factors that can impact a child’s speech development.
So, in this next section, we’ll take a look at these different factors, how they can impact the child positively and negatively and finally, ways that parents can support their child’s development.
The Quality and Quantity of Language Exposure
The amount of exposure a child receives to each language will play a crucial role in their proficiency. So, if a child does not receive sufficient exposure to one of the languages used in their household, they may have weaker linguistic skills in that language. This can sometimes be misinterpreted as a speech issue.
Consistency in Language Use
Consistency in any language is the key to helping children develop stronglinguistic foundations. So, if multilingual families mix languages inconsistently and without clear, consistent patterns, the child may take longer to develop proficiency in each language. Again, this may lead to delays but it won’t cause a speech impediment.
Parental Attitudes and Support
Children benefit from an encouraging linguistic environment, and parents have a big role to play in their development. If you are too anxious about multilingualism and frequently switch between languages out of concern, this could create uncertainty in the child’s language development too.
Presence of an Actual Speech Disorder
Some multilingual children may have genuine speech disorders that would have become apparent over time, just as they would in monolingual children. In these cases, speech therapy interventions may be required in all languages the child uses to ensure comprehensive support.
How to Support Multilingual Children with Speech Delays or Disorders
As we’ve said, growing up in a multilingual environment will not lead to speech impediments. However, it can cause delays, and it could be that the child is predisposed to speech difficulties anyway.
So, if your multilingual child exhibits signs of a speech disorder, it’s important to seek professional evaluation from a speech and language therapist (SALT). Some best practices for supporting multilingual children exhibiting difficulties include:
- Assessing their language development across all their spoken languages to determine whether these speech difficulties are present across all of them or if they are specific to one
- This includes determining if there is one specific thing that your child is struggling with, for example, making certain sounds or saying particular words
- Encouraging the natural use of language at home rather than trying to restrict multilingualism for fear of speech impediments
- Seeking speech therapy or assessment in the child’s dominant language while maintaining exposure to other languages
- Educating every adult and caregiver in their life about normal multilingual development to reduce any unnecessary concerns about their language mixing or code-switching
In conclusion, growing up in a multilingual home does not itself cause speech impediments. While some multilingual children may exhibit different speech development patterns and possible delays compared to monolingual children, these are typically very normal.
Though these misconceptions about multilingualism leading to speech impediments persist, numerous studies have shown that speaking multiple languages does not cause speech disorders.
In fact, quite the opposite, some research has explored the nuanced ways in which multilingualism can influence speech and language development and actually improve a child’s linguistic abilities long into the future.
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