Learning a second language at a young age

In class this week we discussed the importance and milestones of speech and language development. While I always knew that it is easier for children to learn another language than it is for adults, it amazed me to see graphs and data from the TED Talk that show how difficult learning a language becomes as children get older. The conversations from class made me think, "Why doesn't every elementary school teach students a second language? Why do they wait for middle or high school?"

I work in a public school in D.C. called Shepherd Elementary School. We are an International Baccalaureate school which, in our school, means we try to integrate all of the subject areas and teach children how to live and act globally. In Susan Lang's article, Barbara Lust and Sujin Yang have found that students learn a second language best when the language surrounds them. At Shepherd, students are required to devote a portion of the week to studying French or Spanish in an immersive classroom where the teacher only speaks Spanish or French. While the students at Shepherd do not speak a second language for all, or even half a day, they are able to learn to speak, read, and write in a non-native language. According to Lust and Yang, learning another language will also help with cognitive advantages. " These cognitive advantages can contribute to a child's future academic success."' (Lang, 2009). The students at Shepherd will hopefully be better prepared for the challenges of middle school and high school since they have been exposed to Spanish and French since preschool.

I don't understand why so many school systems wait until middle school to begin teaching a second language. I attended a private Jewish elementary school where I learned Hebrew for a third of the day from kindergarten through fourth grade. I went to public school in fifth grade and I took Spanish beginning in seventh grade and stopped after the required four years. At the time, I didn't realize how beneficial it would be to learn Spanish. I didn't stick with it. Today, while I don't consider myself bilingual, I remember Hebrew much more than Spanish. 

Was it easier for me to learn and remember Hebrew because I was younger and my brain was still developing? Linda Halgunseth discusses in her article that, "'research has found that children who begin to learn a second language before the age of 6 or 7 are more able to speak the new language like a native speaker than children who didn’t start until after ages 6 or 7 (Bongaerts, 2005)"'(Halgunseth 2009). She also explains that research shows that children who learn a second language will eventually outperform their peers who only know one language. Shouldn't every American student begin learning a second language in elementary school when it is more meaningful? Would it help the success of our students in their academics and for their future careers? 

References: 
Halgunseth, Linda. (2010), How children learn a second language [article]. Retrieved from    http://www.education.com/reference/article/how-children-learn-  second-language/?page=2Lang, Susan S. (2009). Learning a second language is good childhood mind medicine, studies find   [article]. Retrieved from http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/2009/05/learning-second-language-good-childhood-mind-medicine 

Does Head Start Make a Difference?

As an education professional I believe that early childhood education has a strong impact on a child's life. Not knowing anything about the woman I discuss below, my limited observation follows. This story is meant to highlight what I believe to be a larger issue and not directly offend parents who might make a mistake. 

This past Thursday around 1:00 pm, I was walking down the street in Chinatown, DC when a woman in about her thirties, ran past us on the sidewalk yelling, "Ugh, wait, wait, wait!" at the bus that had just closed its doors, about to pull away. About fifteen people waiting at the bus stop looked at her, with her baby in the stroller, feeling her frustration. We can all understand how it feels when you see a bus door closing, knowing the next one might not come for another fifteen minutes, at least.

The attention quickly shifted. A girl around four years old ran onto the street, along side the bus, trying to help her mom catch the bus. Following behind her, was her two to three year old brother. You can only imagine the fear in everyone's eyes: A small boy running next to tires that were his size, as they slowly began to move.

I was behind a crowd of people. I'm not sure whether the boy was pulled onto the sidewalk by a stranger, or if the bus stopped because of traffic or the driver felt something was wrong. Thankfully, no one was hurt. But I was angry. How could this mother not think about the safety of her children on the crowded streets in Chinatown? Was waiting for a bus so horrible for this mother, that all common sense left her mind? This story is only one incident I happened to observe during my day. But I wonder if a story like this a part of a larger societal problem.

In my Emergent Literacy: Research into Practice class in grad school, we had a short conversation about the importance of Head Start. Head Start is an educational program for kids from lower income families. It is an environment that not only helps with cognitive development, but supports children's health, and social emotional development. It also helps parents learn about parenting and how to be supportive to their children. Do I know if these kids came from a disadvantaged family? No. Do I know the exact ages of the kids and whether they are enrolled in school or not? No. But as an early childhood teacher, my gut feeling was, "If only these kids were in school, they would have some structure. Maybe if the boy was in Head Start the mother would learn something about parenting."

There are people who believe Head Start is a waste of government spending. Some people do not think what a child learns or does not learn at three years old matters. Planet Money, a program funded by NPR, made a podcast about a study that started in the 1960s at the Perry Preschool Program, where they followed children for 40 years to determine whether attending preschool makes a measurable difference in a child's development. Half of the children in the study had free access to preschool, and half didn't have access to preschool at all. The study found that the children who attended preschool were less likely to be arrested and made more money at their jobs. The researchers also found that the skills acquired in preschool that help with your future are more difficult to gain as you get older.

There are other children who almost get hit by a bus or don't know to stay off of a busy street. There are parents with three or more kids who don't know the first thing about parenting. I wonder if this mother, who seemed to be clueless about the safety of her children, attended a preschool herself. Will her kids make similar irresponsible decisions as adults? Or will programs like Head Start allow disadvantaged children to have a successful future? The Researchers at the Perry Preschool Program would say yes, and I agree.


Planet Money (2011, June 10). The case for preschool. Planet Money @ NPR Podcast. Podcast 
            retrieved from http://www.npr.org/blogs/money

Hello! My name is Rachel Goldman and I am currently pursuing my Masters at Johns Hopkins University in Emergent Literacy and K-8 Math Lead Teacher.  I grew up in NJ and then attended the University of Maryland where I studied Early Childhood Education. I have taught first grade for the past three years at Shepherd Elementary in Washington, DC. I am spending this year focusing on my Masters program, tutoring, and observing teachers.

I have created this blog to reflect on the most current topics in literacy education. My goal as a teacher is to create an environment where students become life long readers and writers and share their love of learning. I hope this blog will be a place where educators can share their ideas and learn from others in order to be the best literacy educators. I look forward to sharing my thoughts about literacy and reading about your ideas and questions as well. Thank you for checking out my blog!