Flexibility in Bilingual Word Learning
“Flexibility in Bilingual Infants’ Word Learning” by Estes and Hey
Summary of the Main Article
In this article, Estes and Hey examine the pattern of language learning among bilingual infants. The researchers look at how the bilinguals’ word learning process differs from that of monolinguals. The study is based on the hypothesis that the bilingual experience of infants leads to an extended period of flexibility which is necessary for the process of word learning (Estes & Hay, 2015). During the learning, bilingual infants tend to exhibit the element of perceptual narrowing when subjected to various phoneme categories. In doing so, the infants try to put more emphasis on the sounds that are part of their respective native languages. As time goes by, the bilingual infants display interpretive narrowing as they learn words. During this process, these infants make an attempt to constrain various sounds and their sequences in order to create meanings.
In order to understand how bilingual experience influences early language learning, the researchers conducted two experiments. In the first experiment, 32 infants were selected for the study. Half of the participants were 14 months old, while the other half were 19 months old. The researchers used interviews and questionnaires to know more about the infants from their parents. It was reported that all the infants heard between 25 to 75 percent of their language and another language for the rest of the percentage (75 to 25) (Estes & Hay, 2015). During the experiment, the participants were subjected to an audio-visual task which tested their ability to learn new association between words and referents. The infants were specifically required to learn labeled objects in a series of test trials which was later on habituated. From the results of the experiment, it was established that infants of both ages made an attempt to learn the label-object associations. The infants were able to detect the switching of the label-object pairings.
In the second experiment, Estes and Hey studied bilingual infants with several extra months of language experience. 16 infants who were 22 months old were selected for the study. The mean exposure of the participants to English was 55 percent (Estes & Hay, 2015). The participants were subjected to nontonal second languages such as Spanish, French, Tongan, or French. Unfortunately, 9 participants were removed from the study due to constant crying and fussiness. The remaining participants were subjected to the stimuli and procedure similar to that in experiment 1. From the results of the experiment, it was established that the 22-months-year olds exhibited a weaker evidence of level learning and a weaker preference of switch trials than the younger bilingual infants in experiment 1.
The general results of Estes and Hey’s study showed that the 19-month-old and the 14-month-old bilingual infants tended to learn object labels that vary in terms of the non-native pitch contour. The two categories of participants exhibited flexibility in the way they interpreted the different sounds that serve as words. However, the researchers found that 22-month-old participants no longer showed this kind of flexibility (Estes & Hay, 2015). The findings of the study provide the evidence that bilingual infants display an extended period of flexibility in the course of word learning. This is due to the fact that they are subjected to two different phonological systems. It is also important to note that unlike monolinguals, bilinguals tend to be very flexible in the way they interpret their linguistic input.
Summary of the Other Articles
“Prosody Cues Word Order in 7-Month-Old Bilingual Infants” by Gervain and Werker
In their article, Gervain and Werker look at how bilingual infants manage to learn language. The researchers investigate the challenge that the infants face in the process of learning two languages that have conflicting orders of words. The study is based on the hypothesis that the position of the frequent functors in a sentence gives bilingual infants a consistent cue for word order in different object and verb (OV) languages that they are subjected to (Gervain & Werker, 2013). It is believed that the bilingual infants’ sensitivity to prosodic prominence can be combined with various word frequencies in order to make word order learning in the native language less ambiguous.
In order to understand the cue that bilingual infants use to learn language, the researchers carried out two experiments on the same. In the first experiment, 24 bilingual infants were selected and subjected to a grammar learning task which had a short speech with both alternating infrequent and frequent words (Gervain & Werker, 2013). The speech was synthesized using verb and object (VO) prosody for one group and OV prosody for another group. All the participants were then tested based on eight different items (4 with FI and 4 with IF). From the experiment, it was found that the infants subjected to OV prosody took long time to look for IF test items. In contrast, the infants subjected to VO prosody spent long time looking for FI items.
In their second experiment, Gervain and Werker wanted to determine whether prosodic sensitivity is due to bilingual exposure. During the study, 7-month-year old monolingual infants exposed to the English language using the unfamiliar OV prosody were selected (Gervain & Werker, 2013). The same procedures used in experiment 1 were applied on experiment 2. However, the VO prosody was never tested. Some participants were also subjected to no prosody condition. From the experiment, it was established that when subjected to the unfamiliar OV prosody, the monolingual infants never exhibited a significant difference in terms of the looking time to both IF and FI test times. Despite this, it was observed that the no prosody condition exhibited frequency for the FI items.
From the results of the study, it was established that that bilingual infants are able to make use of prosody as cue for the identification of relevant word orders found in their native languages (Gervain & Werker, 2013). These findings demonstrate the fact that bilinguals use the mechanism of prosodic bootstrapping to solve complex language learning problems that they come across. Their ability to determine the order of both infrequent and frequent items that are part of their native languages makes it possible for them to acquire the right order of the basic constituents of objects and verbs.
“Influences of Lexical Tone and Pitch on Word Recognition in Bilingual Infants” by Singh and Foong
On their part, Singh and Foong sought to understand how Mandarin Chinese-English bilingual infants deal with the non-phonemic pitch variations associated with the recognition of spoken English words. That is in contrast with how the infants treat phonemic changes that are part of the lexicon tone in the recognition of spoken Mandarin words (Singh & Foong, 2012). The study is based on the hypothesis that bilingual learners are able to incorporate non-phonemic and phonemic pitch changes into the developing word knowledge in their languages.
In the study, Singh and Foong conducted two experiments. In the first experiments, the researchers investigated the capacity of Mandarin-English bilingual infants to recognize spoken word in English when various words contrast or match in terms of their pitch. 48 Mandarin-English infants (21 males, 27 females) were selected for the study. The participants belonged to three age groups: 7 months, 9 months, and 11 months (Singh & Foong, 2012). During the experiment, the participants were subjected to four monosyllabic word stimuli presented in English. From the findings of the experiment, it was established that infants exhibit a progressive consistency in how they treat pitch variations.
In the second experiment, the researchers investigated how infants tend to respond to variations in phonemic pitch in the Mandarin language. The same study sample used in experiment 1 was used in experiment 2. In this study, participants were subjected to Mandarin Chinese stimuli that contained two words (Singh & Foong, 2012). The findings of the experiment showed that at 11 months, infants tend to use specific language rules to deal with pitch-driven word contrasts.
From the general results of the study, it was established that at 7.5 months, infants only recognized words in Mandarin when matched in tone and in English when they were matched in pitch. At 9 months, infants recognized Mandarin words matched in tone, and they also falsely recognized words with contrasting tones (Singh & Foong, 2012). Infants at this age also recognized English words, regardless of whether or not they were matched in pitch. At 11 months, infants made a correct recognition of pitch-matched words and mismatched words in the English language. However, the infants only managed to recognize tonal matches in the Mandarin language.
Criticism of the Theory, Design, Methods, and Results of Articles
“Flexibility in Bilingual Infants’ Word Learning” by Estes and Hey
In their study, Estes and Hey provide important insights into the progression of language specialization when learners are exposed to an environment with varied input. Despite the significant of this study, it is important to note that its findings are mixed up in terms of the impact of bilingual experience on the development of the aspect of speech perception. In order to avoid these inconsistencies, the researchers should have applied effective testing methodologies. This effort would have helped to improve the reliability of the study and its findings in general.
Future studies deriving from this particular study are vital. Future researchers need to investigate whether the bilingual experience increases language processing demands. Such a study will help to show why bilinguals are able to analyze multiple dimensions of a language better than monolinguals. It is also important for future researchers to investigate various factors that influence bilingual learners’ acceptance and usage of new word forms. These include factors such as the presence of referential cues, sound sequence details, and the developmental level and experience of the infant.
Although Estes and Hey’s study is significant, there is something which is not right about it. Bilingual infants’ extended flexibility in language learning is generalized. It is important for this trend to be tested in several non-native sound contrasts in order to determine whether it applies to them. Despite this limitation, it is important to note that the study is valid and reliable. The researchers have used other important scholarly articles as important sources for their work.
“Prosody Cues Word Order in 7-Month-Old Bilingual Infants” by Gervain and Werker
Gervain and Werker’s article is significant in the sense that it is the first study to show that by the time bilingual infants are 7 months old, they are able to use prosody as cue for word order. However, it is important to note that the study needs some improvement, especially in its methodology. For instance, the study could be improved by testing the sensitivity to prosody for participants who are below 5 months old. This would help to determine whether bilingual infants possess an initial period of sensitivity to prosody and other cues, or the sensitivity arises from exposure to language.
Future researches deriving from this particular study should investigate the prosodic principle further. Such investigations should target bilingual infants who are in their earliest months of life. Future researchers also need to determine whether monolinguals also use prosody to differentiate between pragmatic and syntactic contexts that require different orders. This kind of study will generate important data for comparative analysis between monolingual and bilingual infants. It is also important to note that future research on where the correlation between word order and sporadic patterns originated from is necessary. Such researches will help to determine the evolution of the human language.
Despite some of the few criticisms associated with Gervain and Werker’s study, it is important to note that the researchers did a great job. By highlighting the fact that bilingual infants can use prosodic cues to learn word order, the study shows that the process of learning the human language tends to flexibly adapt to a specific kind of linguistic environment that it comes across. The study also helps to dispel the claims that bilingualism leads to a delay in language acquisition.
“Influences of Lexical Tone and Pitch on Word Recognition in Bilingual Infants” by Singh and Foong
Singh and Foong’s work gives important insights into the bilingual learning of the language. The study examines the impact of native language attunement on the bilingual language learners. Despite its significant, it is important to note that the study needs some improvements in order for its findings to be more valid and reliable. For instance, the researchers should have based their research design on a Mandarin-only group of infants. This would have helped to determined whether the developmental sequences discussed in the study are typical to bilingual learners of Mandarin and Mandarin, or monolingual learners.
Future research as a follow-up for this study is necessary. Future researchers need to investigate whether the structural similarities of tones and vowels may make it possible for them to be treated in the same way in the course of language processing. This kind of study will help to determine how sensitive bilingual infants are towards various types of phonetic components. It is also important for future researchers to investigate how and when tone language learners manage to differentiate suprasegmental prosodies from various lexical tones in tone languages. Such a study will lead to important findings about the role of pitch and lexical tone in bilingual language learning.
Although Singh and Foong’s study is important in terms of giving a comprehensive explanation to early language learning among bilingual infants, it is important to note that it has some limitations. For instance, just like in the study of Gervain and Werker, the researchers should have included the infants of younger ages. Inclusion of infants below 5 months would have helped to provide useful comparative data for word recognition abilities of bilingual infants.
References:
Estes, K. G. & Hay, J. F. (2015). Flexibility in Bilingual Infants’ Word Learning. Child Development, 86 (5): 1371–1385.
Gervain, J. & Werker, J. F. (2013). Prosody cues word order in 7-month-old bilingual infants. Nature Communications, 4:1490.
Singh, L. & Foong, J. (2012). Influences of lexical tone and pitch on word recognition in bilingual infants. Cognition 124: 128–142.
