title: Effects of classroom bilingualism on task-shifting, verbal memory, and word learning in children.
abstract: We examined the effects of classroom bilingual experience in children on an array of cognitive skills. Monolingual English-speaking children were compared with children who spoke English as the native language and who had been exposed to Spanish in the context of dual-immersion schooling for an average of 2 years. The groups were compared on a measure of non-linguistic task-shifting; measures of verbal short-term and working memory; and measures of word learning. The two groups of children did not differ on measures of non-linguistic task-shifting and verbal short-term memory. However, the classroom-exposure bilingual group outperformed the monolingual group on the measure of verbal working memory and a measure of word learning. Together, these findings indicate that while exposure to a second language in a classroom setting may not be sufficient to engender changes in cognitive control, it can facilitate verbal memory and verbal learning.
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA.
authors.forename: Margarita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kaushanskaya
authors.forename: Megan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gross
authors.forename: Milijana
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Buac
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003071:Cognition; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D007858:Learning; D008037:Linguistics; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D019303:Multilingualism; D012574:Schools; D014706:Verbal Learning; D014825:Vocabulary