Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7czq Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T00:15:57.185Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Dual language profiles of Latino children of immigrants: Stability and change over the early school years

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 December 2012

BRIAN A. COLLINS ,
ERIN E. O'CONNOR ,
CAROLA SUÁREZ-OROZCO ,
ALFONSO NIETO-CASTAÑON  and
CLAUDIO O. TOPPELBERG
BRIAN A. COLLINS*
Affiliation:
Hunter College
ERIN E. O'CONNOR
Affiliation:
New York University
CAROLA SUÁREZ-OROZCO
Affiliation:
University of California, Los Angeles
ALFONSO NIETO-CASTAÑON
Affiliation:
Boston University and Judge Baker Children's Center
CLAUDIO O. TOPPELBERG
Affiliation:
Harvard Medical School and Judge Baker Children's Center
*
ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE Brian A. Collins, Hunter College, 695 Park Avenue, W949, New York, NY 10065. E-Mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Dual language children enter school with varying levels of proficiencies in their first and second language. This study of Latino children of immigrants (N = 163) analyzes their dual language profiles at kindergarten and second grade, derived from the direct assessment of Spanish and English proficiencies (Woodcock Language Proficiency Batteries—Revised). Children were grouped based on the similarity of language profiles (competent profiles, such as dual proficient, Spanish proficient, and English proficient; and low-performing profiles, including borderline proficient and limited proficient). At kindergarten, the majority of children (63%) demonstrated a low-performing profile; by second grade, however, the majority of children (64%) had competent profiles. Change and stability of language profiles over time of individual children were then analyzed. Of concern, are children who continued to demonstrate a low-performing, high-risk profile. Factors in the linguistic environments at school and home, as well as other family and child factors associated with dual language profiles and change/stability over time were examined, with a particular focus on the persistently low-performing profile groups.

Type
Articles
Information
Applied Psycholinguistics , Volume 35 , Issue 3 , May 2014 , pp. 581 - 620
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Albert, M. L., Tabor Connor, L., & Obler, L. K. (2000). Brain, language, and environment. Brain and Language, 71, 4–6.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Arriaga, R. I., Fenson, L., Cronan, T., & Pethick, S. J. (2008). Scores on the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory of children from low and middle-income families. Applied Psycholinguistics, 19, 209–223.Google Scholar
August, D., Snow, C., Carlo, M., Proctor, C. P., Francisco, A. R. S., Duursma, E., et al. (2006). Literacy development in elementary school second-language learners. Topics in Language Disorders, 26, 351.Google Scholar
Bahrick, H. P., Hall, L. K., Goggin, J. P., Bahrick, L. E., & Berger, S. A. (1994). Fifty years of language maintenance and language dominance in bilingual Hispanic immigrants. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 123, 264.Google Scholar
Baker, C. (2006). Foundations of bilingual education and bilingualism. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.Google Scholar
Bauer, D. J., Goldfield, B. A., & Reznick, J. S. (2002). Alternative approaches to analyzing individual differences in the rate of early vocabulary development. Applied Psycholinguistics, 23, 313–335.Google Scholar
Bedore, L. M., & Pena, E. D. (2008). Assessment of bilingual children for identification of language impairment: Current findings and implications for practice. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 11, 1–29.Google Scholar
Bialystok, E. (2001). Bilingualism in development: Language, literacy, and cognition: Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Birdsong, D. (2006). Dominance, proficiency, and second language grammatical processing. Applied Psycholinguistics, 27, 46–49.Google Scholar
Bracken, B. A., & McCallum, S. R. (1998). Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test. Itasca, IL: Riverside.Google Scholar
Brisk, M. E. (2005). Bilingual education. In Hinkel, E. (Ed.), Handbook on second language learning teaching. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Canale, M., & Swain, M. (1980). Theoretical bases of communicative approaches to second language teaching and testing. Applied Linguistics, 1, 1–47.Google Scholar
Collier, V. (1995). Acquiring a second language for school. Directions in Language and Education, 1 (4).Google Scholar
Collins, B. A., Toppelberg, C. O., Suárez-Orozco, C., O'Connor, E., & Nieto-Castañon, A. (2011). Cross-sectional associations of Spanish and English competence and wellbeing in Latino children of immigrants in kindergarten. International Journal of Sociology of Language, 208, 5–24.Google Scholar
Cosentino de Cohen, C., Deterding, N., & Chu Clewell, B. (2005). Profile of US elementary schools: LEP concentration and school capacity. Washington, DC: Urban Institute.Google Scholar
Crosnoe, R. (2005). Double disadvantage or signs of resilience? The elementary school contexts of children from Mexican immigrant families. American Educational Research Journal, 42, 269.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Crutchley, A. (2000). Bilingual children in language units: does having “well-informed” parents make a difference? International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 35, 65–81.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cummins, J. (1977). Cognitive factors associated with the attainment of intermediate levels of bilingual skills. Modern Language Journal, 61, 3–12.Google Scholar
Cummins, J. (1979). Linguistic interdependence and the educational development of bilingual children. Review of Educational Research, 49, 222–251.Google Scholar
Cummins, J. (1981). Immigrant second language learning. Applied Linguistics, 11, 132–149.Google Scholar
Cummins, J. (2001). Bilingual children's mother tongue: Why is it important for education? SprogForum, 7 (19), 15–20.Google Scholar
Delgado, P., Guerrero, G., Goggin, J. P., & Ellis, B. B. (1999). Self-assessment of linguistic skills by bilingual Hispanics. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 21, 31.Google Scholar
Dickinson, D. K., & Sprague, K. (2001). The nature and impact of early childhood care environments on the language and early literacy development of children from low-income families. In Neuman, S. & Dickinson, D. K. (Eds.), Handbook of early literacy (pp. 263–292). New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Döpke, S. (2000). The interplay between language-specific development and crosslinguistic influence. In Döpke, S. (Ed.), Cross-linguistic structures in simultaneous bilingualism (pp. 79–103). Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Dunn, A. L., & Fox Tree, J. E. (2009). A quick, gradient bilingual dominance scale. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 12, 273–289.Google Scholar
Duursma, E., Romero-Contreras, S., Szuber, A., Proctor, P., Snow, C., August, D., et al. (2007). The role of home literacy and language environment on bilinguals’ English and Spanish vocabulary development. Applied Psycholinguistics, 28, 171.Google Scholar
Estrada, L. F. (2001). Demographics and the new immigration. Immigration and Education: Issues and Research, 79, 1283–1815.Google Scholar
Evans, G. W., Maxwell, L. E., & Hart, B. (1999). Parental language and verbal responsiveness to children in crowded homes. Developmental Psychology, 35, 1020–1023.Google Scholar
Fishman, J. A. (1977). The social science perspective. Bilingual education: Current perspectives: Vol. 1. Social science. Arlington, VA: Center for Applied Linguistics.Google Scholar
Flege, J. E., MacKay, I. R. A., & Piske, T. (2002). Assessing bilingual dominance. Applied Psycholinguistics, 23, 567–598.Google Scholar
García, O., Evangelista, I., Martínez, M., Disla, C., & Paulino, B. (1988). Spanish language use and attitudes: A study of two New York City communities. Language in Society, 17, 475–511.Google Scholar
Garcia Coll, C., Lamberty, G., Jenkins, R., McAdoo, H. P., Crnic, K., Wasik, B. H., et al. (1996). An integrative model for the study of developmental competencies in minority children. Child Development, 67, 1891–1914.Google Scholar
Gathercole, V. C. M., & Thomas, E. M. (2009). Bilingual first-language development: Dominant language takeover, threatened minority language take-up. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 12, 213–237.Google Scholar
Gathercole, V. G. M., & Hoff, E. (2007). Input and the acquisition of language: Three questions. In Hoff, E. & Shatz, M. (Eds.), Blackwell handbook of language development (pp. 107–127). Reading, MA: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Genesee, F. (1989). Early bilingual development: One language or two? Journal of Child Language, 16, 161–179.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Genesee, F., Lindholm-Leary, K., Saunders, W. M., & Christian, D. (2006). Educating English language learners: A synthesis of research evidence. New York: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Genesee, F., Nicoladis, E., & Paradis, J. (1995). Language differentiation in early bilingual development. Journal of Child Language, 22, 611–631.Google Scholar
Genesee, F., Paradis, J., & Crago, M. B. (2004). Dual language development and disorders: A handbook on bilingualism and second language learning. Baltimore, MD: Brookes.Google Scholar
Gollan, T. H., Fennema-Notestine, C., Montoya, R. I., & Jernigan, T. L. (2007). The bilingual effect on Boston Naming Test performance. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 13, 197–208.Google ScholarPubMed
Goodman, S. H., Hoven, C. W., Narrow, W. E., Cohen, P., Fielding, B., Alegria, M., et al. (1998). Measurement of risk for mental disorders and competence in a psychiatric epidemiologic community survey: The National Institute of Mental Health Methods for the Epidemiology of Child and Adolescent Mental Disorders (MECA) study. Social Psychiatry, 33, 162–173.Google Scholar
Gottlieb, M. H. (2006). Assessing English language learners: Bridges from language proficiency to academic achievement. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.Google Scholar
Grosjean, F. (1989). Neurolinguists, beware! The bilingual is not two monolinguals in one person. Brain and Language, 36, 3–15.Google Scholar
Grosjean, F. (1998). Studying bilinguals: Methodological and conceptual issues. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 1, 131–149.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gutierrez-Clellen, V. F. (1996). Language diversity: Implications for assessment. Assessment of Communication and Language, 6, 29–56.Google Scholar
Gutiérrez, K. D., Zepeda, M., & Castro, D. C. (2010). Advancing early literacy learning for all children: Implications of the NELP report for dual-language learners. Educational Researcher, 39, 334–339.Google Scholar
Hakuta, K., Butler, Y. G., & Witt, D. (2000). How long does it take English learners to attain proficiency? Unpublished manuscript, Stanford University, University of California Linguistic Minority Research Institute.Google Scholar
Hakuta, K., & Pease-Alvarez, L. (1994). Proficiency, choice and attitudes in bilingual Mexican-American children. In Extra, G. & Verhoeven, L. T. (Eds.), The cross-linguistic study of bilingual development. Amsterdam: North-Holland.Google Scholar
Hart, B., & Risley, T. R. (1995). Meaningful differences in the everyday experience of young American children. Baltimore, MD: Brookes.Google Scholar
Hernandez, D. J., Denton, N. A., & Macartney, S. E. (2007). Children in immigrant families—The U.S. and 50 states: National origins, language, and early education. Unpublished manuscript, University at Albany, SUNY.Google Scholar
Hoff-Ginsberg, E. (1998). The relation of birth order and socioeconomic status to children's language experience and language development. Applied Psycholinguistics, 19, 603–629.Google Scholar
Hoff, E. (2003). The specificity of environmental influence: Socioeconomic status affects early vocabulary development via maternal speech. Child Development, 74, 1368–1378.Google Scholar
Hoff, E. (2006). The uses of longitudinal data and person-centered analyses in the study of cognitive and language development. Merrill–Palmer Quarterly, 52, 377–389.Google Scholar
Junker, D. A., & Stockman, I. J. (2002). Expressive vocabulary of German-English bilingual toddlers. American Journal of Speech–Language Pathology, 11, 381.Google Scholar
Kapantzoglou, M., Restrepo, M. A., & Thompson, M. S. (2012). Dynamic assessment of word learning skills: Identifying language impairment in bilingual children. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 43, 81.Google Scholar
Kaufman, D. (2001). Tales of L1 attrition: Evidence from pre-puberty children. In Ammerlaan, T., Hulsen, M., Strating, H., & Yagmur, K. (Eds.), Sociolinguistic and psycholinguistic perspectives on maintenance and loss of minority languages (pp. 185–202). Munster: Waxmann.Google Scholar
Kirby, J. R. (1995). Book review: Woodcock Language Proficiency Battery—Revised (WLPB-R). Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 13, 428.Google Scholar
Kohnert, K., Yim, D., Nett, K., Kan, P. F., & Duran, L. (2005). Intervention with linguistically diverse preschool children: A focus on developing home language(s). Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 36, 251.Google Scholar
Kohnert, K. J., Bates, E., & Hernandez, A. E. (1999). Balancing bilinguals: Lexical–semantic production and cognitive processing in children learning Spanish and English. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 42, 1400.Google Scholar
Laursen, B., & Hoff, E. (2006). Person-centered and variable-centered approaches to longitudinal data. Merrill–Palmer Quarterly, 52, 377–389.Google Scholar
MacSwan, J., & Pray, L. (2005). Learning English bilingually: Age of onset of exposure and rate of acquisition among English language learners in a bilingual education program. Bilingual Research Journal, 29, 687–712.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Matheny, A. P., Wachs, T. D., Ludwig, J. L., & Phillips, K. (1995). Bringing order out of chaos: Psychometric characteristics of the confusion, hubbub, and order scale. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 16, 429–444.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mather, M. (2009). Children in immigrant families chart new path. Washington, DC: Population Reference Bureau.Google Scholar
National Education Association. (2005). Research talking points on English language learners. Retrieved from http://www.nea.org/home/13598.htmGoogle Scholar
Oller, D. K., & Eilers, R. E. (Eds.). (2002). Language and literacy in bilingual children. Child language and child development. New York: Multilingual Matters.Google Scholar
Oller, D. K., Pearson, B. Z., & Cobo-Lewis, A. B. (2007). Profile effects in early bilingual language and literacy. Applied Psycholinguistics, 28, 191–230.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Páez, M. M., Tabors, P. O., & López, L. M. (2007). Dual language and literacy development of Spanish-speaking preschool children. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 28, 85–102.Google Scholar
Pan, B. A., Rowe, M. L., Singer, J. D., & Snow, C. E. (2005). Maternal correlates of growth in toddler vocabulary production in low-income families. Child Development, 76, 763–782.Google Scholar
Pearson, B. Z., & Fernandez, S. C. (1994). Patterns of interaction in the lexical growth in two languages of bilingual infants and toddlers. Language Learning, 44, 617–653.Google Scholar
Pearson, B. Z., Fernandez, S. C., Lewedeg, V., & Oller, D. K. (1997). The relation of input factors to lexical learning by bilingual infants. Applied Psycholinguistics, 18, 41–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pearson, B. Z., Fernandez, S. C., & Oller, D. K. (1993). Lexical development in bilingual infants and toddlers: Comparison to monolingual norms. Language Learning, 43, 93–120.Google Scholar
Peña, E. D., Gillam, R. B., Bedore, L. M., & Bohman, T. M. (2011). Risk for poor performance on a language screening measure for bilingual preschoolers and kindergarteners. American Journal of Speech–Language Pathology, 20, 302–314.Google Scholar
Portes, A., & Hao, L. (1998). E. pluribus unum: Bilingualism and loss of language in the second generation. Sociology of Education, 71, 269–294.Google Scholar
Portes, A., & Rumbaut, R. G. (2001). Legacies: The story of the immigrant second generation. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.Google Scholar
Portes, A., & Schauffler, R. (1994). Language and the second generation: Bilingualism yesterday and today. International Migration Review, 28, 640–661.Google Scholar
Proctor, C. P., Carlo, M., August, D., & Snow, C. (2005). Native Spanish-speaking children reading in English: Toward a model of comprehension. Journal of Educational Psychology, 97, 246–256.Google Scholar
Proctor, C. P., Uccelli, P., Dalton, B., & Snow, C. E. (2009). Understanding depth of vocabulary online with bilingual and monolingual children. Reading and Writing Quarterly, 25, 311–333.Google Scholar
Reese, L., Garnier, H., Gallimore, R., & Goldenberg, C. (2000). Longitudinal analysis of the antecedents of emergent Spanish literacy and middle-school English reading achievement of Spanish-speaking students. American Educational Research Journal, 37, 633.Google Scholar
Restrepo, M. A. (1998). Identifiers of predominantly Spanish-speaking children with language impairment. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 41, 1398.Google Scholar
Ricciardelli, L. A. (1992). Bilingualism and cognitive development in relation to threshold theory. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 21, 301–316.Google Scholar
Rimm-Kaufman, S. E., & Pianta, R. C. (2000). An ecological perspective on the transition to kindergarten. A theoretical framework to guide empirical research. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 21, 491–511.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rosenberg, M. (1996). Raising bilingual children. Internet TESL Journal, 2. Retrieved from http://iteslj.org/Articles/Rosenberg-Bilingual.htmlGoogle Scholar
San Francisco, A. R., Carlo, M., August, D., & Snow, C. E. (2006). The role of language of instruction and vocabulary in the English phonological awareness of Spanish–English bilingual children. Applied Psycholinguistics, 27, 229–246.Google Scholar
Saunders, W. M., Foorman, B. R., & Carlson, C. D. (2006). Is a separate block of time for oral English language development in programs for English learners needed? Elementary School Journal, 107, 181–198.Google Scholar
Suárez-Orozco, C., & Carhill, A. (2008). Afterword: New directions in research with immigrant families and their children. In Yoshikawa, H. & Way, N. (Eds.), Beyond the family: Contexts of immigrant children's development (Vol. 121, pp. 87–104). San Francisco, CA: Jossey–Bass.Google Scholar
Suárez-Orozco, C., & Suárez-Orozco, M. M. (2001). Children of immigration. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Suárez-Orozco, M., Darbes, T., Dias, S. I., & Sutin, M. (2011). Migrations and schooling. Annual Review of Anthropology, 40, 311–328.Google Scholar
Tabors, P. O., & Paez, M. (2001a). Classroom Quality and Language Use Checklist. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Graduate School of Education.Google Scholar
Tabors, P. O., & Paez, M. (2001b). Language and Culture Questionnaire. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Graduate School of Education.Google Scholar
Tabors, P. O., & Paez, M. (2001c). Language Literacy and Use Questionnaire. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Graduate School of Education.Google Scholar
Tabors, P. O., Paez, M., & Lopez, L. M. (2003). Dual language abilities of bilingual four-year olds: Initial findings from the early childhood study of language and literacy development of Spanish-speaking children. NABE Journal of Research and Practice, 1, 70–91.Google Scholar
Tamis-LeMonda, C. S., Bornstein, M. H., & Baumwell, L. (2001). Maternal responsiveness and children's achievement of language milestones. Child Development, 72, 748–767.Google Scholar
Thomas, W. P., & Collier, V. (1995). Language minority student achievement and program effectiveness. California Association for Bilingual Education Newsletter, 17, 19.Google Scholar
Thordardottir, E., Rothenberg, A., Rivard, M. E., & Naves, R. (2006). Bilingual assessment: Can overall proficiency be estimated from separate measurement of two languages? Journal of Multilingual Communication Disorders, 4, 1–21.Google Scholar
Tomblin, J. B., Zhang, X., Buckwalter, P., & Catts, H. (2000). The association of reading disability, behavioral disorders, and language impairment among second-grade children. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 41, 473–482.Google Scholar
Toppelberg, C. O., & Collins, B. A. (2010). Language, culture, and adaptation in immigrant children. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 19, 697.Google Scholar
Toppelberg, C. O., Munir, K., & Nieto-Castañon, A. (2006). Spanish-English bilingual children with psychopathology: Language deficits and academic language proficiency. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 11, 156.Google Scholar
US Census. (2010). The Hispanic Population: 2010. 2010 Census Briefs. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
Valdés, G., Capitelli, S., & Alvarez, L. (2011). Latino children learning English: Steps in the journey. New York: Teachers College Press.Google Scholar
Valdés, G., & Figueroa, R. A. (1994). Bilingualism and testing: A special case of bias. Norwood, NJ: Ablex.Google Scholar
Vaughn, S., Linan-Thompson, S., Mathes, P. G., Cirino, P. T., Carlson, C. D., Pollard-Durodola, S. D., et al. (2006). Effectiveness of Spanish intervention for first-grade English language learners at risk for reading difficulties. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 39, 56.Google Scholar
Verhoeven, L. (2007). Early bilingualism, language transfer, and phonological awareness. Applied Psycholinguistics, 28, 425–439.Google Scholar
Wachs, T. D., & Camli, O. (1991). Do ecological or individual characteristics mediate the influence of the physical environment upon maternal behavior. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 11, 249–264.Google Scholar
Winsler, A., Diaz, R. M., Espinosa, L., & Rodriguez, J. L. (1997). When learning a second language does not mean losing the first: Bilingual language development in low-income, Spanish-speaking children attending bilingual preschool. Child Development, 70, 349–362.Google Scholar
Woodcock, R. W. (1991). Woodcock Language Proficiency Battery—Revised. English and Spanish forms. Examiner's manual (1st ed.). Chicago: Riverside.Google Scholar
Woodcock, R. W., & Muñoz-Sandoval, A. F. (1995). Woodcock Language Proficiency Battery—Revised. Spanish form, supplemental manual (1st ed.). Chicago: Riverside.Google Scholar
Worthy, J., Rodriguez-Galindo, A., Czop, L., Martinez, L., & Cuero, K. (2003). Fifth-grade bilingual students and precursors to “Subtractive Schooling.” Bilingual Research Journal, 27, 275.Google Scholar
Yamamoto, M. (2001). Language use in interlingual families: A Japanese–English sociolinguistic study. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.Google Scholar