COGNITIVE benefits
advantagesLearning another language engages the brain and creates many cognitive benefits. The cognitive advantages that come with knowing multiple languages vary from daily advantages to educational advantages to health advantages. Daily activities that are benefited by bilingualism include attention control, multitasking, internal conflicts relating to language, and executive functions. According to psychologist Ellen Bialystok, bilingualism strengthens brain networks, known as the “CEO networks”, that manage executive functions. These networks control daily functions such as planning, goal setting, analysis, judgment, and memory (Chau). As the executive functions are strengthened by learning and using another language, it becomes easier for a bilingual person to dispose of unnecessary information and make decisions quicker (Wade). When someone decides to learn another language, the grey matter in his or her brain increases as he or she learns the language. An increase in grey matter helps the brain work faster and more efficiently. The grey matter in the brain is sometimes associated with vocabulary acquisition (Chau). So, as someone’s knowledge of a second or third language increases, the grey matter in their brain increases, which helps this person to increase his or her vocabulary and retain more of the information. An increase in vocabulary in both a person’s native language and second language can be very beneficial in the classroom, when taking placement tests, when giving speeches, and when writing professional documents. Along with this benefit of bilingualism, there are also several other cognitive education advantages that come with learning another language. It has been shown in several studies that students who are enrolled in a foreign language class tend to receive better scores in other subject areas than students who are not enrolled in a foreign language class (Parisi). In one study, researchers compared the test scores and cognitive functions of bilingual children and monolingual children. They studied children that had known multiple languages for five to 10 years. These bilingual children scored better on the administered tests, had better attention skills, were better able to resist distractions, and had better decision making and judgement skills than the monolingual students that were included in the study (Chau). Also included in the cognitive benefits of bilingualism are several health benefits. Many researchers would argue that bilingualism helps strengthen the brain, which helps the brain stay competent for a longer period of time (Landes). Elderly bilinguals tend to have a stronger control over cognitive functions than monolinguals. For example, those who know two or more languages can recall memories from the past later into their lives than those who only know one language. On average, dementia occurs four to five years later in people who are knowledgable in multiple languages than in people who only know their native language. According to a study by Tamar Gollan from the University of California, San Diego, the higher the degree of bilingualism, the more resistant a person was to the onset of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (Landes).
Even with all of the cognitive advantages that come with bilingualism, some researchers still argue that there are cognitive disadvantages that come with bilingualism as well. Compared to monolinguals, bilinguals tend to take longer in cognitive tests to name pictures or list items that fit into a specified category. Even if the bilingual test taker answers the questions in his or her native language, the test taker still averages a longer response time than monolinguals according to a past study (Pelham et al. 313). In relation to the response times on these studies, monolinguals tend to have less hesitation when speaking than bilinguals. When someone speaks more than one language, his or her brain has to actively choose which language to use when speaking, so bilinguals tend to have more moments in which they have to think before they speak. While some view this as a disadvantage, it can also be seen as an advantage. When one takes time to think before speaking, he or she can decide the best way to phrase his or her thoughts before blurting them out. These extra milliseconds of thought could prevent someone from saying something he or she would regret as soon as his or she is done speaking. This is especially beneficial when speaking to a superior or presenting in front of a large group of people. |
disadvantagesEven with all of the cognitive advantages that come with bilingualism, some researchers still argue that there are cognitive disadvantages that come with bilingualism as well. Compared to monolinguals, bilinguals tend to take longer in cognitive tests to name pictures or list items that fit into a specified category. Even if the bilingual test taker answers the questions in his or her native language, the test taker still averages a longer response time than monolinguals according to a past study (Pelham et al. 313). In relation to the response times on these studies, monolinguals tend to have less hesitation when speaking than bilinguals. When someone speaks more than one language, his or her brain has to actively choose which language to use when speaking, so bilinguals tend to have more moments in which they have to think before they speak. While some view this as a disadvantage, it can also be seen as an advantage. When one takes time to think before speaking, he or she can decide the best way to phrase his or her thoughts before blurting them out. These extra milliseconds of thought could prevent someone from saying something he or she would regret as soon as his or she is done speaking. This is especially beneficial when speaking to a superior or presenting in front of a large group of people.
|
Photo used under Creative Commons from andymag