Position: Speech-Language & Audiology Canada has developed a new Position Statement on Learning an Additional Language in the Context of Language Disorder. It states that children with, or at risk of, language disorder should be provided with the support they need to become bilingual in home, childcare and school settings, including access to speech-language pathology services. Children with language disorder should not be counselled out of opportunities to initiate or continue their bilingual development.
Sliocht ón téacs:
“A growing body of research evidence demonstrates that bilingual children with language disorder are able to acquire skills in each language that are equivalent, or nearly equivalent, to those of monolingual children with the
same condition, provided they are afforded an adequate learning environment (Paradis et al., 2021). However, when developmental issues are suspected, families are often counselled against bilingualism (Marinova-Todd et al., 2016). There is an absence of research supporting this practice (Kay-Raining Bird et al., 2016) and furthermore, there is evidence that strong first language (L1) skills support the development of a second language (L2), especially with respect to the language of schooling (August & Shanahan, 2006)”.
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