Is it a good idea to raise my autistic child bilingual? - Yes!
A question faced by many parents in our increasingly interconnected world is whether or not they should raise their children as bilingual/multilingual in their native language or raise them speaking only one language. This can be an especially difficult question for parents raising children who are neurodivergent or have a language delay. Parents are often concerned that their children will be confused or that speaking two languages will weaken their language skills.
Research shows that this is not the case at all. In fact, speaking to your children in your first language actually enhances their ability to learn other languages! For children with developmental differences, including autism, growing up bilingual can have many benefits. The decision around how to use language in the home is a multifaceted one and while there is no “right” answer, our hope is that this blog post will help empower you in making an informed decision for you and your family.
What does the research say about raising bilingual children?
Research across languages and cultures has repeatedly demonstrated that long-term, overall language outcomes are largely the same for children who are raised bilingual and children who are raised monolingual. This can seem counterintuitive at first, but our brains are innately wired to learn language and have a unique capacity to do so in childhood. In fact, some research studies show slight benefits to bilingual individuals, including but not limited to:
Increased overall vocabulary
Greater attentional control
Cognitive benefits including increased creativity, flexible thinking and problem-solving
Stronger communication skills
Protection against cognitive decline and disease progression in later adulthood
Most importantly? Research across languages, cultures, and abilities has repeatedly shown that there is no evidence of any drawbacks or negative consequences to raising your child bilingual in terms of language and communication outcomes.
Not only is there the potential for the benefits listed above, but the most obvious benefit is that your child will be able to speak another language. This has the potential to create unique opportunities for them later in life. More holistically, language is also an important factor in belonging and identity. Raising your child in your native language provides them with an important connection through language to their culture, community and family.
What about research specific to children with autism or other developmental conditions?
There is no evidence that children with developmental differences are negatively affected by learning multiple languages. Children with special needs or communication difficulties are just as capable of acquiring a second language as typically developing children, to the extent of their overall language abilities. Studies specifically examining children with developmental differences show that they will still reach the same endpoint with their English skills. Therefore, removing the first language of the home will not actually lead to any language skill benefit.
In studies comparing children with developmental disabilities who are bilingual to children with developmental disabilities who are monolingual, the bilingual children end up functionally matching their monolingual peers in language outcomes, which is consistent with the research findings on their typically developing peers. These findings have been replicated in research specific to autistic individuals, with or without co-occurring conditions such as Global Developmental Delay. The benefits listed earlier in this post are also available to them too! One paper focusing on bilingualism and autism pointed out that some of these potential benefits, such as increased flexible thinking, may be of particular benefit to autistic individuals who struggle with communication.
I’m worried it’s confusing for my child.
Research has repeatedly shown across languages and cultures that raising children bilingual does not cause any confusion. Bilingual children may make errors that involve mixing in the words of both languages or some part of the grammar or sentence structure of the other language. This is a normal part of bilingual language development and not an indicator that your child is confused. These types of errors are similar to the types of creative errors that monolingual children make early in language development (e.g. me go home). These are errors that resolve naturally throughout the developmental process and are not an indicator of concern.
My child has a communication disorder. Will learning another language make it worse?
Not at all! Bilingualism cannot cause a language disorder to occur and will not negatively impact the language development of a child who does have a language disorder! Learning a second language has no impact on language disorders or how they manifest and will not slow progress. In fact, there is growing research evidence that for bilingual children, bilingual speech therapy, whether directly from a Speech Language Therapist (SLT) or indirectly from a parent, may lead to better outcomes than intervention exclusively in the dominant language.
Can I just teach them English now and then teach them our first language later?
Yes and no. When it comes to developing language abilities that match that of a native speaker, parents making a decision about whether or not to raise their child bilingual should be aware that the ability to develop native-like proficiency is greatly decreased after childhood. In order to give your child access to both languages, it is generally recommended that they are exposed to both at home and that you continue to use language in your home as you normally would within your family. Long term, if you would like your child to have access to both languages and be able to communicate in both, it is generally recommended to continue speaking both languages at home.
If you do decide to introduce one language at a time, it is generally recommended for the second language to be introduced between the ages of 8-11, as this is the point at which children still have a strong ability to acquire language but also the added benefits of greater learning capability and a strong language framework to apply to learning the second language. Once children hit adolescence, their ability to acquire language will continue to decrease as they mature and become increasingly similar to that of adult language learners.
Will their English be worse if we speak a different language at home?
Research has shown that it is better for children’s overall language development to have parents speak their first language at home with them! Their English will actually be better if you speak to them in the language you are most fluent in at home. High-quality language input, in the form of the language(s), that you are most fluent in, provides your child with the best language model and opportunity for language learning, which can then be applied to the other languages they are learning.
Additionally, if your native language is not the language of the country you are living in, your child will be getting lots of exposure to the dominant language at school, through interactions with their peers, media content, and other people out in the community. Continuing to speak your first and most natural language at home with them will likely be necessary to preserve their skill in both languages if they are not provided with an opportunity to speak your first language outside of the home.
In summary, learning a second language will not negatively impact your child’s language development or cause them to fall further behind. There are even potential benefits to being bilingual, especially in regard to children participating in their culture and community. Their language outcomes will be much the same as if they were only raised in one language, so we hope this blog has given those of you seeking to raise your children bilingual the confidence to do so.