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THE BENEFITS OF BILINGUALISM

THE BENEFITS OF A BILINGUAL BRAIN

THE BENEFITS OF A BILINGUAL BRAIN

What are the advantages of having bilingual or multilingual brain? Mia Nacamulli explains the different types of bilingual brains and comments on the benefits of bilingualism.

Match the words to make collocations.

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  1. If you watching this in English, chances are you belong to the world’s bilingual and multilingual majority.
  2. And besides having an easier time traveling or watching movies without subtitles.
  3. Language ability is typically measured in two active parts.
  4. As a compound bilingual, Gabriella develops two linguistic codes simultaneously.
  5. Her teenage brother, on the other hand, might be a coordinate bilingual, working with two set of concepts.
  6. Gabriella's parents are likely to be subordinate bilinguals, who learn a secondary language by filtering it through their primary language.
  7. Because all types of bilingual people can become fully proficient in a language, regardless of accent and pronunciation, the difference may not be apparent to a casual observer.
  8. Recent advances in brain imaging technology have given neurologists a glimpse into how specific aspects of language learning affect the bilingual brain.
  9. It’s well-known that the brain’s left hemisphere is more dominant and analytical in logical processes.
  10. Learning a language in childhood may give you a more holistic grasp of its social and emotional contexts.
  11. People who learned a second language in adulthood exhibit less emotional bias and a more rational approach when confronting problems in the second language than in their native one.
  12. Being multilingual gives your brain some remarkable advantages.
  13. The effort and attention needed to switch between languages triggered more activity in, and potentially strengthened, the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex.
  14. This is the part of the brain that plays a large role in executive functions, problem solving, switching between tasks and focusing while filtering out irrelevant information.
  15. While bilingualism may not necessarily make you smarter, it does make your brain more healthy, complex and actively engaged.
  16. And even if you didn’t have the good fortune of learning a second language as a child, it’s never too late to make yourself a favour and make the linguistic leap from hello to hola….

Watch it again and answer the following questions

  1. What are the active and passive parts of a language?
  2. Why is Gabriella’s teenage brother a coordinate bilingual?
  3. When is the brain’s right hemisphere more active?
  4. Why do children find learning languages easier?
  5. Mention some benefits of being bilingual.

DISCUSSION

  1. Do you speak foreign languages? Which ones?
  2. What language would you like to learn?
  3. What languages did you study at school when you were younger?
  4. In your opinion, is learning languages important? Why?
  5. What problems did you face when learning languages in the past?

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