Longitudinal Dual-Language Profiles of Young, Latino Children of Immigrants: Associations of Cognitive, Home, School, and Child Risk Factors

• In Event: Educational Needs and Experiences of Immigrant Students in the United States

Abstract

Educators are often challenged recognizing when low first and second language proficiencies represent typical development of dual language children or if they are indicative of language impairments. Latino children of immigrants (n=163) were directly assessed in English and Spanish at kindergarten and second-grade. Children who performed persistently low in both languages (n=56; 35%) were compared with children with emerging competent profiles (n=47; 29%), and continually competent profiles (n=57; 36%). The non-verbal IQ, phonological processing, maternal language proficiency, and use of Spanish at school were significantly lower in the persistently low performing group than the emerging and continually competent groups. Children with persistently low performing dual language profiles had more child risk factors and may have poor learning and language-based problems.

Authors

• Brian A. Collins, Hunter College - CUNY

• Claudio O. Toppelberg, Harvard University