What About Spanish? Examining Language Growth Trajectories Among First-, Second-, and Third-Generation Latino Immigrants

• In Event: 53.081 - Roundtable Session 21
  In Roundtable Session: 53.081-20 - Contemporary Issues in Second Language Research

Abstract

This longitudinal study examined the role of Spanish language proficiency and immigrant generation status on English oral language and reading comprehension development. Where current research has asked the question of oral language on growth trajectories of reading comprehension (e.g., Kieffer, 2012), this study adds to the literature by identifying 4 components of English language; modeling respective growth trajectories for each component as a function of Spanish language proficiency and immigrant generation status; and modeling reading comprehension as a function of these trajectories. Our multi-level iterative approach suggested that trajectories varied by language proficiency and this linguistic interdependence was moderated by immigrant generation status.

Authors

• Christine Montecillo Leider, Boston University

• Patrick Proctor, Boston College

• Rebecca Deffes Silverman, University of Maryland - College Park