The Role of Language in Concept Development: Singaporeans’ Understanding of “Animal”

• In Event: Poster Session 10
  In Poster Session: PS 10 Topic - Education, Schooling

Abstract

Various studies have demonstrated that children’s understanding of “animal” emerges very early in development and is subject to changes over time through formal and informal instruction. However, this understanding also seems to vary across linguistic contexts – children express different archaic definitions of “animal” depending on the language they speak. Yet, there is a lack of understanding what impact multilinguistic exposure may have on the formation of such understanding, especially where the language of instruction differs from the language primarily spoken in the home environment – as is the case for most children in Singapore. In the present study, 312 children aged 4, 7 and 10 years took part in a cross-sectional examination. Children came from four different home language (HL) groups according to which language was most frequently spoken in the home environment – English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil. Children were tested for their recognition of animals and non-animals, and they completed tests in English and in their HL where English was not their HL. Correct recognition of non-animals was, as expected, very strong. When examining performance across the English tests, Malay-speaking children performed significantly better than all other three groups for all animals overall as well as for non-archetypal animals, but not for archetypes. The other three groups did not show significant variation. When examining performance across the different HLs, again Malay-speaking children performed better than all other three groups on all animals and on non-archetypal animals, but not for archetypes. Finally, while Mandarin- and Tamil-speaking children’s performances did not differ significantly between English and HL tests, Malay-speaking children performed significantly better on the HL version than the English version. Out of the four languages, Malay has the broadest archetypal definition that only excludes humans. As a result, it is perhaps not surprising that the Malay group showed a significantly higher correct score for non-archetypal animals than the remaining groups. Thus, home language exposure that has broader definitions may strengthen a child’s understanding when also learning in the context of a different instructional language. Age-wise, both analysis sets showed the oldest children consistently performing significantly better than both the 4- and the 7-year-olds, but no significant differences between the two younger groups. Nonetheless, patterns emerging suggest a U-shaped performance curve, with 4-year-olds mostly scoring slightly higher, on average, than 7-year-olds. This seems to be in line with the suggestion that archetypal definitions begin to emerge around 3-4 years of age. The notable exception was again the Malay-speaking group, which did not follow the same U-shape trend. The older children’s significantly improved performance can be associated with educational experience as their testing occurred after having been taught about animals in school, as per the national syllabus. Overall, the study may have implications for understanding the role of language in the formation of scientific concepts as well as for instructional approaches.

Author

• Michael Hast, Nanyang Technological University
  Presenting Author