Author: jannetteaguilera

Posted in Website

Bilingual brain: Here is what happens when you flip between languages

Posted on by jannetteaguilera

This article was written by Kashira Gander and posted on September 9th, 2018. A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences is described to explore the brain mechanisms that let bilinguals switch languages without effort. Graduate student Esti Blanco-Elorrietta says that switching languages means disengaging with one language and then engaging in another. That turning off the new language takes more effort than turning on a language. While the process looks easy, switching languages is a complicated process since it “involves the successful coordination of two independent language systems.” 21 volunteers where researched who where fluent in American Sign Language (ASL) where they would look at an image and saying its term in English and sign language at the same time while being filmed and their brain activity was measured. They saw that turning off a language needed cognitive control activity while the turning on the other language required almost no effort. Turning off is hardest when it is our dominant language causing a cognitive cost from stopping the language we are used to. Also, when speaking using the weaker language, we can add our dominant language is not hard at all. Thus we can “produce two languages for the price of one.” A limitation of the study was that it consisted of single word/ sign level not on the sentence or conversational level; however, this is progress in the field.

This is important to my guiding questions as it explains the cost on the brain when switching between two languages.

languages-stock
Image from the Article
Website Article Source:
Gander, K. (2018, September 10). Bilingual brain: Here's what happens when you flip between languages. Retrieved July 11, 2019, from Newsweek website: https://www.newsweek.com/ bilingual-brain-heres-what-happens-when-you-flip-between-languages-1111264
Posted in Article

New Discoveries from the Bilingual Brain and Mind across the Life Span: Implications for Education

Posted on by jannetteaguilera

The research article “New Discoveries from the Bilingual Brain and Main across the Life Span” by Laura-Ann Petitto was published in 2009. The article discusses neuroscience research with the goal to see if there are sensitive periods in the human development of language and reading and to understand the development and functions of brain tissue. The new field of educational neuroscience has emerged that allows us to analyze educational problems. This study shows how language research in educational neuroscience can help with educational policy and practice. Multiple studies were performed in this article. The first finding was that introducing a new language did not “damage” or “contaminate” the language first taught at home. The second finding was that bilingual babies have an “increased sensitivity to a greater range of phonetic contrasts, and extended developmental window of sensitive for perceiving these phonetic contrasts relative to monolingual children” (5). Another finding include that bilinguals who learned two languages by the age of, process the languages very similar to monolingual individuals. Bilinguals who learned a second language later “exhibit more bilateral activation, recruits more distributed frontal lobe tissue (including working memory and inhibitory areas) and recently exhibit more cognitive effort” (7).

This source is very useful in determining how the bilingual brain is different from the monolingual brain. It also shares how factors such as the age of language acquisition factors into how the brain is developed. These are essential to my guiding questions regarding the development of the bilingual brain. 

Article Source:
Petitto, L.-A. (2009). New Discoveries from the Bilingual Brain and Mind across the Life Span: Implications for Education. Mind, Brain, and Education, 3(4), 185–197. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ862467&site=eds-live
Posted in Blog

The Bilingual Advantage Blog

Posted on by jannetteaguilera

The Bilingual Advantage is a Blog made by Jessica Blin that contains various articles and other resources to explore regarding the bilingual language. Jessica Bin is French, Canadian, and Australian. She is also a bilingual educator at the French International School of Tokyo. Jessica has two sons. Along with her husband, they teach their sons English and French. She began the website “The Bilingual Advantage” to share her experiences with bilingualism and to guide others through that journey.

The bilingual portion of the website the following sources: “4 common mistakes parents make when raising a bilingual child,” “Are we wasting our time in language classes?,” “the importance of songs in language learning,” “So where are you from?” and “the benefits of the bilingual brain.” There are more resources than those just mentioned. If you click on “So where are you from?” you find a cartoon written in what looks like French and she translates the cartoon in English. She says” English Translation: “Where are you from?  Deep breath – So I was born in Paris but I lived in Bali for 2 years and then I lived in India for 2 1/2 years. I then lived 5 years in Moscow and  3 years in Helsinki then in Sweden, I also lived in Roma and then in England… and that’s it.” She then explains how she relates to this cartoon as she feels that she is from different places. If you click on the “the benefits of the bilingual brain,” you see a TedEd video that I had discussed in another post.

This blog is unique to my guiding questions since most articles and resources are related to the advantage of the bilingual brain. If you further explore the website, there are also resources for defining bilingualism, bilingual education and tips for bilingual parents. 

Blin, J. (2019). Blog. Retrieved July 11, 2019, from The bilingual advantage website:  http://thebilingualadvantage.com/blog/
Posted in Video

How language shapes the way we think | Lera Boroditsky

Posted on by jannetteaguilera

Does language shape the way we think? Charlemagne, Holy emperor said “to have a second language is to have a second soul.” This means that our language creates our reality. Languages affect cognitive ability. For example, in an aboriginal community in Australia Kuuk Thaayorre in Pormpuraaw (on the west edge of Cape York), they talk in cardinal directions (not left or right) such as north, west, east, and south. Instead of saying hello, they say “which way are you going?” You respond with something like “north-north east in the far distance, how about you?” They can stay oriented very well because they are trained by their culture. Also, if they were to sort something in chronological order, they would place them from east to west (instead of left to right) in way it corresponds to their landscape.

There are languages that don’t have a number system thus not deep in mathematics. Also, Russians have different names for shades of blue while we have only the color blue. As such, Russians are faster to tell the difference between a darker and lighter blue. Their brains will show a “surprise reaction” as the color shifts from dark to light as a categorical change. Some languages have a gramatical gender. Like the sun has a feminine gender in German while a masculine one in Spanish. These genders do affect the way that language speakers perceive the world. For example, Germans described a bridge as “beautiful” and “elegant” due to its feminine gender, while Spanish speakers describe it as “long” and “strong” with its masculine gender. Languages are structured differently such as “he broke the vase” while in Spanish you say “they vase broke” since it was an accident. People of different languages pay attention to different things depending on what language requires us to do. In English we remember who did it while in Spanish we remember if it was an accident (intentions). We tend to blame more in English. The speaker states: “The beauty of linguistic diversity is that it reveals to us just how ingenious and how flexible the mind is. Human minds have invented not one cognitive universe, but 7,000 — 7,000 languages spoken around the world.” We can also create languages. We are losing one language a week, thus in 100 years we will lose half. She concludes that we reflect on how are we shaped to think and how do we want to think.

While this Youtube video does not discuss the bilingual brain specifically, it does discuss how language affects us. I include this in my studies to see the role that language has on us in determining our perceptions about the world, and how that is applicable to helping us see the role that two or more languages learned together can affect the way we see and respond to others and the world around us. This increase in perceptions is an advantage of having a bilingual or multilingual brain. 

Video Source:
TED. (2018, May 2). How language shapes the way we think | Lera Boroditsky [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKK7wGAYP6k
Posted in Video

Bilingual and Monolingual Baby Brains Differ in Response to Language

Posted on by jannetteaguilera

This video shows a study between bilingual and monolingual babies in regards to brain activity. Eleven month old babies would hear the sounds of both Spanish and English. Bilingual babies (from bilingual families) would respond to both Spanish and English sounds while Monolingual babies (who only have heard English) only respond to English sounds. Thus the infant brain of eleven months specializes in language(s) being practiced around them. Also, bilinguals showed stronger responses in the prefrontal and orbitofrontal Cortex which are associated with executive function skills and are known to activate when bilingual adults switch between two languages. Thus babies are already practice switching between to languages.

Youtube Video

This study shows how the bilingual brain is different to that of the monolingual brain in terms of activity when engaged in specific sounds. As such, it helps answer my question as to how the bilingual brain is developed. 

Video Source:
I-LABS Tech Support. (2016, March 22). Bilingual and monolingual baby brains differ in response to language [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/ watch?time_continue=160&v=TAYhj-gekqw
Posted in Website

The Advantages of a Bilingual Brain

Posted on by jannetteaguilera

The website article called “The Advantages of a Bilingual Brain” by Laura Chaparro on April 26, 2018 talks about the positive impact that bilingualism has on individuals. Being bilingual is tied to delaying symptoms of dementia, better recovery after a stroke, better memory and attention skills, better working memory skills compared to monolinguals and the better executive functions like working with others and conflict resolution. In a study that examines micromanaging and behavioral studies on adulthood bilingualism found that “two languages protects against cognitive deterioration by improving the cognitive reserve.” Dementia is delayed by about four years as bilingualism keeps our minds and brains healthy. As for stroke recovery, 608 patients were analyzed by the Institute of Medical Sciences of Nizam (India). Of those, “40.5% of bilinguals recovered normal cognition, compared to 19.6% of monolinguals.” Regarding the brain, eleven month babies where studied at the University of Washington. They looked at babies of bilingual and monolingual families. They found that ” The prefrontal and orbitofrontal cortices (two areas of the frontal lobe) had more intense responses in bilingual babies compared to those who only heard and spoke one language. ” Also, bilingual individuals show denser grey matter on the “left interior parietal regions of the cerebral cortex” and white matter better maintained during aging. What is most interesting is the following: “Overall, bilinguals have developed different brain regions to perform tasks than the ones used by monolinguals,” Bialystok sums up. We still don’t know how these changes allow an improvement in performance and cognitive reserve for those who can speak two languages.

I chose this article as it answers my guiding question regarding the advantages of the bilingual brain. We see a delay in dementia, as well as an improvement in cognitive skills when compared to monolinguals. We also add on to the development of the bilingual brain because we now know that different regions are developed in the brains of bilinguals.

Image from the website
Image from the website
Chaparro, L. (2018, April 26). The advantages of a bilingual brain. Retrieved July 6, 2019, from OpenMind website: https://www.bbvaopenmind.com/en/science/research/the-advantages-of-a-bilingual-brain/
Posted in Creative Work

Tree of Life Paradise Goddess

Posted on by jannetteaguilera

This creative work was used as the logo of the CABE (California Association for Bilingual Education) conference 2019. I attended this conference which is tailored to educators and administration in bilingual or multilingual contexts. The author of this art piece is Sandra Silberzweig who has many similar styles of work pictured at her website: https://sandra-silberzweig.pixels.com/

While I am unsure as to why the conference chose this image, I can imagine why this image depicts the bilingual individual. Speaking two or more languages tends naturally become part of our identity and culture. It is lively, full of energy, an additional means to connect with the world around us. These are all of these indicate a sense of beauty of the bilingual brain.

Tree of life Paradise Goddess by Sandra Silberzweig
Photo Source: 
Silberzweig, S. (2012, April 23). Tree Of Life Paradise Goddess [Illustration].
Posted in Artifact

CABE T-shirt

Posted on by jannetteaguilera

I bought this T-shirt at a CABE Conference, which stands for the California Association for Bilingual Education. The whole conference took place in three and a half days and strives to support educators and administration who teach a second language or multiple languages.

I bought this shirt to remind me about the importance of bilingual education and the constant learning necessary to continue teaching bilingualism and biliteracy. While the shirt does not support my guiding questions, the event attended in of itself represents the advantages of the bilingual brain. 

Photo Sources:  
Aguilera, J. (2019, July 5). T-shirt close up [Photograph].  
Aguilera, J. (2019, July 5). T-shirt whole [Photograph].
Posted in Experiential

The Bilingual Brain by Arturo E. Hernandez by University of Houston System (Coursera) – Week 1

Posted on by jannetteaguilera

I took a free online class called “The bilingual Brain” on Coursera. Below are my notes on Lessons from week 1.

Office hours: Q&A of Instructor; A question was conducted on personality switching that occurs with language switching. Dr. Hernandez explains that different personalities come out depending on the context, not language specifically. For example, you be shy with many people around while outgoing with a friend. Personality can switch when you go home (relating to native language) to going to school (with a second language). Also, the first language is more tied to emotion. Different responses in bad words (stronger feeling in a native language). He also discusses how language impairments are apparent in any language, which does not depend on how many languages a child learns. He states: “Language impairment, to some extent, is independent of any particular language” Lastly, parents regret not maintaining the home language, and parents regret not being taught the native language. Kids can blend languages and eventually sort out the language. Parents must determine what the language outcome should be. Pushing for the native language is more work since the societal language is a stronger influence.

1.1 How are two languages coded in one brain? A guy (Arturo) spoke Italian (native language) and learned French and English as a young man. He suffered from hemiplegic stroke which caused a speech disturbance and could never recover French and English.

1.2 Jean Albert Pitres (doctor) defined familiarity as “the language that would be most resistant to damage would be the language that the patient was speaking at the time of the stroke.” He talks about how well you speak it plays a role.

1.3 Theador Ribot developed the theory “law of regression: memories learned in early life are organic.” He studied patients with dementia, more complex memories were forgotten, then the meaning of words, single words and then gestures. He had several bilingual patients, and he learned that earlier learned things are resistant to damage. For example, a forester who grew up in Poland and then moved to Germany, spoke German the rest of his life had gone through anesthesia for a surgical procedure. He then spoke Polish even though he had not spoken it in 30 years. In 1999, Franco Fabbro (in his book Neurolinguistics of Bilingualism) conducted research of many cases in the last 100 years with bilinguals who had brain damage and found that a third recovered their first language the fastest, a third their second language the fastest and a third both languages the same. Maybe it does not depend on language… So Patient A.S. spoke Farsi and learned German in college and conducted research in English. He would alternate between Farsi and German (without mixing the languages). After he fully recovered the two languages, he was able to recover English. Dr. Hernernadez was learning Portuguese in Brazil and had trouble speaking his Spanish and English native languages while doing so. Then the idea of control came up that could be called the language switch.

1.4 Otto Poetrzl introduced the language switch “a neurological mechanism that allows a speaker to remain in one language and switch to another.” Thus we can get stuck in a language, we can struggle with the idea to get out of a language by turning on a language and turning the other off. For example, there was a Czech native speaker who learned German at 14. He could understand both but can only speak Czech.

1.5 Three topics: Age of Acquisition – Law of regression, Proficiency – Familiarity, Control- Fixation. Metaphors of the mind: A computer (information possessor, like a machine), Linguistics (different language functions (sounds, words, letters, sentences) are broken by different types of damage), location (language is in different parts of the brain). Final thoughts: language is not one thing (complex, many layers, ex: sounds, letters, sentences, larger pieces of language), Language develops over time (many layers)

1.6 Bilingual Metaphor: Conflict between two languages, new languages, biological (two species coexisting in an ecosystem). Coexist, share resources.

This course is essential to answering my questions on the development of the bilingual brain and the advantages of the bilingual brain. In week 1 he lays out the foundations of the research on the bilingual brain and introduces the topics explored in the next coming lessons. We already see that studying the impact languages have on the brain is very complex.

Course Source:
Hernandez, A. E. (2019). Week 1 [Lecture transcript]. Retrieved July 6, 2019, from Cousera website: https://www.coursera.org/learn/bilingual/home/week/1