Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (July 27, 2016)
Page 4 July 27, 2016 Children Show Off Bilingual Advantage Benefits found in problem solving monolingual peers. Cristina Crivello, Ph.D. stu- by e riC t egethoff children learning two languages dent, University of Concordia in A new study of bilingual and perform better at certain prob- Montreal who led the study in the monolingual toddlers shows lem-solving tasks than their Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, says bilingual learn- ing gives children abilities that are beneficial for people at any age. “It’s these specific cognitive abilities, like selective attention and cognitive flexibility, where they have to focus on relevant in- formation and ignore distracting information,” says Crivello. Though there is no consensus yet on exactly how learning oth- er languages improves the brain, Crivello suggests that switching between languages mirrors the pro- cess of switching between tasks. Speaking another language can also improve children’s chances of getting a job later in life, both at home and abroad. Bridget Yaden, professor of Hispanic studies, Pacific Luther- an University whose third-grader is enrolled in a dual-immersion language program, says her son will be able to bring another set of skills to potential employers. Those employers could be in any number of countries around the world. “Just the general ability to learn a second language or a third lan- guage, he could really go anywhere and be much more open to the cul- tural practices and really kind of make his way,” says Yaden. Providing Insurance and Financial Services Home Office, Bloomington, Illinois 61710 Ernest J. Hill, Jr. Agent 4946 N. Vancouver Avenue, Portland, OR 97217 503 286 1103 Fax 503 286 1146 ernie.hill.h5mb@statefarm.com 24 Hour Good Neighbor Service R State Farm R Children immersed in other languages can more easily pick them up because their brains are more receptive to acquiring lan- guage. Yaden, who also teaches foreign languages, says she can see how fast her son is progressing compared to her college students. “He’s definitely leaps and bounds beyond where my col- lege students, who may have had the same amount of time with the language, are,” says Yaden. “He’s definitely progressed much more quickly.” Yaden, who is fluent in Span- ish, adds she didn’t study a foreign language until high school. Eric Tegethoff is a reporter for the Oregon News Network. Few Options after Racist Post C ontinued from P age 2 areas of interest, such as Donald Trump and illegal immigration. The full college board voted to censure him and he’s earned him a rebuke from the head of Ore- gon’s Republican Party, but these officials don’t have the power to discharge him under Oregon law. A recall election from office would be possible if 2,300 val- id voter signatures in the college district were collected to bring the issue to a vote, according to Mult- nomah County Elections officials.
