The Impact of the "First Language First" Model on Vocabulary Development among Preschool Bilingual Children

Autor/in	Schwartz, Mila
Titel	The Impact of the "First Language First" Model on Vocabulary Development among Preschool Bilingual Children
Quelle	In: Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 27 (2014) 4, S.709-732 (24 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0922-4777
DOI	10.1007/s11145-013-9463-2
Schlagwörter	Bilingualism; Semitic Languages; Russian; Preschool Children; Vocabulary Development; Longitudinal Studies; Semantics; Role; Native Language; Models; Second Language Learning; Foreign Countries; Language Acquisition; Language of Instruction; Family Environment; Monolingualism; Israel + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Bilingualismus; Arabisch; Hebräisch; Russisch; Pre-school age; Preschool age; Child; Children; Pre-school education; Preschool education; Vorschulalter; Kind; Kinder; Vorschulkind; Vorschulkinder; Vorschulerziehung; Vorschule; Wortschatzarbeit; Longitudinal study; Longitudinal method; Longitudinal methods; Längsschnittuntersuchung; Semantik; Rollen; Analogiemodell; Zweitsprachenerwerb; Ausland; Sprachaneignung; Spracherwerb; Teaching language; Unterrichtssprache; Familienmilieu
Abstract	The aim of this exploratory study was to examine the role of the "First Language First" model for preschool bilingual education in the development of vocabulary depth. The languages studied were Russian (L1) and Hebrew (L2) among bilingual children aged 4-5 years in Israel. According to this model, the children's first language of educational instruction (up to age three) is the language to which they are exposed at home. Their second language--the dominant language of the country that is spoken by the majority of the population--is acquired sequentially, after relative maturity in the first language. Fifty-one Russian/Hebrew-speaking bilinguals (around age four) were selected from bilingual (Russian/Hebrew) preschools, which used the "First Language First" approach, and monolingual (Hebrew) preschools. The research was designed as a longitudinal study, as the children's vocabulary was measured at two time-points--near the beginning and the end of the academic year. The children's vocabulary was measured in both languages by examining its depth dimensions (paradigmatic semantic relations and syntagmatic semantic relations). The results demonstrated that the later immersion in L2 and continuing development of L1 within the "First Language First" model does not results in "retardation" in development of bilingual children in L2 in comparison to their bilingual peers from the monolingual (Hebrew) preschools. In addition, this model of early bilingual development enhances the linguistic interdependence of depth of vocabulary knowledge, and, therefore, supports balanced bilingual development. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10