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> language ability seems to largely be a function of exposure and there's only so much time to go around. There's an important shortcoming in that reasoning: i

by arde 9y ago

> language ability seems to largely be a function of exposure and there's only so much time to go around. There's an important shortcoming in that reasoning: it assumes that time is fully dedicated to learning whichever language is being used. Furthermore, it doesn't consider the possibility that learning a language may benefit from learning a different one. Based on my observations while raising my kid bilingual, that's probably not the case. When she learnt a new word in a language, she usually asked for it in the other language too so she could learn both. At 6 years old, she now has much better language skills in both languages compared to her peers. There may have been a period at about 2 or 3 years old that her skills weren't outstanding but she was still perfectly fine by her age's norm (which accounts for quite a bit of variance). My guess is that, after learning a few basics, new language is learnt sporadically with lots of "waiting" time in between, and thus there's practically no time conflict in learning two languages except maybe at the very start.

pbhjpbhj 9y ago
> there's practically no time conflict in learning two languages except maybe at the very start. // This can't be true, otherwise you'd learn all languages and it would take, practically, no longer than learning one. At school if a child is learning 2 languages (L2, L3) then do you think they can do that with no more time commitment than learning one additional language - if you can explain how then you can revolutionise language learning .. all schools can teach the kids 20 languages within the lesson time they currently only manage one. In practice what's happening is you're teaching in an open manner, it's not directed learning but it is occupying more time, and mental processing, than learning only one vocabulary and one grammar. There are probably a lot of efficiency gains, but if exposure and use is at all important to language learning and proficiency (they are according to most comments here) then you need more time. When that time is folded in to social times or family time it appears to be "free". The problem comes when people who have learnt/taught this way get to claim kids in school can learn an additional language because it doesn't take any time (and so, the logic goes, can't negatively impact other learning).
- arde 9y ago
  Of course I referred to the language learning process in toddlers. By the time they reach school it's a different process, and they learn a lot of other subjects too.

by arde 9y ago

pbhjpbhj 9y ago

> there's practically no time conflict in learning two languages except maybe at the very start. // This can't be true, otherwise you'd learn all languages and it would take, practically, no longer than learning one. At school if a child is learning 2 languages (L2, L3) then do you think they can do that with no more time commitment than learning one additional language - if you can explain how then you can revolutionise language learning .. all schools can teach the kids 20 languages within the lesson time they currently only manage one. In practice what's happening is you're teaching in an open manner, it's not directed learning but it is occupying more time, and mental processing, than learning only one vocabulary and one grammar. There are probably a lot of efficiency gains, but if exposure and use is at all important to language learning and proficiency (they are according to most comments here) then you need more time. When that time is folded in to social times or family time it appears to be "free". The problem comes when people who have learnt/taught this way get to claim kids in school can learn an additional language because it doesn't take any time (and so, the logic goes, can't negatively impact other learning).

arde 9y ago
Of course I referred to the language learning process in toddlers. By the time they reach school it's a different process, and they learn a lot of other subjects too.