A
s the world becomes
increasingly globalised,
today’s children will no
doubt have an advantage
in their futures if they are able to
converse in various languages in
their social and professional lives. It
is very likely that they will travel, live
and work abroad in their lifetimes.
Multilingual children will find it
easier to understand other cultures
and relate to people in a much
deeper, more sensitive and efficient
way than if they rely on translators.
In the world of work, we also know
that multilingual professionals
are thought to earn an average of
$3,000 (USD) more per year than
monolinguals.
In Hong Kong, many families are
trilingual in Mandarin, Cantonese,
and English. In our society, with its
expat community, mixed families
and various international schools,
children are given the opportunity to
acquire various languages from an
early age.
But although many parents dream
of their children being able to speak
multiple languages, when it comes
to practice, too many of them still
have some misconceptions which
discourage them from having a clear
family language plan to make this
possible. Some fear that learning
multiple languages will interfere with
children’s learning and intellectual
development, but this is a myth. The
commitment and the time it takes
to learn multiple languages is worth
every effort as research shows that
multilingual children have a wealth
The gift of the gab
Bringing your children up speaking more than one language can have a whole
host of benefits, both now and in the future, writes
Laetitia Chanéac-Knight
.
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