There are hundreds different languages spoken all over the world, and in the contemporary society it is already quiet normal and usual, if a person knows the second or sometimes even the third language. The characteristic of an individual, due to which he possesses two linguistic systems, is called bilingualism. (Rosenberg 285) Bilingualism is also often called multilingualism. Though monolingualism (possession of one linguistic system) is considered to be natural, many people today prefer to learn the second language or grow up in the bilingual environment, when their parents speak two different languages, for example. Bilingualism is especially common in such countries as the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Canada because of a high amount of immigrants from different countries and multinational families; and also in Asia and Africa, where people besides speaking their home language also learn another administrative official language in order to be able to communicate with members of other ethnic groups living on the territory of their countries. Since bilingualism has become a norm and reality of the contemporary world, psychologists, educators, scholars, sociologists and parents wonder, what are the consequences of bilingualism, how it influences the holistic development of a child and what benefits it has. Therefore, the purpose of this essay is discovering advantages of bilingualism and its positive impact on mind and personality of a person.
Before speaking about advantages of bilingualism, it is worth noting the specific features of this characteristic. First of all, it is necessary to emphasize that bilingualism is not an all-or-none property, therefore bilingualism might exist in different degrees. Since any linguistic system involves such basic four skills as reading, listening, writing and speaking that are subdivided into grammar, vocabulary, meanings, style and pronunciation, all bilingual people differ from each other according to their level of competence. This means that many bilinguals are imbalanced, and they usually speak one language better that the other one. This creates an additional problem for scientists, who study bilinguals and their nature. Balanced bilinguals are quite rare, and most of them have a dominant language – the language that they use more often in their daily life. However, even though if one language is much more developed than the second one, and the person has only one of four above mentioned skills of a linguistic system, he is still considered to be a bilingual and, therefore, he has more advantages over a monolingual person that are going to be discussed below.
The first group of advantages of bilingualism is cognitive. It has been discovered by scholars and psychologists that bilingual people have better developed cognitive thinking system because they have two or even more words for one object or idea. For example, a bilingual child knows at least two synonyms in two different languages of the word “kitchen”, which leads to a conclusion that the mind of a bilingual child is much more flexible than the mind of monolingual one. Moreover, it has been discovered that children, who start speaking two languages since early childhood, demonstrate outstanding critical thinking skills, which will help them further in the study and a career path. Moreover, bilingual children appear to be more sensitive to the needs of an interlocutor.
Another benefit of bilingualism relates to curriculum advantages. It has been also found out that those children, who study in bilingual environment, demonstrate much better academic results than those, who attend a monolingual school, and show higher examination and tests results. Moreover, it is much easier for children speaking two languages to learn the third one than for monolinguals to learn later the second language. (Baker 13)
Bilingualism also has cultural advantages and helps a person to better understand other cultures and their representatives. While monolingualism allows to communicate only with the variety of people in one language and thus establishes barriers for communication between people of different linguistic groups, bilingualism helps to build bridges between different cultures. Therefore, bilingual children, while travelling, easily adapt to a new culture and environment, and find new friends in different countries. A cultural advantage of bilingualism also relates to life experience. Being bilingual and understanding two languages is like having two windows to the world because bilingual people have an opportunity to experience two different cultures at the same time. For example, they are able to listen to music, read books and magazines in different languages from various countries, which gives them a broad understanding of other cultures since each language implies different systems of folk sayings, traditions, behaviours, rituals, greetings and etc. Thus, this all makes bilingual children better educated and developed people with broad knowledge of the world and people. Moreover, this also makes them more tolerant because such children are less dependent on stereotypes that are usually born on minds of monolingual people. Also, bilingualism helps a person during travelling because if he speaks several languages, he will feel comfortable in unknown countries and new places and will not get confused in unfamiliar environment. (Baker 14)
There are also obvious advantages in communication for a bilingual person, especially during childhood. If a child is born in a bilingual family, he or she will be able to speak to each parent in a preferred language. This leads to establishment of closer and better texture of relationship between children and parents. Alternatively, bilingual children are able to communicate with their parents in one language and with their friends of the community in another one. Moreover, very often a bilingual child can help to bridge the gap, build relationships and get the sense of belonging within the extended family. For example, a bilingual child is able to communicate with people of different generations in the family like grandparents, who usually do not speak the second language.
It is also important to note that bilingualism brings economic advantages to bilingual speakers. In the contemporary era of globalisation in our fast-developing world, knowing an additional language is definitely an asset, therefore those people, who speak two languages, have a wider choice of jobs and professional opportunities than individuals, who speak only one language. Bilingualism helps to destroy trade barriers, make international relationships closer and contributes to growing of international partnerships and trade unions. Bilingual employees are in increasing demand nowadays in many different spheres including tourism, public relations, international transport systems, banking and accountancy secretarial work, information technologies, marketing and sales, overseas aid work and teaching careers and the law. Thus, careers in sales and export jobs and multinational companies, and modern global economy make the future employment more flexible and easier for bilingual people than monolingual. Therefore, an employer my choosing between two candidate, will definitely prefer a bilingual one. (Baker 15)
Summarizing all the written and analyzed above about bilingualism, it is possible to draw a conclusion, that it is very beneficial to be bilingual in the contemporary society. A person, who knows and articulates two different linguistic systems, is much more successful in his academic life; he has better communication skills and is able to understand other cultures and traditions. In contrast to monolinguals, bilingual people are more tolerant towards others and they are not dependant on their negative stereotypes about other races and ethnic groups. Furthermore, they have much more opportunities in terms of building up career because most of the spheres on the global labour market require the knowledge of the second or sometimes even the third language. Though by nature people are created monolingual, it is possible to say that in the contemporary society and fast-developing world, to be bilingual is becoming more natural and thus more beneficial.
Works Cited
Baker, Colin. The Care and Education of Young Bilinguals. An Introduction for Professionals. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. 2000. Print
Rosenberg, Sheldon. Advances in Applied Psycholinguistics (Volume 2): Reading, Writing and Language Learning. Cambridge: Canbridge University Press. 1987. Print
