Facilitating first language development in young Korean children through parent training in picture book interactions

Bilingual Research Journal, Summer 2002 by Kim, Young Sook, Cole, Kevin N

Abstract

This study examined the effectiveness of parent training in the use of language facilitation techniques around picture book interactions with Korean mothers and children. Twenty-one children, ages 2 to 4 years and 4 months, and their mothers participated. The children were reported to be developing typically. The parents' first language was Korean and was spoken in the home. Dyads were randomly assigned to a treatment or control condition. The treatment group received approximately one hour of instruction in specific language facilitation techniques around picture book interactions. The control group received approximately one hour of instruction in general emergent literacy development and the importance of first language acquisition. Results from pre-test and post-test language samples indicated significant between-group differences in parents' use of methods and in children's language production, both favoring the treatment group.

Over the past thirty years there has been a considerable amount of research focusing on language addressed to young children. One common adult-child language interaction opportunity occurs around use of picture books. Some parents, using picture books as a springboard for conversation, engage in book-related conversations (McNeill & Fowler, 1996). During picture book reading mothers tend to use instructional strategies more frequently than in other situations (Hoff-Ginsberg, 1991; Jones & Adamson, 1987). Studies suggest that these instructive behaviors and parents' interaction styles have an impact on children's language development (Pellegrini, Brody, & Sigel, 1985; Cornell, Senechal, & Broda, 1988; Elley, 1989; Leung & Pikulski, 1990; Moerk, 1985). Thus, it is not surprising that early picture book reading is related to language growth and later school achievement (e.g., Chomsky, 1972; Moerk, 1985; Snow, 1983).

A study by Whitehurst, Falco, Lonigan, Fischel, DeFarshe, Valdez-- Menchca, and Caulfield (1988) demonstrated that children of parents trained in specific language facilitation strategies around picture books made significant gains in language development relative to a randomly assigned control group in which parents also read to their children but did not use the specific language facilitation techniques. The results of the study indicate that the children did not make gains due to exposure to reading alone, but rather because of the specific language facilitation techniques.

The effectiveness of these specific language facilitation techniques during picture book interactions has been replicated by McNeill and Fowler (1999), Arnold, Lonigan, Whitehurst, and Epstein (1994), and Dale, Crain-Thoreson, Notari-Syverson, and Cole (1996).

These studies have documented effectiveness with developing children, children with developmental disabilities, and children who speak Spanish as their first language who were typically developing, and from lower socioeconomic status backgrounds. However, the methods have not yet been examined for children from any Asian cultural or linguistic group. The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of specific language facilitation techniques to enhance Korean children's learning of their first language.

Second Language Acquisition Issues

Prior to the year 2000 it was estimated that there would be 5.2 million preschoolers from other than English speaking homes (Kagan & Garcia, 1991). In the past it was believed that learning the first language spoken in the home might be detrimental to the development of the child's learning of English. It has now been documented that mastery of the child's first language may actually enhance second language development, as well as cognitive, linguistic, and social development (Hakuta, 1986; McCardle, Kim, Grube, & Randall, 1995). Parents now often recognize that their heritage language is one of the greatest assets for their children, in contrast to early immigrant families who sometimes thought their children must learn only English to blend into society as soon as possible (Kim, 1980).

Furthermore, bilinguals may develop a more analytic orientation toward language than do monolinguals as a means of overcoming interference between languages (Ben-Zeev, 1977). Many studies report that bilingual children are more cognitively flexible in certain respects and better able to analyze linguistic meaning than monolingual children (e. g., Cummins, 1979; Albert & Obler, 1978). The benefits of using the child's first language to promote second language development are clearly documented (Gutierrez, 1993; Wong-Fillmore & Valadez, 1986). Furthermore, many researchers (Teale & Sulzby, 1986,1987; Ferreiro & Teberosky, 1982; Sulzby & Teale, 1981) argue that a well established first language is a good predictor of later literacy for bilingual children. Thus, efforts to facilitate the child's first language development at home may provide a wide range of long-term academic benefits.

Study Design

Subjects

Twenty-one children (9 boys and 12 girls) and their mothers participated in the study. All families spoke Korean as the primary language at home. Children, ages 2 years to 4 years and 4 months (M= 3.3 years, SD =.63), were acquiring Korean as their first language primarily at home while simultaneously being introduced to English in preschools. All children appeared to be typically developing and had age-appropriate expressive and receptive language skills as reported by parents and preschool teachers. All produced at least two-word utterances in Korean at the time of their initial assessment. Twenty of the children were born in the United States. One was born in Korea and emigrated to the United States at age 2. See Table 1 for participant descriptions.