Impact of Academic Language of Instruction on Spanish and English Growth and Loss in Bilingual Children.

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Bibliographic Details
Title:	Impact of Academic Language of Instruction on Spanish and English Growth and Loss in Bilingual Children.
Authors:	Hiebert, Lindsey¹ lindsey.hiebert@nau.edu, Rojas, Raúl², Iglesias, Aquiles³
Source:	Language, Speech & Hearing Services in Schools. Jul2025, Vol. 56 Issue 3, p807-822. 16p.
Subject Terms:	Comparative grammar, Phonological awareness, Longitudinal method, Language disorders, Language acquisition, Educational attainment, Multilingualism in children, Statistical models, Research funding, Diagnostic errors, Descriptive statistics, Health outcome assessment, Data analysis software
Abstract:	Purpose: This longitudinal study investigated the impact of different academic programs of primary language instruction (Spanish or English) on the dual language development of Spanish--English bilingual children. Types of academic settings offered to bilingual students as well as differing views and outcomes based on language of instruction are outlined. Method: Narrative retell language samples from 90 typically developing Spanish--English bilingual children elicited across six consecutive academic semesters from the fall of kindergarten to the spring of second grade were used to estimate Spanish and English language skills (grammar and lexical diversity) longitudinally. Participants academically instructed primarily in English (n = 45) were matched to primarily Spanish-instructed participants by age, gender, maternal level of education, and family income level. Results: The estimates of conditional growth curve models indicated that bilingual children differed in their rates of Spanish and English oral language development as a function of their primary academic language of instruction. Loss of Spanish grammatical skills was estimated for English- and Spanish-instructed participants. Conclusions: A wide range of expressive language skills and differing rates and directions of growth is present in typically developing bilingual children. The language of instruction explains some of the variability seen. These take-home findings should be considered in clinical assessment of dual language learners to avoid misdiagnosis of language impairment. Supplemental Material: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.29202743 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Database:	Education Research Complete

Description
Abstract:	Purpose: This longitudinal study investigated the impact of different academic programs of primary language instruction (Spanish or English) on the dual language development of Spanish--English bilingual children. Types of academic settings offered to bilingual students as well as differing views and outcomes based on language of instruction are outlined. Method: Narrative retell language samples from 90 typically developing Spanish--English bilingual children elicited across six consecutive academic semesters from the fall of kindergarten to the spring of second grade were used to estimate Spanish and English language skills (grammar and lexical diversity) longitudinally. Participants academically instructed primarily in English (n = 45) were matched to primarily Spanish-instructed participants by age, gender, maternal level of education, and family income level. Results: The estimates of conditional growth curve models indicated that bilingual children differed in their rates of Spanish and English oral language development as a function of their primary academic language of instruction. Loss of Spanish grammatical skills was estimated for English- and Spanish-instructed participants. Conclusions: A wide range of expressive language skills and differing rates and directions of growth is present in typically developing bilingual children. The language of instruction explains some of the variability seen. These take-home findings should be considered in clinical assessment of dual language learners to avoid misdiagnosis of language impairment. Supplemental Material: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.29202743 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:	01611461
DOI:	10.1044/2025_LSHSS-24-00120