Madam, - Louise Holden's article on infant language development (Education & Parenting, September 9th) was informative but incomplete. Disappointingly, there was no reference to the benefits of bilingualism and the widespread use of Irish as the primary language in many families in Ireland.
Studies show that the bilingual child has a different approach to language from the monolingual child. S/he understands at a much earlier age that there is more than one way to describe something. Because there is a close link between language and thought, this influences the child's thought process.
The bilingual child attaches more importance from an early age to the meaning of a word than to its sound and this increases the ability to deal with abstract thoughts.
The bilingual child also has a more flexible mind and greater linguistic creativity. As a result of having to decide which language to speak to different people s/he is often more sensitive in dealing with people than the monolingual child and consequently develops better social skills.
Having a second language also helps the child acquire a third or fourth language. The bilingual child understands that there are various ways of expressing an idea and that language structure varies from language to language.
A person can become bilingual at any age, but the earlier the better. A child is better able to acquire the sound system of a language before the age of 10. The young child has no preconceived ideas about the difficulty of learning a language.
This lack of inhibition is another reason for giving young children the opportunity to acquire a second language as early as possible. - Is mise,
FEARGAL Ó CUILINN,
Comhluadar,
Sráid Lombard Thoir,
Baile Átha Cliath 2.