The Effects Of Bilingualism

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Bilingualism is slowly becoming a popular “trend”. Those who are able to speak a second language at an advanced level and not only, are clearly considered by the society intellectually capable of great things. As a bilingual, the individual must not only know the grammar rules or achieve a high level in communication. He also has to study the cultural background of that specific language. Knowing a second language has a major impact on one’s life. It does not only change his vision on the world, and other cultures, but it also affects his internal psychology, his emotional side which influences furthermore his relationships with other people: relatives, friends and strangers. A bilingual child has a specific cultural and social background. As Ellen Bialystok says, the neighbourhood and the educational arrangement must be taken in consideration when speaking about his language abilities. (Ellen Bialystok, p. 1) The factors that lead to his or her bilingualism “influence the nature of children’s cognitive development.” (Ellen Bialystok, p1). Bilingualism is experienced by any human being, no matter the age. Even “at the lowest levels of knowledge (…) exposure to fragments of other languages is unavoidable”. Pure monolingualism is hardly a reality, especially nowadays when books and movies in foreign languages are available and easy to reach by any individual. Ellen Bialystok is right about how children experience “different kinds of interactions