The revolutionary power of bilingualism | Karina Chapa | TEDxMcAllen

Summary

The speaker explores the cognitive advantages of bilingualism, drawing on personal experiences and scientific evidence. They discuss the challenges faced by bilingual students in America, including historical trauma and societal pressures to assimilate. The talk advocates for bilingual education, emphasizing its potential to foster cognitive flexibility, problem-solving skills, and even delay dementia. The speaker envisions a future where the US, with its growing Spanish-speaking population, can lead in cultivating a bilingual, biliterate, and bicultural generation.

Takeaways

• 🌐 The human brain can connect a native language with a foreign one to understand it, even without prior knowledge of the foreign language.
• 📊 In the United States, despite a rich linguistic diversity, only 20% of people are bilingual, compared to a global average where half of the population speaks more than one language.
• 🏫 Language is often misunderstood and historical trauma contributes to the lack of bilingualism; for instance, past punishments for speaking native languages in schools.
• 🧊 Language is likened to an iceberg, where the tip represents social language and the base represents cognitive academic language proficiency, which takes longer to develop.
• 🌱 Becoming bilingual is a gradual process that involves not just speaking but also dreaming in the second language, indicating deep cognitive integration.
• 🤔 A bilingual brain operates like having two interconnected icebergs, where knowledge from the first language can be transferred to the second, aiding in cognitive development.
• 🚫 Denying students the opportunity to develop cognitively in their first language can lead to illiteracy in both languages, as they lack the foundational cognitive development.
• 🌟 Bilingualism is a gift that enhances cognitive flexibility, problem-solving skills, creativity, and can delay the onset of dementia and Alzheimer's.
• 👥 The United States has a unique opportunity to become the leading country with the most Spanish speakers, emphasizing the importance of bilingual education.
• 🌱 Bilingual education is not just about language; it's about cultural identity and empowerment, allowing students to embrace who they are rather than who they might become.

Q & A

What is the 'superpower' mentioned in the script that a native language gives you?

The 'superpower' is the ability to understand a foreign language by making connections with your native language.

Why does the speaker believe that only 20% of people in America are bilingual despite the diversity of languages?

The speaker believes it's a combination of factors, including a lack of understanding of how language works and historical trauma.

What is the difference between social language and cognitive academic language as described in the script?

Social language is the language used at home and in everyday interactions, which is developed quickly within the first few years of life. Cognitive academic language proficiency, on the other hand, involves deep critical thinking and takes five to seven years to develop; it's the language of analysis, inference, and conclusion making.

What does the speaker recall as the moment she became bilingual?

The speaker recalls the moment she became bilingual when she started dreaming in English, indicating that her brain was thinking in the language she was learning as a second language.

How does the speaker describe the bilingual brain?

The speaker describes the bilingual brain as having a 'double iceberg,' where the surface represents social language, and underneath is the interconnected cognitive academic language proficiency.

What does the speaker suggest happens to students who are not allowed to develop cognitively in their first language?

The speaker suggests that these students may become illiterate in two languages, as they do not get the opportunity to transfer cognitive development from their first language to their second language.

Why does the speaker feel that historical trauma may play a role in the low rates of bilingualism in America?

The speaker refers to historical instances where children were punished for speaking their native language in schools, which may have led to a subconscious belief that their native language is inferior.

What does the speaker argue about the importance of using words carefully in the context of language and identity?

The speaker argues that words can be used as weapons of mass destruction, and it's a choice to use them constructively. Telling a child not to use their native language can undermine their identity and make them feel like they need to become someone else to be successful.

What is cognitive flexibility, as mentioned in the script?

Cognitive flexibility is the ability to quickly switch between thinking about different concepts, as demonstrated by the color-naming task in the script.

Why does the speaker believe that bilingualism can revolutionize the world?

The speaker believes that bilingualism can revolutionize the world because it offers cognitive benefits such as better problem-solving skills, creativity, and cognitive flexibility. It also has health benefits, such as delaying the onset of dementia and Alzheimer's.

What opportunity does the speaker see for the United States regarding bilingualism?

The speaker sees an opportunity for the United States to develop a new generation of adults who are bilingual and biliterate, given that the U.S. is projected to have the most Spanish speakers in the world by 2050.

Outlines

00:00

🌐 Language Connection and Bilingual Brains

The speaker begins by engaging the audience with a playful Italian language test, highlighting how our brains naturally connect a foreign language to our native tongue. They emphasize the superpower of understanding a foreign language, especially Spanish, given America's linguistic diversity. The speaker points out the paradox of only 20% bilingualism in America despite 80% of non-English speakers being Spanish speakers. They delve into the concept of language as an iceberg, where the visible tip represents social language, quickly learned, and the submerged part represents cognitive academic language, which takes longer to develop. The speaker shares a personal story of becoming bilingual, dreaming in English after two years of living in America, illustrating the cognitive shift to a second language.

05:01

📚 Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency

This paragraph delves into the importance of cognitive academic language proficiency, which is likened to the submerged part of an iceberg. It requires 5-7 years to develop and involves critical thinking skills. The speaker discusses the bilingual brain, comparing it to two interconnected icebergs, suggesting that knowledge from the first language can enhance the second. They argue against the suppression of native languages in education, as it deprives students of the cognitive development needed to transfer skills to a second language. The speaker passionately advocates for bilingual education, lamenting the illiteracy in two languages that results from neglecting native language development.

10:01

🏫 Historical Trauma and Language Identity

The speaker addresses the historical trauma associated with language suppression in American schools, where children were punished for speaking their native tongue. They recount personal experiences of feeling unworthy and 'dumb' due to language barriers, and how these experiences reflect a broader societal devaluation of non-English languages. The narrative includes a confrontation with a principal over discriminatory posters, emphasizing the need for open dialogue about language's role in identity. The speaker argues that discouraging native languages undermines a child's sense of self, urging recognition of bilingualism as a gift rather than a curse.

15:03

🌟 The Power and Future of Bilingualism

In the final paragraph, the speaker discusses the cognitive benefits of bilingualism, such as enhanced problem-solving, creativity, and cognitive flexibility. They share an interactive exercise to demonstrate this flexibility. The speaker also touches on the health benefits of bilingualism, including delayed onset of dementia and Alzheimer's. They highlight the United States' potential to lead in bilingualism by 2050, given its large Spanish-speaking population. The speaker concludes with a call to action for stakeholders to embrace bilingual education, which they believe can revolutionize the world.

Keywords

💡Bilingualism

Bilingualism refers to the ability to speak and understand two languages fluently. In the video, the speaker discusses bilingualism as a gift that allows individuals to navigate multiple languages and cultures. The main theme revolves around how bilingualism strengthens cognitive abilities and provides academic, social, and cultural benefits. The speaker emphasizes that bilingual education can revolutionize the world, enhancing skills like problem-solving and creativity.

💡Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP)

CALP refers to the deeper understanding of language used for academic and critical thinking purposes. In the video, it is described as the 'under the surface' part of the iceberg, which takes 5-7 years to develop. This proficiency includes analyzing plots, making inferences, and drawing conclusions, which are essential for academic success. The speaker highlights that this cognitive development in a native language helps in learning a second language.

💡Social Language

Social language is the everyday, conversational use of a language, which develops relatively quickly within 1-3 years. The speaker refers to it as the 'tip of the iceberg,' representing basic fluency used in casual interactions at home, with friends, or in familiar environments. This contrasts with CALP, showing the difference between everyday language skills and deeper, academic language understanding.

💡Historical Trauma

Historical trauma refers to the collective emotional and psychological wounds inflicted on certain groups of people over time, often due to oppressive policies. The speaker mentions historical trauma in the context of how Spanish-speaking children in the past were punished for using their native language in American schools. This trauma has led to a perception that languages other than English are inferior, affecting how bilingualism is viewed today.

💡Language Identity

Language identity connects a person's self-concept and sense of belonging to the language they speak. The speaker argues that language is tied to identity, and when children are told not to use their native language, it devalues their culture and who they are. This is a central theme, emphasizing the need to preserve students' native languages as a way of honoring their identities.

💡Language Transfer

Language transfer is the process by which knowledge from one language is applied to another. In the video, the speaker explains that cognitive skills learned in a first language, like basic arithmetic or historical facts, can easily be transferred to a second language. This concept underlines the idea that learning in one's native language is not wasted; it supports and enhances learning in additional languages.

💡Cognitive Flexibility

Cognitive flexibility refers to the brain's ability to switch between thinking about different concepts and to adapt to new information or situations. The speaker uses an activity where the audience has to name the color of words instead of reading the word itself, demonstrating cognitive flexibility. Bilingual individuals often have stronger cognitive flexibility, allowing them to navigate between languages and viewpoints more easily.

💡Monolingualism

Monolingualism is the condition of speaking and understanding only one language. The video critiques the American educational system's tendency to produce monolingual students despite the country's linguistic diversity. The speaker advocates for bilingual education over monolingualism, pointing out that half the world is bilingual, while only 20% of Americans speak more than one language.

💡Bilingual Education

Bilingual education is the practice of teaching students in two languages. The speaker argues that bilingual education has the potential to revolutionize learning, enabling students to become not only bilingual but also bicultural and biliterate. This form of education is seen as essential for cognitive development and for preparing students to thrive in a multilingual world.

💡Civil Rights

Civil rights refer to the rights of citizens to political and social freedom and equality. In the video, the speaker discusses how posters demanding students to 'Speak English' violate students' civil rights by discriminating against non-English languages. The conversation about these posters highlights the need to recognize and respect linguistic diversity in schools as a matter of civil rights.

Highlights

The ability to understand a foreign language when you already speak another is a superpower given by your native language.

80% of language-minority students in America speak Spanish at home, yet only 20% of Americans are bilingual.

Language is like an iceberg, with social language being the tip and cognitive academic language proficiency beneath the surface.

It takes 5 to 7 years to develop deep critical thinking in a language, which is crucial for cognitive academic language proficiency.

The speaker became bilingual when they started dreaming in English after two years of living in America.

A bilingual brain is like having two interconnected icebergs, representing the transferability of cognitive skills between languages.

Learning in your native language is never a waste of time; it helps build a foundation for learning a second language.

Students who are not allowed to develop cognitively in their first language may become illiterate in both languages.

Historical trauma, such as punishing students for speaking their native language, has lasting effects on language identity.

Language is tied to identity, and suppressing a child's native language can make them feel their identity is not valuable.

Bilingualism is beneficial, with bilingual brains showing better problem-solving skills, creativity, and cognitive flexibility.

Bilingual brains are also healthier, potentially delaying the onset of dementia and Alzheimer's.

By 2050, the United States is projected to have the most Spanish speakers in the world.

There's an opportunity to培养 a new generation of bilingual and biliterate adults in America.

Bilingual education can revolutionize the world, and it requires a collaborative effort from various stakeholders.

The speaker advocates for open and honest conversations about language to change the educational system for the better.

Bilingualism should be embraced as a gift, not treated as a curse, in educational practices.

Transcripts

[Music]

does anybody speak Italian

no all right it's okay you're gonna see

a text on the screen and all you have to

do is read it and try to pay attention

to what your brain is about to do ready

here we go

so what is going on in those beautiful

brains can you make sense of what it

says I thought nobody spoke Italian what

you're doing is making connections with

your native language and a foreign

language you probably were able to

understand revolution fundamental mode

paradigm and if you also speak Spanish

you probably could have read the whole

thing in espanol una revolution a son

can be fundamental and el cambio de

pensar IV Salazar cualquier cosa un

cambio de para Diekman that is a

superpower the superpower that your

native language gives you to understand

a foreign language in America five

million students speak a language other

than English already at home and 80% of

them speak Spanish so why is it that

with this diversity of languages in our

country only 20% of people are bilingual

whereas in the whole world half of the

population speak more than one language

I believe it's a combination of factors

I think it's lack of understanding on

how language works mixed with a little

bit of historical trauma so let's talk

about that language what is language

let's imagine language is like an

iceberg the tip of the iceberg

represents social language that's the

language that we use at home at the

store with the neighbors with our

cousins in that language is developed

rather quickly one two three years and

you speak fluently a language at the

social level just imagine a baby when

the babies are one year old what do we

want to do we tell them say mama we hit

the same mom and they'd say mama

but at the time they're three it's like

yeah kya Tommy hito poor father because

they'll become Cheeta chatters right

fluency in language however if we go

below the iceberg under the surface that

is cognitive academic language

proficiency we don't see it on the

surface it's deep critical thinking and

to develop that deep critical thinking

we need five to seven years it's not

until the child comes to school that

they started learning how to analyze the

plot of a story make inferences draw

conclusions in fact it's a language of

thinking I remember exactly the day I

became bilingual you see I came to

America as an adult 20 years ago already

but I remember two years later I wake my

husband up in the middle of the night

and I tell him honey honey I'm dreaming

in English it was the very first time in

my life I was dreaming in English I just

dreamt in Spanish before then but then I

knew that my brain automatically was

thinking in the language I was using the

language I was learning as a second

language so what happens in a bilingual

brain a bilingual brain is really like

having a double iceberg so let's imagine

we're in a little boat and we're facing

these two icebergs don't worry it's not

the Titanic we're safe so we're seeing

these two icebergs and apparently the

two languages are very different it's

almost like if I continue this

conversation in Spanish if they were

split gondola diferencia entre lenguaje

sociology language academic well-dressed

om eazy-e's minutos some of you you just

flip the switch and you're like oh sure

I'm listening to Spanish and thinking in

Spanish but then some of you were like

wait I mean I didn't sign up for this

right and that's okay you're just not

balanced bilingual yet you're emergent

bilinguals but if that little boat

because it becomes a submarine and it

goes under the surface what do we

discover that it wasn't two icebergs

after all it was just

and it was interconnected with that

represents is that whatever I learned at

the cognitive level in my first language

I can transfer it to my second language

it's never a waste of time to learn in

your native tongue so if I learn that

two plus two equals four in English it's

not gonna be five in Spanish it's still

four or if Christopher Columbus came to

America in 1492 in English

he didn't come a year later in Spanish

just because he came late in Spanish no

15 minutes later right no he came at the

same time with the same people for the

same reasons so whatever I learned at

the cognitive level in my native

language will help me understand my

cognitive world in my second language

but then what happens to students that

are not allowed the opportunity to

develop cognitively in their first

language are they gonna have anything to

transfer not if they're not given those

five to seven years to learn to think in

their own language so then these

students sure they learn English just

fine they're in middle school in high

school speak in English but now they're

illiterate in two languages and every

time I say that my heart hurts because

those children came to us with a promise

of being bilingual and biliterate and

someone along the way sacrifice their

native cognitive development just for

them to learn English and I want to

think that everybody in this audience

agrees with this statement that

bilingualism is a gift

so then why in practice we treat it as a

curse I think it has to do with

historical trauma and maybe some of you

went through it maybe your parents so I

always try to be very delicate when I

talk about this topic decades ago in

America children would were punished

in the school for speaking their native

tongue so if one told Maria at recess

Maria pasame la pelota and somebody hurt

one one went to the principal's office

not only to get scolded but to get

paddled to get physically punished for

speaking the language his parents gave

him at birth what did we do to these

children now they became adults who

maybe subliminally they feel Spanish is

a second-class language because then

again an institution of power told

himself so what are we doing today do we

think that historical trauma doesn't

exist I have to tell you that just a

couple of years ago I visited a high

school and I saw the assistant principal

put him posters up on the wall so I went

and I walked to read the posters and

they said this is America

speak in English so as she was putting

the posters up I started taking the

posters down and she kept walking

putting them up and I kept walking

taking them down so then finally she

turns and she sees me and she's like

daddy you know what are you doing I

spent a lot of time and effort creating

this posters the students need to speak

English to be successful I could have

been irate and I could have told her

right there in her face that he was

strong but I didn't do that I just told

her okay mom I said let's talk let's go

sit down and talk because in my 18 years

of experience in education I have

learned that one thing that people need

to sit at the same table to have open

and honest conversations about language

otherwise we will not change anything so

that day she learned that those posters

were a violation of her students civil

rights she didn't know that but then

together we also learned that words can

be used as weapons of mass destruction

it is our choice to use them as weapons

of mass construction why because

language is tied to identity when we

tell a child do not use your native

language what is the message we're

sending we're telling him his identity

is not valuable that he has to become

somebody else that it doesn't matter if

they don't see their culture the

language surrounding them in schools

that in order to be successful they need

to sacrifice who they are who their

families wanted them to be and become

someone else and I have to tell you I

thought I was totally immune to this

historical trauma because after all I

was born and raised in Mexico so I was

very sure about my native language I

just needed to learn laying English as a

second language little did I know that

that historical trauma had penetrated

every fiber of my being I still remember

it like if it was yesterday when I

started my master's degree here in the

valley that first night it was probably

my second year in the u.s. so that first

night I remember going super anxious to

that classroom and I enter the classroom

and all I can hear is English English

English English English English English

that's all I could hear now I know

everybody was bilingual I didn't know

that because I was such in a state of

panic that I couldn't hear anything but

English English English English English

English English and I didn't speak

English fluently so I started feeling

like I was not worth it like I didn't

belong like I didn't have anything to

contribute to that classroom and as you

can see I'm not one to shy away from

speaking in public right but that day I

went and sat in the corner and I felt

for the first time ever the worst

feeling in my life

I felt like I was the dumbest person in

the room when in reality I knew I was

one of the smartest ones there

so then the professor walks in beautiful

blonde blue-eyed woman so I say to

forget it

[Laughter]

stereotyping you know it's also my thing

so then this beautiful professor asks

each one of us can you please introduce

yourselves ok so then it was my turn and

I said I'm Karina choppa from Monterrey

because I had learned to say Karina and

Monterey instead of Karina and Monterey

to avoid the look right so then she gets

all excited and she's like Monterey

California like me I'm like no no no no

no I'm from Monterrey Mexico so then for

a second she went oh and I'm like oh

right so then she's like even better

you're from Mexico I'm so happy you're

here with us we have so much to learn

from you I'm sure your Spanish is

beautiful I'm so happy a fall that

things you have to contribute to our

class halfway into that message I had

this face right but then I started

looking around and I'm like who is she

talking to

how can I be an asset if I don't even

speak English fluently I had learned to

believe that fallacy but that woman gave

me that night hope and knowledge the two

biggest weapons she was able to give me

to fight historical trauma and that is

the same hope and knowledge that I wish

every one of those 5 million students

receiving our American school systems to

feel empowered for who they are and not

who they will become one day I don't

understand why bilingualism is still one

of the biggest debates in a daily

educational system in America why is it

if even you're a scientist have

determined that bilingualism is good

that a bilingual brain is a stronger

brain that are bilingual brain has

better problem-solving skills skills

more creative

and more cognitive flexibility do you

want to try it you know what cognitive

flexibility is let's find out you're

gonna see some words on the screen and

as you see them you have to say em out

loud but you need to say about the color

of the words ready here we go all right

what is that black color of the word

here we go ah ah you learn that my

friends has cognitive flexibility and

what neuroscientists have found out is

that a bilingual brain is better and

faster at those kind of tasks why

because we're so used to seeing this

world from different perspectives the

Sun is not only the Sun the Sun is in

soil lhasa ale or in sign language we

have that cognitive flexibility and a

bilingual brain is not only a stronger

brain but a healthier brain a bilingual

brain can fight the onset of dementia

and Alzheimer's who wouldn't want that

for themselves for their own children

and let me tell you right now we have

one of the biggest opportunities in the

world the United States it's already the

second country with the most Spanish

speakers in the whole world just after

Mexico and guess what Spanish speakers

we multiply quickly and we don't travel

alone

so by 2050 we do by 2050 we will be

number one in the entire world the

United States of America will be the

country with the most Spanish speakers

in the world because in America so must

be linguists so we currently have the

opportunity to develop a whole new

generation of adults who are not only

bilingual but by literate bicultural by

choice because it is our choice to

continue educating children monolingual

or to give them the advantages of a

bilingual education because we cannot do

it alone we need everybody together

teachers administrators parents

community members business owners to sit

down at the same table and have those

open honest conversations about language

because I think we can agree on

something

education can definitely change the

world but bilingual education can

revolutionize this world

thank you yeah