HD 2350

Multilingualism and Multiculturalism in Early Childhood

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2021-2022.

Children who grow up in multilingual environments have a profoundly different experience compared to monolingual children. In this course, we examine the nature and impact of this experience on the socio-emotional, cognitive, and linguistic development of young children, focusing on the complex multilingual and multicultural reality in Israel as our main case study. Specifically, we explore the multilingual development of children from several minority and immigrant groups in Israel: Arabs, Former Soviet Union (FSU) and Ethiopian immigrants, Israeli-born children of labor migrants, deaf communities, among others.

When Offered Fall, Summer.

• Discuss the substance and validity of theories and empirical studies on first and second language acquisition.
• Discern and describe different developmental factors (i.e., linguistic, cognitive, and socio-emotional) that are affected by children's multilingual experience.
• Apply knowledge gained in objectives #1 & #2 to analyze and critique current developmental studies on the multilingual and multicultural experience of young children and adolescents in Israel.

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