Why is bilingualism important in the US?

According to the 2011 U.S. Census, 74 percent of those who spoke Spanish at home also spoke English “well or very well.” Bilingualism has been shown to have profound benefits such as creative thinking, cognitive flexibility, selective attention, improved memory, perseverance, multicultural perspectives, and …

Is English only spoken in America?

Although the United States does not have an official language, the most commonly used language is English (specifically, American English), which is the de facto national language, and the only one spoken at home by approximately 78% of the U.S. population….

How common is bilingualism in America?

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, only 20 percent of Americans can converse in two or more languages, compared with 56 percent of Europeans. Experts estimate about half of the human race is bilingual, at least. I have two children fluent in Spanish, learned in private schools and through study in Latin America.

Who are bilingual people in the United States?

Often in America such people are the children of immigrants; these children grow up speaking their parents’ native language in their childhood home while speaking English at school. Many bilinguals, however, are not immigrants; it is not uncommon for people born in the U.S. to speak English at school or work and another language at home.

Do you have to be exceptional to be bilingual?

As long as people are regularly speaking with the child in both languages, the child will acquire them both easily. A child doesn’t have to be exceptional or have any special language ability to become bilingual; as long as the child is exposed to two languages throughout early childhood, he or she will acquire them both.

Is the English language a danger to bilingualism?

Many adults today who speak only English can remember grandparents and great-grandparents who spoke very little English, who instead spoke mostly Polish, Italian, German, or Swedish – the language of the country they grew up in. In sum, bilingualism isn’t a danger either to the English language or to the bilingual speakers themselves.

When did people start to believe in bilingualism?

A pattern in the development of views of bilingualism is identified. From pre-colonial times to the late 1800s, there was generalized acceptance, perhaps even embracement, of bilingualism. From around 1880 until about 1920, English-only sentiments grew markedly.