We are not the only ones in the world, it is important for us to have the sense of the global community and to know more and respect different diverse languages and cultures. Not only do you learn the grammar of a language, but also its culture behind. Through appreciating literature works of different languages, children will be able to immerse themselves into different cultures and traditions. Researchers have even suggested that bilingual students tend to understand better in their mother tongue. Although it is true that it is never “too late” for people to learn new foreign languages, many studies have shown that children usually have higher leaning ability, especially in languages than adults.
Third culture kids: the relationship between TCK identity and TCK educational needs. Available at: http://skemman.is/stream/get/1946/14058/33354/1/ThirdCultureKids-BA.pdf [Accessed: 14th Feb 2014 Freeman, L. (2014). Interview on Third Culture Kids. Gillies, W. D. 1998. Children Third on the Move Culture Kids.
During the early years, children go through crucial development stages, and continuous, quality early childhood education can have a lasting, valuable effect on the overall development of children. High-quality early childhood development programs that offer developmentally adequate curricula, allow children to formulate specified cognitive skills at the suitable age. Developmentally adequate curricula assist in the development of cognitive skills which help them acquire new skills and knowledge. Preschool provides children the opportunities to take part in activities they wouldn’t typically do at home such as arts and crafts, science activities, sand and water play and music and movement. These activities can enhance children's’ lives, increase their development and supply them with the tools they need for the future.
Jonsson, B., & von Hofsten, C. (2003). Infants’ ability to track and reach for temporary occluded objects. Developmental Science, 6(1), 86-99. Siegler, R., & Alibali, M. (2005). Children’s Thinking Fourth Edition.
“Promoting Oral Language Skills in Preschool Children through Sociodramatic Play in the Classroom.” International Journal of Education and Literacy Studies, vol. 4, no. 1, Jan. 2016. CrossRef, doi:10.7575/aiac.ijels.v.4n.1p.15. Roskos, Kathleen A., and James F. Christie.
Living in a diverse community has made daily life an interesting experience by constantly adapting to new cultures and languages. The individuals who have acquired an additional language, other than their native language, are known as bilinguals. With the number of bilinguals increasing year after year, individuals are left to question the importance of bilingual education. Bilingual education is the method of teaching using two languages to give a student a concrete understanding of the material. Bilingual education has become a controversial topic where some feel like bilingual education is of great importance and others strongly disagree.
), Educating second language children (pp. 159-182). New York: Cambridge University Press. Toman, W. (1993). Family constellation.
Over the past decades our world has become more interdependent and new technologies have allowed us to work in close contacts with people all over the world. As relationships with countries grow, so does the need to speak a foreign language. We have an enhanced need for an enlightened citizenship that is both culturally and linguistically prepared to function in today’s world. In addition, a foreign language expands ones world view and limits the barriers between people. It’s the perfect way to meet new people and discover new cultures.
(2001) Babies and young Children, 2nd edition, Nelson Thornes, Cheltenham. Cooke, J. & Williams, D (1985) Working with children’s language, Winslow press. Green, S. (2002) BTEC National Early Years, Nelson Thornes, Cheltenham. Gross, R. (2001) The Science of Mind and Behaviour, 4th edition, Hodder & Stoughton, London.
Cross-Culture Children Cross-Culture Kids are more typically defined as: “A person who has spent a significant part of his or her developmental years outside the parents’ culture . . .. [He/she] builds relationships to all of the cultures, while not having full ownership in any. Although elements from each culture may be assimilated into [his/her] life experience, the sense of belonging is in relationship to others of similar background” (Moore & Barker, 2011, p. 553). In knowing this, it can be said that childhood experiences are important for consolidating identity development and culture membership.