It is increasingly common for parents to decide to raise their children in a language that is neither their native tongue nor the language of the society in which they live. For example, in Spain it is increasingly common to hear Spanish parents speaking to their children in English in the park or after school. Often, these are parents who have achieved an advanced level of English after many years of effort and who intend to spare their children that “suffering” or open the doors to an international cultural world for them

This phenomenon, known as “non-native bilingualism” or “language immersion at home,” is neither new nor unique to Spain. The first cases date back to the 1960s, and the practice has been documented in more than 14 countries , including Slovakia, Spain, Turkey, Poland, and Korea.

The forerunners of the phenomenon

The first documented case of home language immersion dates back to 1965 in the former Yugoslavia. For seven years, linguist N.R. Dimitrijević (a native Serb) spoke to his son only in English and analyzed the child’s language development in Serbian (the language of the environment) and in English.

The practice had no negative impact on the child’s level of Serbian. However, this author did observe that his son understood English better than he spoke it, and that his level in this language gradually declined as his social environment, especially his school friends, became more prominent. This solidified Serbian as his dominant language

In 1970s Australia, a German teacher named George Saunders raised his three children in German (despite being a native English speaker) and analyzed their language development over 12 years using videos and proficiency tests. In this case, the children achieved a high level of proficiency in both languages, comparable to that of other bilingual children of native-speaking parents. This author compiled his experience in two recommended textbooks.

Following these two pioneering cases, academic interest in this family language policy steadily increased, intensifying in the last decade. In a recent project , we have conducted a systematic review of the research, analyzing the 46 studies and 13 textbooks that have addressed home language immersion to date. These results can be organized around the three main agents involved: parents, children, and the social environment.

Parents: Fears and Strategies

Recurring fears of parents when making this decision are that they will pass on linguistic errors that their children will inherit (since it is not their native language) or that they will cause a language delay in their children by confusing them with two languages. This is not new: in the first decades of the 20th century, family bilingualism was considered an ill-advised practice and even detrimental to the linguistic and intellectual development of children, even in families where the parents had different native languages ​​(for example, a Chinese mother and a French father).

By the end of the century, however, it had already been shown that bilingualism is not detrimental to children’s development, and recently even that it can be just as beneficial as other intellectual stimuli , such as music. That said, parents who choose this practice should consider whether they will feel comfortable in all the scenarios that parenting involves, ranging from managing a tantrum and singing a nursery rhyme to addressing complex topics such as politics and religion. These parents may never have faced these contexts, but they will be able to acquire the necessary vocabulary through videos, books, or by consulting friends.

In any case, minor linguistic errors should not be a concern, since children will hear English from many more sources that will neutralize that transmission (films, stories, songs, other speakers, etc.).

Another decision is the specific family language policy . Will one or both parents speak the foreign language, or will they only do so in certain places or routines? In this regard, it’s important to clarify that the general guideline is that for a child to be bilingual, they must hear the minority language for at least 25% of their waking hours .

On the other hand, will more monolingual techniques be used (such as pretending not to understand Spanish if their child speaks to them in that language) or more bilingual ones (such as continuing in English, as if nothing were wrong)? In principle, the former are more successful in children’s language development, although the children’s well-being and the harmony of the home must always be taken into account. That is to say: if using a stricter strategy causes stress or frustration in the child, it will be advisable to use a more flexible one.

Finally, external support resources will be very important, encouraging children to be exposed to other written and auditory sources in the foreign language, in addition to their parents: books or stories in English, television series or cartoons, songs, private tutors, or even family trips abroad.

Children: Their Language Development in Both Languages

Most studies conclude that the language development of bilingual children through home immersion is comparable to that of other bilingual or monolingual children. In early stages, phenomena such as language interference occur (for example, the use of similar words in English and Spanish or structures that are copied from one language to the other). However, children soon gain control of this valuable resource of language transfer

In all the studies, however, the same pattern is described: the language of the environment usually ends up becoming dominant. Thus, English, in the case of a Spanish context, tends to occupy a subordinate position. Children show a greater capacity to understand it than to speak it, due to the limited opportunities to come into contact with this language compared to Spanish. This imbalance is accentuated when they enter school and begin to socialize with other children and adults in Spanish. For this reason, the safest bet would be for both parents to speak the foreign language at home, a strategy known as “minority language at home.”

Finally, few studies focus on children’s feelings. Although the experience is usually positive, in some cases a certain rejection or resistance to the use of English at home is mentioned, especially when children start school. It is then that they begin to be more aware of their linguistic reality and realize that their parents know how to speak the language spoken at school and by their friends. Sometimes, these difficulties even lead families to abandon the practice of language immersion at home.

Society: the impact of the environment

Society plays a fairly significant role in this type of bilingualism. Often, people in the surrounding environment do not understand why a family would give up using their mother tongue

Issues such as identity or the transmission of emotions, often closely linked to the mother tongue, come into play in these types of debates, although none of the 59 studies identifies the problem of a lack of affection. Moreover, in contrast to home language immersion in non-native but widely spoken languages ​​(such as English), there are documented cases of families who have raised their children in Esperanto, an artificial or planned language.

In contrast, there are families that do receive social support that reinforces the practice of home language immersion. In these cases, family harmony is not affected, and efforts can be concentrated on language transmission.

Where are we headed?

Is all this effort worthwhile? Do children learn a second language better if home language immersion is used? The testimonies of the parents studied indicate that they do. Even those who abandon the practice state that it has been a very enriching experience that they do not regret

However, few authors conduct linguistic assessments of children’s level, and reliance is placed on parental perception. Therefore, if you have implemented language immersion at home or know someone who has, we invite you to participate in our research . We want to analyze which factors are key to proper development and which strategies are most effective. Your collaboration is essential.

Author Bios: Irene Gassín Mondaca is Professor of Bilingual Education in the Master’s Program in Teacher Training and Adrián Granados Navarro is Professor of Applied Linguistics both at Pablo de Olavide University