Assessing Bilingual Children in Context

An Integrated Approach
Erscheinungsjahr 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4338-1565-2
Verlag: American Psychological Association (APA)

Buch, Englisch, 312 Seiten, Hardback, Format (B × H): 186 mm x 262 mm, Gewicht: 757 g

Reihe: School Psychology Series

Bilingual children are often referred for assessment to determine if educational or mental health supports are necessary for academic, social-emotional, or personal success. However, practitioners unfamiliar with the complex factors affecting second language acquisition run the risk of misinterpreting assessment data. For example, assessments that purport to examine a student's cognitive or academic abilities may instead measure language proficiency or the effects of immigration or poverty.

This book explores the interplay between factors impacting English language learners and considers implications for assessment. It advocates for an integrated assessment of bilingual children that considers multiple influences, such as previous education, immigration, acculturation, poverty, trauma, and even structural differences between the child's first and second languages.

In line with advances in science, several chapters explore the brain-based relationships between personal experience and language learning. All chapters provide case examples of bilingual children, as well as practical checklists of factors to consider in assessing such children.

In today's multicultural society, professionals working with bilingual children must consider each child's context before determining his or her needs. This book equips such professionals with the tools necessary for an integrated assessment.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Clinton, Amanda

Über Autor(innen)

Amanda B. Clinton, PhD, is an associate professor of psychology at the University of Puerto Rico, USA where her work focuses on neuropsychology, dual language learning, and social-emotional skill development within a cultural framework. She earned her MEd at the University of Washington, USA and her PhD at the University of Georgia, USA. She is a credentialled school psychologist and a licensed psychologist. As a Fulbright Scholar in Medellín, Colombia, Dr. Clinton researched relationships between language structure and reading acquisition processes. Dr. Clinton has worked with second language learners from regions of the world, including Central and South America as well as the United States and has published and presented this work nationally and internationally.