IELTS Reading Practice: The Bilingual Brain
IELTS · ReadingA passage on speaking two languages and the mind, with True / False / Not Given questions.
1Read the text
A large share of the world’s population uses more than one language in daily life. For many years, researchers worried that growing up with two languages might confuse children and delay their development. This view has now largely been abandoned. Studies show that bilingual children reach the main language milestones at broadly similar ages to those who speak one language, although their vocabulary in each language may be smaller at first.
Some researchers claim that bilingualism gives the brain extra practice in managing attention. A bilingual speaker must constantly choose one language and ignore the other, and this may strengthen the mental skills used to switch between tasks. A number of experiments have reported small advantages for bilingual people on such tasks. However, other teams have failed to repeat these results, and the question remains open.
The evidence on ageing is also debated. Some studies suggest that speaking two languages for many years may delay the appearance of memory problems by a few years. Critics point out that bilingual people often differ from others in education and background, which could explain the results. Large, carefully designed studies are needed to separate these factors.
What is clear is that bilingualism brings practical and social benefits. Speakers can communicate with more people, read more material and work in more places. Teachers have also found that children who are encouraged to keep their home language usually do not do worse at school in the majority language.
2True, false or not given Tap an answer. You see why straight away.
1. Researchers once feared that two languages might confuse young children.
2. Bilingual children reach language milestones at very different ages from other children.
3. Some experiments have reported small advantages for bilingual people on certain mental tasks.
4. Every research team has confirmed the mental advantage of bilingualism.
5. Bilingual adults earn higher salaries than adults who speak one language.
6. Children who speak two languages learn to read earlier than other children.
Done. Your first lesson is on its way.
Answer key — IELTS Reading Practice: The Bilingual Brain
- TRUE — The passage says researchers "worried that growing up with two languages might confuse children."
- FALSE — The passage says they reach milestones at "broadly similar ages."
- TRUE — The passage says experiments "reported small advantages for bilingual people" on tasks that involve switching.
- FALSE — The passage says other teams "failed to repeat these results."
- NOT GIVEN — The passage does not mention pay.
- NOT GIVEN — The passage does not say when bilingual children learn to read.