How learning a new language helps brain development (2024)

FAQs

How learning a new language helps brain development? ›

Even if you've been out of school for a while, training yourself in a new language can improve your working memory, mental focus, and flexibility. Language learning also has the added benefit of strengthening executive function, promoting cultural awareness and empathy, and lessening the chance of cognitive decline.

Studies show that learning a language increases the volume and density of gray matter, the volume of white matter, and brain connectivity. In older language learners, some studies show cognitive benefits beyond languages, such as for working memory.

Language acquisition is one of the most fundamental human traits, and it is obviously the brain that undergoes the developmental changes. During the years of language acquisition, the brain not only stores linguistic information but also adapts to the grammatical regularities of language.

The authors explain that this is is likely because speaking two languages helps develop the medial temporal lobes of the brain, which play a key role in forming new memories, and it increases both cortical thickness and the density of gray matter, which is largely made of neurons.

Helps develop critical thinking and problem solving skills Learning a language enables children to analyse information and solve problems better as they can select relevant information and ignore irrelevant or misleading information. They become more rational and objective decision makers.

Exposure to languages improves empathy

When children learn a new language, they are introduced to customs and values belonging to a different society. This encourages them to think from a new point of view, improving cultural sensitivity.

When it comes to learning a language, the left side of the brain has traditionally been considered the hub of language processing. But new research shows the right brain plays a critical early role in helping learners identify the basic sounds associated with a language.

Language learning is crucial for a child's developmental trajectory. Language skills enable a child to communicate with others in his or her environment, which encourages the development of cognitive skills and promotes socio-emotional regulation through social interactions.

According to research, thought comes before language. A child is born with the ability to think about objects before they learn language. Although thought comes first, the language an individual speaks influences their mind and ability to interact with the world around them.

Several studies have suggested that there is a correlation between learning a language and higher cognitive abilities. For example, a study published in the Journal of Memory and Language found that bilingual children performed better on tests of executive function than monolingual children.

How does language influence the mind? ›

There are so many more examples of how language influences perception, like with regard to gender and describing events. But the bottom line is the same: languages don't limit our ability to perceive the world or to think about the world, rather, they focus our attention, and thought on specific aspects of the world.

1. Exercise regularly. Exercise has many known benefits, and regular physical activity also benefits the brain. Multiple research studies show that physical active people are less likely to experience a decline in their mental function and have a lower risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

Learning a second language has numerous benefits, such as improving cognitive abilities, enhancing communication skills, broadening career opportunities, facilitating travel and cultural exchange, and even delaying the onset of age-related mental decline.

Language is a vital part of human connection. Although all species have their ways of communicating, humans are the only ones that have mastered cognitive language communication. Language allows us to share our ideas, thoughts, and feelings with others. It has the power to build societies, but also tear them down.

Language learning alleviates symptoms of depression.

This is because learning a new language opens opportunities for connecting with new people, new cultures and new places, therefore inspiring feelings of hope, love and liberation as you begin to find fresh ways to view the world and enrich your life.

According to that research, the multilingual brain functions very differently from the “standard” monolingual brain when it comes to memory, decision-making, creativity, ageing and more.

During the process of learning more than one language, your brain gets better at managing internal conflict and making decisions, particularly if you start learning young. Some studies even show that bilingual people are better multitaskers!

Research has found that babies raised in bilingual households show better self-control,8 a key indicator of school success. Bilingual and biliterate individuals have the opportunity to participate in the global community in more ways, get information from more places, and learn more about people from other cultures.