All Shades of Every Color: An Overview of Early Teaching and Learning of Foreign Languages

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ALL SHADES OF EVERY COLOR: AN OVERVIEW OF EARLY TEACHING AND LEARNING OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES

In recent years, there has been an unprecedented increase not only in the number of young learners (YLs) and their teachers, but also in the quantity of language policy documents, teachers' handbooks, teaching materials, and empirical studies devoted to the topic of early foreign language learning. In addition, several conferences1 have been held on YLs and their teachers, and a number of surveys have either been published (e.g., Edelenbos, Johnstone, & Kubanek, 2007; Nikolov & Mihaljevic Djigunovic, 2006; Rhodes & Pufahl, 2008) or are in progress. Furthermore, several handbooks for teachers have been produced (e.g., Curtain & Dahlberg, 2010; Hood & Tobutt, 2009; Pinter, 2006a; Szpotowicz & Szulc-Kurpaska, 2009), as have a number of volumes on empirical research (e.g., Enever, Moon, & Raman, 2009; Kawahara, 2008; Muñoz, 2006; Nikolov, 2009a, 2009b; Nikolov, Mihaljevic Djigunovic, Mattheoudakis, Lundberg, & Flanagan, 2007; Peng & Zhu, 2010). Finally, the variety of studies in refereed journals is also remarkable.

The aim of this paper is to show the most important trends by critically reviewing recent publications and projects in progress. As will be shown, although the most frequently researched target language (L2) is English, other target languages have also been researched. Interestingly, in some studies, bilingual children are exposed to a third language, thus providing a new perspective.

Early language learning and teaching has become one of the key areas in applied linguistics and language pedagogy characterized by multiple research methods (Nikolov, 2009c). Studies have moved away from a narrow focus on language gains or other discrete aspects of second language acquisition; many current inquiries involve various stakeholders and apply mixed methods thus documenting the complexity of issues far beyond the-earlier-the-better standpoint. Therefore, it is difficult to discuss studies under single headings. Another important point concerns where studies are conducted. Most importantly, Asian countries have moved to the foreground, and research has increased in English speaking countries as well.

POLICY DOCUMENTS AND EARLY FOREIGN LANGUAGE PROGRAMS

Language Policy Documents

Many language policy documents explicitly state the advantages of early language learning. The Commission of the European Communities (2003) defined them in a broad sense (e.g., better L1 skills, and...