A new study done at Harvard University concluded that adopted preschoolers acquire their new second language in much the same way that infants learn their first one.

Dr. Jesse Snedeker and her colleagues followed children from China adopted by American families. The children were ages 2.5 years to 6 years. The researchers found that the adopted children went through the same stages of learning their new languages as infants. However, the adopted preschoolers went through the stages more quickly, which may mean that they will eventually catch up to their peer groups.

Internationally adopted children face a unique challenge in that they begin learning one language first, and then they move to new homes where they have to acquire new languages without any help from bilingual teachers.

This study appears in the January 2007 issue of Psychological Science.

Labels: education, international, research