Peer-reviewed article
Socioeconomic Status and Fine-Grained Literacy Outcomes in Heritage Bilingual and Monolingual Children With and Without Specific Learning Disorders.
Bonifacci P, Lombardo E, Porrelli M, Rapino A, Gallani A et al. ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This peer-reviewed study examined literacy outcomes and cognitive profiles in heritage bilingual and monolingual children, comparing those with specific learning disorders to typically developing peers. The research involved 454 primary school children assessed on literacy skills, working memory, processing speed, and other cognitive measures. Results showed that socioeconomic status was a stronger predictor of performance than language background, though socioeconomic status had a stronger influence in heritage bilingual children. Heritage bilingual children with learning disorders showed comparable profiles to monolingual children with learning disorders, except in nonword spelling tasks.
Key points
- Socioeconomic status primarily predicted performance on lexically demanding tasks and nonverbal IQ across all groups
- Language background influenced spelling tasks only after socioeconomic status was accounted for
- Heritage bilingual and monolingual children with specific learning disorders showed comparable cognitive and literacy profiles overall
- A specific disadvantage for heritage bilingual children emerged only in nonword spelling performance
- Greater heritage language maintenance was observed in typically developing heritage bilingual children compared to those with learning disorders
Limitations
This is a cross-sectional comparative study that does not evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention; it does not tell us what approaches might improve literacy outcomes for these populations or how outcomes change over time with specific supports.
Abstract
This study investigated the sociolinguistic background and the cognitive and literacy profiles of heritage bilingual (HB) children with specific learning disorders (SLD) in reading and spelling or typical development (TD) in comparison with their monolingual peers. About 454 primary school children were included and divided into four groups: HBs with SLD (n = 108) or TD (n = 70), and monolinguals with SLD (n = 106) or TD (n = 170). Children completed tasks assessing nonverbal IQ, working memory, processing speed, nonword repetition, listening comprehension, and literacy skills, including word, nonword, and text reading and spelling, and reading comprehension. Parents provided information on language history and socioeconomic status (SES). Results showed comparable sociolinguistic profiles across groups, with greater heritage language maintenance in the HB-TD group. SES primarily predicted performance on tasks with higher lexical demands and nonverbal IQ. Once SES was considered, language background only influenced spelling tasks. Interaction effects indicated a stronger influence of SES in HBs. At the phenotypic level, HBs and monolingual children with SLD showed comparable profiles, with an SLD-specific disadvantage for HBs emerging only in nonword spelling. These findings underscore the importance of SES in assessing HB children and promoting the home language in clinical populations.