Assessing Bilingual Children in Context

Children who are learning a second language and are referred for psychological assessment frequently present with unique personal backgrounds. They may have relocated from a Syrian refugee camp, immigrated from Mexico to escape poverty, or grown up navigating two languages spoken by biracial parents. Their individual histories can have long-term effects on learning, behavior, and social-emotional development.

This book was written to inform clinicians and educators working with youth who demonstrate variability in knowledge and fluency in either one or both of their two languages. It explores the influence of experiences like poverty and immigration on the biological processes of second-language acquisition, looks at the effects of cross-language transfer, discusses international and multicultural complexities critical to understanding the bilingual child, and examines the biological and neurological bases of second-language acquisition.

The authors expertly synthesize this material, offering a set of guidelines for assessment. In addition to case studies that illustrate the application of the principles discussed, they provide concise graphic tools, such as checklists and charts, to provide readers with a succinct point of reference.

This is not a book about tests. Rather, it is a book about children and the complexity of evaluating their functioning when they are acquiring a second language, written for the professionals who wish to help by gaining a complete understanding of the contexts that shape them.