Author Question: A mother is reluctant to join her husband overseas on his three-year job assignment because she ... (Read 55 times)

torybrooks · **on:** Jun 22, 2018

A mother is reluctant to join her husband overseas on his three-year job assignment because she fears that their one-year-old child will suffer linguistically and mentally by hearing a foreign language spoken at that age. Comment on her concerns.

What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

A woman over 35 has already borne a child with Down syndrome. She becomes pregnant again and immediately visits a genetic counselor for advice. If the woman wishes to abort the baby as soon as possible if the child has Down syndrome, the genetic counselor will suggest

a. amniocentesis.
b. ultrasound.
c. germline gene therapy as a prenatal treatment.
d. chorionic villus sampling.

katara · **Reply #1 on:** Jun 22, 2018

Answer to Question 1

The mother's fears are unwarranted; in fact, the child will benefit immensely from hearing another language while growing up. In the past, many parents shared this concern about bilingualism, that the child would suffer or would learn English more slowly. Those concerns are unfounded. Bilingual children who were exposed to the second language early, before age three, often become fluent in both languages. They also gain benefits in understanding the symbolic nature of words and in attending to particular features of language. Furthermore, they gain advantages in becoming sensitive to others' problems in understanding. Differences between monolinguals and bilinguals all favor bilinguals.

Answer to Question 2

D