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Predicting ethnic minority children's vocabulary from socioeconomic status, maternal language and home reading input: different pathways for host and ethnic language*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 September 2013

MARIËLLE J. L. PREVOO ,
MAIKE MALDA ,
JUDI MESMAN ,
ROSANNEKE A. G. EMMEN ,
NIHAL YENIAD ,
MARINUS H. VAN IJZENDOORN  and
MARIËLLE LINTING
MARIËLLE J. L. PREVOO
Affiliation:
Leiden University, Netherlands
MAIKE MALDA
Affiliation:
Leiden University, Netherlands
JUDI MESMAN*
Affiliation:
Leiden University, Netherlands
ROSANNEKE A. G. EMMEN
Affiliation:
Leiden University, Netherlands
NIHAL YENIAD
Affiliation:
Leiden University, Netherlands
MARINUS H. VAN IJZENDOORN
Affiliation:
Leiden University, Netherlands
MARIËLLE LINTING
Affiliation:
Leiden University, Netherlands
*
Address for correspondence: Judi Mesman, Leiden University – Centre for Child and Family Studies, Wassenaarseweg 52 Leiden 2333 AK, Netherlands. e-mail: mesmanj@fsw.leidenuniv.nl
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Abstract

When bilingual children enter formal reading education, host language proficiency becomes increasingly important. This study investigated the relation between socioeconomic status (SES), maternal language use, reading input, and vocabulary in a sample of 111 six-year-old children of first- and second-generation Turkish immigrant parents in the Netherlands. Mothers reported on their language use with the child, frequency of reading by both parents, and availability of children's books in the ethnic and the host language. Children's Dutch and Turkish vocabulary were tested during a home visit. SES was related to maternal language use and to host language reading input. Reading input mediated the relation between SES and host language vocabulary and between maternal language use and host language vocabulary, whereas only maternal language use was related to ethnic language vocabulary. During transition to formal reading education, one should be aware that children from low-SES families receive less host language reading input.

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Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Child Language , Volume 41 , Issue 5 , September 2014 , pp. 963 - 984
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2013 

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Footnotes

[*]

Financial support from NORFACE (New Opportunities for Research Funding Agency Co-operation in Europe) research programme on Migration in Europe – Social, Economic, Cultural, and Policy Dynamics (Grant # NORFACE-292), and from Sardes Educational Services is acknowledged. We thank all parents, children, teachers, and school principals who participated in our study as well as all students who assisted in various phases of the ‘Social Integration of Migrant Children: Unravelling factors promoting Resilience’ (SIMCUR) project.

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