The Impact of Early Bilingual Education on English Language Acquisition During the critical Period in Pakistan

Abstract

This paper examines how early bilingual education can affect acquisition of English language within the critical period of language acquisition in Pakistan. The study is based on the Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH) and focuses on identifying the impact of timing, the quality of the input, and models of instruction on the proficiency of learners in English. A convergent mixed-methods design was used to gather data on 200 primary school students, and teachers and parents in both public and private (Punjab and Sindh) schools. Quantitative results showed that students who received bilingual instruction during their early years, at age five or younger, scored significantly higher in vocabulary, grammar, reading understanding, and oral fluency than their peers did, and the age of exposure and socioeconomic status became powerful predictors of proficiency. Qualitative data was used to identify helpful classroom practices including translanguaging, code-switching and culturally relevant pedagogy, which facilitated involvement and self-confidence. Parents typically viewed bilingual education as the bridge to social and academic improvement, and students reported increased motivation and every-day English use. The issue of neglecting the Urdu and the regional languages, however, highlighted the necessity of implementing balanced policies. The paper concludes that early bilingualism can support English acquisition without necessarily hurting the local languages provided that it is supplemented by well trained educators, equal resources, and culturally sensitive curriculum. Suggestions are made to the policymakers, teachers and parents to develop sustainable bilingual models that will enhance the power of English speaking yet retain the linguistic diversity of Pakistan.

Keywords: Early bilingual education; Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH); English acquisition; translanguaging; language policy; Pakistan; multilingualism; sociocultural context