My bilingual student mixes their languages, is this a sign of a disorder?

No. A student who mixes two languages in the same sentence, conversation, or day is doing something perfectly expected of a child learning more than one language. This behavior is called code-switching, and it does not, by itself, indicate a language disorder.

This is probably one of the most misinterpreted signals in the classroom. A teacher hears a student say "I want my toy" or slip an Arabic word into the middle of a French sentence, and the reflex is sometimes to worry. However, this mixing often reveals a competence, not a weakness.

Why do bilingual children mix their languages?

A multilingual child has a single cognitive system for managing multiple languages, not watertight compartments. They draw from the most accessible vocabulary when they need it, just as a bilingual adult can do without even realizing it. If the right word comes to them faster in one language than the other, they use it. It's efficient, not deficient.

This mixing can even become a full-fledged communication strategy for children who are more skilled in their different languages: they switch to clarify an idea, emphasize a word, or fill a temporary vocabulary gap in a given language.

Which language is dominant in a multilingual child?

The same student may understand three languages but only produce one with ease. The language they hear most is not necessarily the one they use most, and their dominant language can vary depending on the context: at home, at school, with peers, or in emotional moments.

The school language or the language of the majority environment is therefore not automatically the child's dominant language. To understand their profile, it is generally more useful to observe in which languages and under what conditions they communicate most easily than to try to identify a single language that is "better" than the others.

When should language mixing draw attention?

Language mixing becomes relevant information when combined with other observations, never when considered alone.

Some elements that warrant a second look include:

• difficulties present in the home language as well, not just in the school language;
• concerns reported by parents, independently of language mixing;
• a history of delayed first words or sentences;
• difficulty narrating a past event, even in the most proficient language;
• very reduced intelligibility in several contexts, beyond code-switching itself.

A child with a language disorder will generally have difficulties in all languages to which they are exposed, even if their manifestation and intensity may vary from one language to another. Conversely, a very different profile from one language to another may point more towards differences related to exposure and linguistic experience than to a language disorder (Bedore and Peña, 2008; Kohnert, 2010).

What to do in class when a student mixes their languages?

Language mixing does not necessarily need to be corrected. Instead, it can be welcomed as an attempt at communication, and then serve as a starting point for providing a model in the school language.

Some strategies that can be used include:

• accepting the answer in the language used, without presenting it as an error;
• then providing the expected word or structure in the school language, aloud, without requiring immediate repetition;
• allowing the student to think or discuss a concept in their strongest language before rephrasing it;
• documenting the context in which the switching occurs rather than relying on a general impression.

This latter observation can be particularly useful in team meetings.

• "He mixes his languages" provides little information on its own.
• "He uses an English word when he lacks school vocabulary, then corrects himself after hearing a model" provides a much more precise picture of what is happening.

Is language mixing a sign of a language disorder?

By itself, no. Code-switching is part of the normal functioning of many bilingual and multilingual individuals.

It is rather the difficulties that accompany this mixing that should be observed: their presence in several languages, their persistence in different contexts, family observations, and how the student responds to the support offered.

Frequently Asked Questions

Should a bilingual child always answer only in French at school?

Not necessarily. The occasional use of another language can allow the student to maintain communication, access a concept, or temporarily compensate for a word they are missing in French. A model in the school language can then be offered without necessarily presenting the use of the other language as an error.

Does mixing two languages mean the child is confused?

No. Switching between languages does not mean the child is confused. Rather, it can reflect how they mobilize all their linguistic resources to communicate according to the context, their interlocutor, and the vocabulary available at that moment.

To learn more.

The guide Multilingual Students in the Classroom explains how to document a student's linguistic repertoire and distinguish between an exposure profile and a concerning signal, with ready-to-fill worksheets for the school team.

References

Bedore, L. M., & Peña, E. D. (2008). Assessment of bilingual children for identification of language impairment: Current findings and implications for practice. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 11(1), 1-29. https://doi.org/10.2167/beb392.0

Kohnert, K. (2010). Bilingual children with primary language impairment: Issues, evidence and implications for clinical actions. Journal of Communication Disorders, 43(6), 456-473. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcomdis.2010.02.002