Project MehrHarmonie (MoreHarmony)

Here you can find more information about the research and advice centre (in German).

From May 24^th to May 25^th 2018, HaBilNet, together with Lourdes Ortega from Georgetown University, welcomed 71 scholars from 17 different countries for a colloquium. The occasion for HaBilNet1, the first HaBilNet Colloquium, was the upcoming publication of the Cambridge Handbook of Bilingualism (more on that later!) and the international launch of the Harmonious Bilingualism Network (the research and advisory centre for multilingualism and harmonious bilingual development).The experimental format programme consisted of five panels and two poster sessions. Individual mentoring sessions were also offered where younger scholars could discuss and review their research with an experienced scholar.

Many believe that it is essential that in multilingual families each person speaks only one language to the children. However, research by Prof. De Houwer shows that this "une personne, une langue" strategy (1P/1L) does not work better than the strategy whereby both parents speak two languages with the children. In his blog, Prof. François Grosjean also casts his critical eye on the 1P/1L strategy.

There is often a debate about which language(s) families should use at home. In this debate, little attention is paid to the role of home language in children's language acquisition. With the active participation of the Chair of Language Acquisition and Multilingualism, many linguists and developmental psychologists have commented on this. On the same topic, you can watch a video of an interview with Prof. De Houwer recorded by the Bavarian State Institute for Special Needs Education IFP here (in German). In addition, you can find a chapter by Prof. De Houwer in German here where you can learn more about the topic (De Houwer, A. 2015. Integration und Interkulturalität in Kindertagesstätten und in Kindergärten: Die Rolle der Nichtumgebungssprache für das Wohlbefinden von Kleinkindern. In F. Becker-Stoll, C. Kieferle, E. Reichert-Garschhammer & M. Wertfein (eds.), Inclusion and Participation. Diversity as opportunity and aspiration. Göttingen, Germany: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht).

(Kopie 5)

Here you can find a finden Sie an information brochure on early bilingualism (in German).