Bilingual children with speech and language difficulties are an under-researched
group. The present paper intends to map out the field and contextualize findings
from four years of research into a group of bilingual children attending primary age
language units across England. Differences between the bilingual group and their
monolingual peers are summarized, and underlying themes and issues in the research
are explored. These include the identification and assessment of bilingual children
with specific language impairments (SLI), parental involvement in the educational
process, knowledge, attitudes and awareness of teaching staff and availability of
provision in schools for bilingual children.
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