Kaja researches the cognitive advantages of bilingualism in children. Children exposed to two languages from birth often outperform monolingual peers in tasks involving phonological awareness, a crucial skill for reading and literacy. Kaja explains that bilingual babies retain neural sensitivity to speech sounds from both languages, which means their brains activate more in key phonological regions compared to monolinguals. This advantage supports language learning and overall cognitive development. Kaja debunks the myth that bilingualism causes confusion, emphasising that language mixing is a normal part of bilingual communication.
Listen to Kaja
“In some of our research, we found that school children who are learning two languages from birth outperform monolingual children on tasks that measures a child’s awareness of an ability to manipulate the sounds of language, a very important precursor to reading.”
Kaja Jasińska
Kaja Jasińska
Kaja Jasińska (PhD) studies the neural systems supporting language, cognitive development and learning, using a combination of behavioural, genetic, and neuroimaging research methods. Her research aims to understand how early life experiences (including bilingual/multilingual language experience) shape neurocognitive development and learning, with a focus on understanding development in environments with poverty-related risk, including rural communities in West Africa and recently resettled refugee children in Canada.
Kaja Jasińska
