The acquisition of cardinality in monolingual and bilingual children

The study investigates how monolingual and bilingual children develop the ability to learn abstract counting principles - a central element of their cognitive development.

For this study, we are specifically interested in the counting principle of ‘cardinality’, where children learn that the final number value in a group or array of items is the total number. The results will shed light on how children learn to count and will provide the basis for further studies that will explore the effect of bilingualism on the other counting principles.

Participating children will complete three short tasks, comprising of: (a) an iPad game to assess working memory which is a cognitive skill known to be associated with numeracy and bilingualism; (b) a task called Give-a-Number to assess recognition of the cardinality principle of counting; (c) a task called the Successor Task to assess the extent of cardinality understanding. You and your child are free to withdraw participation at any time during the study without prejudice. All information regarding you and your child will be treated with the strictest confidentiality.

This study is designed to probe how children learn the ‘how-to-count’ principles while being fun for our participants (in fact many parents are surprised by what their children show they are capable of). Participation in this study takes place in one 30-minute session at the Early Cognitive Development Centre at UQ - St Lucia campus. You won’t be separated from your child during your visit, and each child will receive a certificate and small gift for participating.

Eligibility

Monolingual and bilingual 2.5- to 5-year-olds.

Participant benefits

Each child will receive a certificate and small gift for participating.

Register your interest

This study has been approved by The University of Queensland Human Research Ethics Committee [Approval No. 2020002468]