PUB - Publikationen an der Universität Bielefeld

Learning English is very popular in Taiwan. This is evident by the increasing number of English cram schools for children and adults in Taiwan. The market for English learning and teaching is so vast that many kindergartens in Taiwan offer English classes, too. The purpose of this study is to investigate the situation of English learning and teaching in Kaohsiung's kindergartens. Since kindergarten children are very young, age is an important concern. There have been innumerable studies on age differences in second language learning, and the conclusions of the studies were inconsistent. Some studies show that older learners are superior, others suggest younger. In the first part of my thesis I take a look at the different theories and studies trying to answer the following questions: Are the ages between 3 and 6 (the ages of kindergarten children) suitable ages for foreign language learning? What advantages may children benefit from when they learn English in early childhood?