Abstract ▼ AI-Helper

Having two children per house in Korea has been common since the late 80s. It's certain that the relationship between brothers and sisters, and the sex and birth order of siblings have much influence on their sociability and learning competence. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relati...

Having two children per house in Korea has been common since the late 80s. It's certain that the relationship between brothers and sisters, and the sex and birth order of siblings have much influence on their sociability and learning competence. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between children's sociability and English acquisition depending on the sex and birth order of siblings. To assess children's English language proficiency, 8 groups of children were divided into groups of sisters and brothers, and of first-born and second-born children. They were measured in four subskills of sociability (cooperation, self-orientation, self-regulation, adaptation of personal relations) and three communicative skills (speaking, listening, vocabulary) by using non-traditional informal testing techniques. The major findings from the interviews and tests were as follows: 1) In regard to the sex, girls were better learners. They showed higher sociability, especially in cooperation and adaptation of personal relations 2) Concerning birth order of siblings, second born children were better in English acquisition 3) The most crucial factors influencing children's difference in English acquisition were parents' attitudes towards their children. As more encouragement and praise are given to children, the sociability and English acquisition get higher 4) The sociability of children was in direct proportion to the English acquisition.

Keyword