Automatic Advantage? Metalinguistic Awareness in Bilingual Education
Abstract
This article analyzes metalinguistic awareness (MA) in university students undergoing bilingual processes, using the THAM-3 instrument in Spanish (L1) and French (L2). Rather than assuming bilingualism as a sufficient condition for developing this ability, the study examines its manifestation across three dimensions: metasemantic, metasyntactic, and metapragmatic. Results show higher metalinguistic performance in Spanish (L1), particularly in tasks involving grammatical justification and the analysis of linguistic instances. However, partial transfer to French (L2) is also observed, especially in semantic and poetic tasks. These findings challenge the notion of an automatic cognitive advantage in bilinguals and highlight the need to foster educational environments that promote conscious and comparative reflection on language at different levels of analysis.
References
Andrews, S. (1999). Why Do L2 Teachers Need to Know About Language? Teacher Metalinguistic Awareness and Input for Learning. Language Awareness, 8(3-4), 124-141. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500789908666766 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09500789908666766
Antoniou, M. (2019). The Advantages of Bilingualism Debate. Annual Review of Linguistics, 5(1), 395-415. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-linguistics-011718-011820 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-linguistics-011718-011820
Ardila, A. (2012). Is Bilingualism Associated with Cognitive Advantage? Revista de Neurología, 54(7), 427-436. https://doi.org/10.33588/rn.5407.2011425
Bialystok, E. (1993). Metalinguistic Awareness: The Development of Children’s Representations of Language. En C. Pratt y A. F. Garton (eds.), Systems of Representation in Children (pp. 211-233). Wiley.
Borg, S. (2010). Language Teacher Research Engagement. Language Teaching, 43(4), 391-429. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444810000170 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444810000170
Botero, A. (2022). Conciencia metalingüística en estudiantes universitarios en formación bilingüe (tesis de doctorado, Universidad del Quindío).
Cummins, J. (1983). Language Proficiency and Academic Achievement. En J. W. Oller, Jr. (ed.), Issues in Language Testing Research (pp. 108-119). Newbury House.
El Euch, S. (2010). Attitudes, motivations et conscience métalinguistique chez des bilingues et des trilingues adultes: effets, similarités et différences. Language awareness, 19(1), 17-33. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658410903009303 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09658410903009303
Erlam, R., Ellis, R. y Batstone, R. (2009). Explicit Knowledge and Second Language Proficiency: The Relationship Between Metalinguistic Knowledge and Proficiency in L2 Grammar. Language Awareness, 18(2), 165-181. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658410902855810
Floquet, M. (2018). Analyse qualitative des réponses épi linguistiques et métalinguistiques au test d’acceptabilité du THAM-3 par des étudiants italophones. Studia UBB Philologia, 62(3), 333-346. https://doi.org/10.24193/subbphilo.2018.3.26 DOI: https://doi.org/10.24193/subbphilo.2018.3.26
Gombert, J. É. (1990). Le développement métalinguistique. Presses Universitaires de France.
Gombert, J. É. (2003). Implicit and Explicit Learning to Read: Implications for Subtypes of Dyslexia. Current Psychology Letters, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.4000/cpl.202 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/cpl.202
Gombert, J. É. (2018). Le développement de la conscience du langage chez l’enfant. Retz.
Hernández-Sampieri, R., Fernández-Collado, C. y Baptista, P. (2014). Metodología de la investigación (6.ª ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
Hofer, B. y Jessner, U. (2022). Metalinguistic Awareness and Early Multilingual Learning. En L. S. Schwartz y C. A. Macaro (eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Childhood Multilingualism (pp. 163-189). Cambridge University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108669771.010
Hofer, B. y Jessner, U. (2025). Metalinguistic Awareness in Primary Schoolers in Multilingual Partial Immersion Education. Frontiers in Language Sciences, 4, article 1547151. https://doi.org/10.3389/flang.2025.1547151 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/flang.2025.1547151
Jakobson, R. y Halle, M. (1956). Fundamentals of Language. Mouton.
Lasagabaster, D., Doiz, A. y Sierra, J. M. (2015). THAM-3: Test de habilidades metalingüísticas. Octaedro.
Molina, D. (2015). Formación lingüística de futuros profesores de francés en Colombia: retos y perspectivas. Revista Colombiana de Educación, 69, 195-218. https://doi.org/10.17227/01203916.69rce195.218
Paap, K. R., Johnson, H. A. y Sawi, O. (2015). Should the Bilingual Advantage in Executive Functioning Be Dismissed? Cortex, 69, 265-278. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2015.09.010 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2015.04.014
Pinto, M. A. y El Euch, S. (2015). Conscience métalinguistique et bilinguisme: Études comparatives avec le THAM-3. Lambert Academic Publishing.
Portilla, X. (2009). El lenguaje y la metalingüística: claves para el pensamiento. Signo y Pensamiento, 28(54), 134-143. https://revistas.javeriana.edu.co/index.php/signoypensamiento/article/view/4495
Tunmer, W. E. y Nesdale, A. R. (1985). Metalinguistic Awareness and Reading Acquisition. En D. R. Olson, N. Torrance y A. Hildyard (eds.), Literacy, Language, and Learning (pp. 143-168). Cambridge University Press.
Von Bastian, C. C., Souza, A. S. y Gade, M. (2016). No Evidence for Bilingual Cognitive Advantages: A Test of Four Hypotheses. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 145(2), 246-258. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0000120 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0000120
Walla, D. (2024). Metalinguistic Awareness in the Multilingual EFL Classroom: A Study of Grade 5-7 Students in Norway. International Journal of Multilingualism, 22(2), 944-959. https://doi.org/10.1080/14790718.2024.2340035 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14790718.2024.2340035
Woll, N. (2016). The Role of Metalinguistic Awareness and of L2 Proficiency in Positive Lexical Transfer from English (L2) to German (L3) by French-speaking Quebeckers. (Tesis de doctorado. Université Laval). https://www.academia.edu/34923444/The_role_of_metalinguistic_awareness_and_of_L2_proficiency_in_positive_lexical_transfer_from_English_L2_to_German_L3_by_French_speaking_Quebeckers
Downloads
Copyright (c) 2026 Folios
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
