In the 21st century it is quite common to meet someone who is bilingual, a person who can speak two languages or more. Recent studies have shown that there are a few benefits of being bilingual, especially for brain development. In public schools, it has become a trend to have two-way immersion programs. This program focuses on assimilating students into English as soon as possible. NPR Ed was able to contact different researchers from around the world to figure out the benefits of bilingual education in middle school. Some benefits of becoming bilingual at a young age are better attention, better at reading social cues, better reading skills, better school performance, and more. With more and more public schools implementing a second language in their curriculum, children who grow up in a house speaking only one language have the opportunity to learn a new language at school, which can benefit them as they continue to grow.
Read the full study of how bilingualism affects reading here