Abstract

This book explores two main areas. First, what a high level of proficiency in two languages consists of, and second, what factors can produce this high level of bilingual proficiency. Higher level language is usually acquired at school, but many minority language students are educated in only one language. The book therefore  examines other factors in the development of the minority language, such as home literacy practices and positive attitudes, that might contribute to the development of high bilingual proficiency.

John Gibbons teaches in the English Department of Hong Kong Baptist University. He has long term interests in the fields of bilingualism and language in the law. Publications include Code Mixing and Code Choice (Multilingual Matters, 1987), Learning Keeping and Using Language (Benjamins, 1990) Language and the Law (Longman, 1994) and Forensic Linguistics (Blackwell 'Language in Society' series, 2003). He is on the editorial board of several academic journals.

Elizabeth Ramirez is a doctoral student at the University of New South Wales in the field of Medical Interpreting. She is a practising interpreter, translator and Spanish language teacher. Her research interests and expertise are in the area of translation into a second language, community interpreting and bilingualism. Elizabeth co-authored the NLLIA Spanish Language Profile in Australia (1996) . She has also published papers in international journals, and developed a CD Rom for Spanish-English Bilingual teenagers.