Neurolinguistic Communication Intervention

Articles

Mandarin-speaking monolingual autistic children can learn and retain foreign language words: A longitudinal study

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Kang, X., Zhang, Y., Ding, N., Hu, X., Chen, X., & Liu, Q. (2026). Mandarin-speaking monolingual autistic children can learn and retain foreign language words: A longitudinal study. Neurolinguistic Communication Intervention, 1(1), 61–77. Retrieved from https://ojs.ukscip.com/index.php/nci/article/view/2272
Volume 1 Issue 1 (2026)

Authors

  • Xin Kang

    1 School of Foreign Languages and Cultures, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China 2 Research Centre for Language, Cognition and Language Application, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China 3 Key Laboratory of Hearing, Speech, and Cognition of Chongqing Municipal Health Commission, Chongqing, China
  • Yaqian Zhang

    1 School of Foreign Languages and Cultures, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China 2 Research Centre for Language, Cognition and Language Application, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China 3 Key Laboratory of Hearing, Speech, and Cognition of Chongqing Municipal Health Commission, Chongqing, China
  • Ning Ding

    1 School of Foreign Languages and Cultures, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China 2 Research Centre for Language, Cognition and Language Application, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China 3 Key Laboratory of Hearing, Speech, and Cognition of Chongqing Municipal Health Commission, Chongqing, China
  • Xiyu Hu

    1 School of Foreign Languages and Cultures, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China 2 Research Centre for Language, Cognition and Language Application, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China 3 Key Laboratory of Hearing, Speech, and Cognition of Chongqing Municipal Health Commission, Chongqing, China
  • Xuanchi Chen

    School of Foreign Languages and Cultures, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China
  • Qiutong Liu

    School of Foreign Languages and Cultures, Chongqing University, Chongqing, China

Bilingualism has long been linked with enhanced cognitive benefits, but parents of autistic children are often advised to use one language. One reason might be that there is limited evidence on the foreign language learning abilities of autistic children. This study investigated English word learning among monolingual Mandarin-speaking autistic and typically-developing (TD) children using a longitudinal design. Participants were taught 48 English object names in a classroom-like setting over eight weekly sessions. Before starting the program, participants completed a pre-test to calculate the percentage of target words they could identify and translate from English to Chinese. To measure their short-term learning outcomes, they completed an immediate learning test at the end of each session and a delayed test at the beginning of the session the week after. Long-term retention was measured using final tests at one- and five- weeks after the learning program ended. Although autistic children showed slower weekly gains in word recognition, they achieved comparable long-term retention to TD peers, with no significant group differences in final test performance. Critically, the learning outcomes for autistic children were strongly and pervasively correlated with their amount of prior L2 exposure, whereas this relationship was largely absent in TD children. These findings demonstrate that autistic children can effectively learn and retain L2 words, challenging recommendations for monolingualism. Future studies should explore more complex linguistic domains, such as grammar and pragmatics, to further understand foreign language acquisition among autistic individuals.