We investigated differences in morphological awareness and literacy skills between monolingual and bilingual schoolchildren, and whether relationships between morphological awareness and literacy skills depend on language background. Fifty-six school children (n = 24 Arabic-German bilinguals; n = 32 German monolinguals) were assessed on measures of German morphological awareness, vocabulary, reading fluency, reading comprehension and spelling. Welch- and t-Tests were conducted to describe group differences, followed by correlation and regression analyses to examine how language background influences relations between morphological awareness and literacy skills. Results revealed that monolingual children outperformed bilinguals in morphological awareness for inflection. Across both groups, morphological awareness was generally linked to literacy skills. However, two exceptions emerged: morphological awareness for inflection was only associated with reading fluency in monolinguals, while morphological awareness for compounding showed a stronger tendency to influence reading fluency in bilinguals. The results highlight that interindividual differences can influence specific relations between morphological awareness and literacy. Arabic-German bilinguals may benefit from targeted training in inflectional morphology. To optimize literacy instruction, interventions should incorporate morphological instruction tailored to the needs of learners with diverse language backgrounds.
Haase et al. (2025) studied this question.