Requiring all children to speak the same language at a high level of proficiency would make the task of educating them a good deal easier. Unfortunately, what seems quite good in theory is difficult to put into practice. In this instance, the interrelationship of culture, language, and the children's development may make a common language difficult to obtain. Differences in cultures are more substantial than whether members of a community eat white bread, corn pone, or tortillas. The behavior of people varies, and the beliefs, values, and assumptions that underlie behavior differ as well.
Culture influences both behavior and the psychological processes on which it rests.
Culture forms a prism through which members of a group see the world and create shared meanings. And a group's culture is reflected by the group's language. Child development follows a pattern similar to that of culture. Major structural changes in children, such as language learning, arise from the interaction of biology and experience. Such changes are remarkably similar in kind and sequence among cultural groups.