Teaching Heritage Languages

Heritage languages (HLs) are languages other than English that are part of an individual's cultural or family background. In the U.S, speakers of many HLs are in high demand in business and government, yet a lack of support for maintaining HLs means that many of these languages have disappeared or are disappearing. To prevent this loss, programs for heritage language learners (HLLs) offer classes in language and culture. These programs are varied because they must meet the needs of diverse populations. This article discusses teaching heritage languages in the context of the communities that speak them.

Keywords Bidialectalism; Bilingualism; Bilingual Education; Code-switching; English-only Instruction; Heritage Language; Heritage Language Learners; Immersion Programs; Language Loss; Language maintenance; Prestige Variety

Overview

A heritage language is a language other than English that is part of an individual's cultural or family background. It may be the first language (L1) of an individual who has a more dominant second language (L2), or it may be an indigenous language that belongs to a particular cultural group (e.g., Native American languages).

Heritage languages hold a tenuous position in American culture. On the one hand, the need for individuals with advanced proficiency in a number of specific languages is on the rise. Globalization and conflict in the Middle East have increased the need for speakers of Arabic, Pashtu, Persian, Mandarin and other non-European languages. Federal money is being spent to increase training in these languages and to attract heritage language speakers to high need social, economic, geopolitical and diplomatic positions (Brecht & Ingold, 2002; Kinzie, 2007; Malone, Rifkin, Christian, & Johnson, 2005; Wright, 2007) In addition to the community benefits, research in cognitive science, psychology, education and linguistics, tout the positive effects of bilingualism on cognitive and linguistic development. Bilingual individuals not only have greater career opportunities, but they also appear to develop and maintain better cognitive controls (Bialystok, Craik, & Ryan, 2006).

On the other hand, political tensions surrounding the issue of immigration, along with a decades-old movement to replace bilingual education with English Only instruction, has meant that many heritage languages are being lost (Wright, 2007). It is believed that without intervention, heritage languages of immigrant families are likely to disappear within three generations (Brecht & Ingold, 2002). When the political climate lowers the status of a particular language or cultural group, members of the group are even less likely to maintain the language, increasing the speed at which language shift, or the movement toward a dominant language occurs (Wright, 2007). Other community variables also pose obstacles to language maintenance with the result that language resources continue to disappear. For indigenous languages, this loss can mean the extinction of cultural values and identity that may never be regained.

Heritage Language Programs

To stem the tide of disappearing language resources, communities and individuals frequently establish programs to teach heritage language speakers about their native language and culture. Students in these programs are called heritage language learners (HLLs). HLLs are individuals who have exposure to a native language and culture via family background but who are not fully proficient in the language. In the U.S., these students are often children of immigrants or refugees or they may be members of a Native American tribe. These students may choose to formally study their HL in order to maintain their ethnic/cultural background or to develop advanced language proficiency. Because of their previous HL exposure, HLLs have different linguistic and identity needs than students who study the same language as an L2 (Carreira, 2004). For instance, beginning level HLLs are likely to have extensive vocabularies compared to the L2 learner who starts with nothing.

In creating HLL programs, designers must be sensitive to the great diversity of HLL needs. The needs are varied because of differences in literacy, educational attainment and other community variables (Carreira, 2004). Many students begin HL classes with basic listening and speaking skills but little or no ability to read or write. This is frequently caused by the fact that as children, their parents or other relatives spoke to them in the native tongue, but did not provide training in reading or writing. As a result, students maintain native-like pronunciation and receptive skills, may have extensive vocabularies and understand cultural norms of language use, but they need help learning the written system. HLLs may also face confidence issues when they speak. Although they may have been surrounded by the heritage language, for a variety of reasons, HLLs may have not always used it (e.g., adolescents often rebel by refusing to use their HL with parents). These students need chances to use the language in a safe and supportive environment (Beaudrie & Ducar, 2005; Marcos, 1999).

Attitudes of Heritage Language Learners

HLLs also differ in their attitudes toward and motivation for learning an HL. Students who exhibit positive attitudes toward the HL and home culture tend to have greater motivation to learn the language and subsequent achievement/success. Reciprocally, greater success in achieving bilingualism tends to improve one's outlook on ethnic identity, increase academic achievement, lead to better social relations and overall, increase personal gains (Li, 2006). Students who do not perceive the HL as important to identity or who believe the L1 interferes with one's ability to learn a more powerful and prestigious L2, are likely to have less motivation to learn the HL.

A key factor that influences attitudes toward the HL is the status/prestige of the language in the community of language users. In communities that have many members using a HL, the language is typically deemed to be useful, and thus, has high status. The opposite is true when communities of language users are small (Carreira, 2004; Li, 2006). Thus, Spanish in a large city like Miami is likely to be perceived by members of the community as having a higher status than would Spanish in a rural community with only a handful of Spanish-speaking residents. Additionally, because language is closely intertwined with identity, when individuals closely identify with a particular ethnic group, they assign greater status to the language of the group and strive to adopt the group's speech norms (Giles & Byrne, 1982).

Language Maintenance

Families are an important social group who influence children's attitudes towards an HL. Positive parental attitudes tend to encourage language maintenance. For example, parents who use the HL at home, and emphasize the need for children to do the same, foster their children's positive perceptions of the language and culture. Children of these parents are likely to identify with the culture of the home language and be more open to using or studying the HL. Parents can also have a negative effect on language maintenance. If they become too authoritarian and demand that their children use the HL, they risk increasing the speed at which their children abandon the L1 for the culturally dominant language (Li, 2006). Other family members also play a role in shaping children's language attitudes. Grandparents, for instance, often serve as cultural and linguistic role models, providing children opportunities to hear and respond in the HL. As a case in point, Park (2006) found that when English dominant children lived with their Korean-speaking grandparents, the children learned both the Korean language and the social norms regarding politeness that were expected in a typical Korean family hierarchy.

Further Insights

Types of Programs

Given the diversity of HLLs and their needs, it may not be a surprise that there are many kinds of HL programs. The Alliance for the Advancement of Heritage Languages has created an extensive collection of HL program profiles (Online collection, 2007). Programs can be run by organizations, private and community groups, public schools and institutes of higher learning. Instruction can be given completely in the HL (immersion programs), or a combination of the HL and English (partial immersion). Content-based programs use the HL to teach subject matter such as math, social studies and science. Community college or university programs may offer separate foreign language tracks for HLLs.

A popular HL program is the Saturday, or Weekend, School. Saturday schools offer classes in both language and culture. Often, parents and volunteers organize and operate the schools, but some have administrative boards and principals. The curriculum in a language school includes language and culture classes, and may also offer content courses or homework tutorial sessions. Saturday schools have been found to contribute positively to ethnic identity formation and motivation to learn the HL (Chinen, 2005; Chinen & Tucker, 2006).

An issue that all HL programs grapple with is whether to teach only a prestige HL variety or whether to encourage bidialectalism (Fairclough, 2005). Most languages have more than one variety. These varieties may exhibit differences in their grammar, vocabularies or sociolinguistic uses. Language varieties may develop in different geographic regions or among individuals with differing levels of education or socioeconomic status. Usually, one variety of a language is promoted as a standard or prestige variety. This language is frequently the language of an educated upper class that prefers this form for communication in government or professional fields.

Most classrooms teach a prestige variety of the language on the assumption that students developing their HL do so in part to improve their career opportunities. Yet many students actually speak a non-standard variety. This may be a simplified language or one that belongs to a particular sub-population of the community. Programs must decide if students should be penalized for using their home language. The decision can sometimes cause negative consequences. If teachers accept only the prestige variety as the "correct" form of the language, students may perceive that their home culture/identity is looked down upon by the rest of the class. They may feel uncomfortable speaking in their home language and internalize negative attitudes towards themselves or their language (Hancock, 2002). To reduce the chance of this happening, many classrooms adopt a bidialectical approach. This means that teachers teach the prestige variety but consciously acknowledge the reality that there are many varieties of a language and accept nonstandard varieties in the classroom. Teachers emphasize the differences between varieties and raise student awareness about the sociolinguistic appropriateness of their use (Fairclough, 2005).

Other challenges that HL programs face are finding funding, trained teachers and materials, serving students when the HL population is small, and building administrative infrastructure (Brecht & Ingold, 2002).

Issues

There are more than 175 languages in use in the United States that are indigenous to the region. Of these, two categories of heritage languages emerge that are particularly important in U.S. culture. These are Native American languages and Spanish for Spanish speakers.

Renewing Native American Languages

Native American languages are a threatened resource. According to language researchers, before Columbus' arrival, there were approximately 300 languages in North America. In the twenty-first century, only about 150 remain, and of these, many are nearly extinct. Experts predict that by 2050, only 20 will continue to be vital, meaning people of all ages use the language (Estes, n.d.).

The loss of tribal languages has been recorded as one of the many tragedies of the Native American story. Reyhner and Tennant (1991-1993) discuss tribal language loss and the efforts of Native Americans to renew their languages by beginning with a rationale for language revitalization. Many Native Americans, they say, hold the perception that they "walk in two worlds" (p. 2) where language and culture are separated. This separation threatens psychological well-being and self-assurance. By engaging in language revitalization efforts, tribes regain cultural integrity and provide young Native Americans with an understanding of cultural divisions and differences that can help them to cope in different cultural situations.

To understand the critical problem of Native American language loss and the obstacles to renewal, Reyhner and Tennant cite Fishman's 1991 taxonomy describing eight stages of language loss. In stage eight, the language is nearest extinction. Stage one offers the language the best chance of survival. The stages are as follows:

• Stage 8: Only a few elders speak the tribal language;

• Stage 7: Only adults beyond child-bearing age use the language;

• Stage 6: Some intergenerational use of languages occurs at home;

• Stage 5: The language is in use in minority communities, voluntarily in schools;

• Stage 4: The minority language has legal status; language use is required in schools;

• Stage 3: The language is used among employees but not supervisors;

• Stage 2: The language is used by the government;

• Stage 1: The language is used at the highest levels of government (p. 2-3).

Reyhner and Tennant (1991-1993) describe the many kinds of steps that Native American tribes have taken to create language renewal. Some of the steps include passing resolutions at the tribal level and encouraging supportive policies and legislation at national and international levels. For instance, in the 1980s, the Northern Ute Tribe passed a resolution that recognized the Ute language as the tribe's first language and named English as a second. In addition, the resolution requires Ute instruction from pre-K-12th grade as well as teacher training in the language.

Many Native American schools are already taking steps to teach tribal languages, and efforts are underway to begin HL instruction at earlier ages. One of the more successful models of language renewal and maintenance is the "Language Nest" (Reyhner & Tennant, p. 8), an early childhood education program that was developed by the Maori of New Zealand. A language nest is a community day care center staffed by elders/grandparents who immerse the children in the traditional language. In Hawaii, native peoples are using the language nest as a way to provide needed services and transmit cultural knowledge.

Bilingual programs offer students the chance to develop both first and second languages. One of the most famous Native American bilingual programs is the Rock Point Community School in Arizona. At Rock Point, children first learn to read and write in Navajo. During kindergarten, students receive two-thirds of their instruction in Navajo, and then, in grades 1-3, they enter a dual-immersion program with 50% of their time in English and 50% of their time in Navajo. By high school, students spend one-half of the year in Navajo instruction and one-quarter of the year in Navajo writing.

Despite these successful efforts to teach and transmit Native American languages, Reyhnert and Tennant point out that many languages are still likely to be lost as Native Americans become more integrated into the dominant culture. They suggest that tribes must continue to pay attention to renewal efforts if they want to preserve their linguistic resources.

Spanish for Native Speakers

Another important HLL group is the Spanish-speaking population. Hispanics make up the largest group of heritage language speakers in the U.S. These individuals are either Spanish-speaking immigrants or Americans of Hispanic descent. They originate from Central and South America, Mexico, Cuba and Puerto Rico (Peyton, Lewelling & Winke, 2001).

Because there are so many Spanish speakers in the U.S., Spanish tends to be maintained within communities. However, individual skills are often lost as younger generations acquire simplified varieties or use code-switching (i.e. moving between Spanish and English in order to complete their thoughts). Spanish for Native Speakers (SNS) classes attempt to shore up learner's Spanish skills so that students can be fully bilingual. The long-term goal is that students will continue to pass their language skills on to future generations. In addition to language maintenance, SNS classes promote the acquisition of prestige varieties of Spanish. This reflects the belief that many students may want to employ their language skills in a workforce that values bilingual speakers (Fairclough, 2005; Peyton, Lewelling & Winke, 2001).

Two other goals are also essential to SNS classes. The first of these is to expand the SNS speaker's bilingual range. Bilingual range refers to the fact that many bilingual speakers are not equally competent in both of their languages. Through SNS classes, they can build their skills in what is often the weaker language, giving them the ability to use either language in more situations. Secondly, SNS classes promote the transfer of literacy skills between languages. Cummins (1981) first proposed that literacy skills of one language can be transferred to the second language. Once students understand the principles of reading in their L1, for instance, they do not need to relearn this skill in order to read in the second language. Instead, they apply their understanding of the reading process to the second language, spending time on new information such as the specific letter-sound relationships of the new language. SNS promotes literacy so that both Spanish and English literacy skills will be improved (Fairclough, 2005; Peyton, Lewelling & Winke, 2001).

In addition to these four basic goals, Carreira (2007) argues that SNS can also play an important role in narrowing the achievement gap between Latino students and their peers as well as in reducing the dropout rates among Latino students. These goals can be achieved, Carreira writes, if SNS curricula:

• Supports Spanish-English biliteracy;

• Supports and facilitates learning across the curriculum;

• Socializes Latino students and their parents to the American system of education;

• Utilizes the student's home culture to improve educational and social needs of Latino youth.

Additional Groups

In addition to these two populations, Asian heritage language speakers are also a growing population in the U.S. Immigrants and sojourners from China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan are studying HLs with the goals of maintaining language for eventual return to home countries, preserving intimacy among family members and reaffirming ethnic identity and cultural connections.

In summary, heritage languages are linguistic resources that are currently under-supported. Programs to teach heritage languages and culture provide opportunities for HL speakers to maintain their ethnolinguistic identity and develop advanced language proficiency. As the world continues to globalize, students may find there is more than one benefit to speaking a heritage language.

Terms & Concepts

Bidialectalism: Bidialectalism refers to an individual's knowledge of and/or ability to use two different varieties of the same language.

Bilingual Education: Bilingual Education is a broad term that describes programs to educate students who speak more than one language. Frequently, it refers to programs that educate students in both their L1 and in English.

Bilingualism: Bilingualism refers to being proficient in two different languages.

Code-switching: Code-switching occurs when individuals speaking in one language insert words from a second language in order to complete their meaning.

English Only Instruction: English Only instruction refers to programs that teach students English using only English as the medium of instruction.

Heritage Language Learners: Heritage Language Learners are individuals who are studying a language for which they already have some level of proficiency in the language due to family/cultural background.

Immersion Programs: Immersion programs use the target language as the sole medium of instruction in the classroom.

Language Maintenance: Language maintenance refers to an individual's effort to preserve one's ability to speak and use one or more languages.

Partial Immersion: Partial immersion program use both the target language and English as the medium of instruction in the classroom.

Prestige Variety: A prestige variety is a variety of a language that is typically used by an upper, elite class within the society. It is often referred to as a standard variety and is preferred for education, government and professional business.

Bibliography

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Carreira, M. (2007). Spanish-for-native-speaker matters: Narrowing the Latino achievement gap through Spanish language instruction. Heritage Language Journal, 5 , 147-171.

Carreira, M. (2004). Seeking explanatory adequacy: A dual approach to understanding the term "Heritage language learner." Heritage Language Journal, 2 , 1-25.

Chinen, K. (2005). Heritage language develoment: Understanding the roles of ethnic identity and Saturday school participation. Heritage Language Journal, 3 , 27-59.

Chinen, K., & Tucker, G. (2006). Heritage language development: Understanding the roles of ethnic identity, schooling and community. In K. Kondo-Brown (Ed.), Heritage Language Development: Focus on East Asian immigrants (pp. 89-126). Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.

Cummins, J. (1981). The role of primary language development in promoting educational success for language minority students. In California State Department of Education, Office of Bilingual Bicultural Education. Schooling and language minority students: A theoretical framework. Los Angeles: California State University, Evaluation, Dissemination and Assessment Center.

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Li, G. (2006). The role of parents in heritage language maintenance and development: Case studies of Chinese immigrant children's home practices. In K. Kondo-Brown (Ed.), Heritage Language Development: Focus on East Asian immigrants (pp. 15-31). Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.

Malone, M., Rifkin, B., Christian, D., & Johnson, D. (2005). Attaining high levels of proficiency: Challenges for foreign language education in the U.S. http://www.cal.org/resources/digest/attain.html

Marcos, K. (1999). Are we wasting our nation's language resources? Heritage languages in America. Language Link. Center for Applied Linguistics. Retrieved December 11, 2007, from http://www.cal.org/resources/archive/langlink/1099.html

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Online collection of National heritage language program profiles. (2007). Heritage Languages in America. Center for Applied Linguistics website. Retrieved December 11, 2007, from http://www.cal.org/heritage/index.html.

Park, E. (2006). Grandparents, grandchildren, and heritage language use in Korean. In K. Kondo- Brown (Ed.), Heritage Language Development: Focus on East Asian immigrants (pp. 57-86). Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.

Peyton, J., Lewelling, V., & Winke, P. (2001). Spanish for Spanish speakers: Developing dual language proficiency. (Report No: EDO-FL-01-09). Center for Applied Linguistics website. Retrieved December 11, 2007, from http://www.cal/org/resources/digest/spanish-native.html

Reyhner, J., & Tennant, E. (1991-1993). Maintaining and renewing native languages. Heritage Languages in America website. Retrieved December 11, 2007, from http://www.cal.org/heritage/research/maintaining.pdf

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Wright, W. (2007). Heritage language programs in the era of English-Only and No Child Left Behind. Heritage Language Journal, 5 , 1-26.

Suggested Reading

Bylund, E., & Díaz, M. (2012). The effects of heritage language instruction on first language proficiency: A psycholinguistic perspective. International Journal Of Bilingual Education & Bilingualism, 15, 593–609. Retrieved December 9, 2013 from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=78935820

Carreira, M., & Kagan, O. (2011). The results of the National Heritage Language Survey: Implications for teaching, curriculum design, and professional development. Foreign Language Annals, 44, 40–64. Retrieved December 9, 2013 from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=62187319

Heritage Languages in America. (2007). A Center for Applied Linguistics Website. Retrieved December 12, 2007, from http://www.cal.org/heritage/index.html

Heritage Language Journal. (2002-2007) (Online Journal). Center for World Languages of UCLA and the UC Consortium for Language Learning and Teaching. Retrieved December 12, 2007, from http://www.heritagelanguages.org/

Kondo-Brown, K. (Ed.). Heritage Language Development. Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.