HERITAGE LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT: Suggesting Some S trategies and a Conceptual Framework

1. HERITAGE LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT: Suggesting Some Strategies and a Conceptual Framework Heritage Language Program University of Washington Shuhan C. Wang, Ph.D. Delaware Department of Education January 30, 2006 Seattle, WA <swang@doe.k12.de.us> Wang, HL Development, 0106

2. What Does it Take to Develop Speakers at High Proficiency Levels? • High Proficiency Levels: individuals who can function at the professional level in the target language • Hours of instruction needed for a native English speaker: --Commonly Taught Languages: 720 hours --Less Commonly Taught Languages: 1320 hours (Omaggio-Hadley, 2001) Malone, M. E.; Rifkin, B., Christian, D. & Johnson, D. E., 2005. Attaining High Levels of Proficiency: Challenges for Foreign Language Education in the United States. http://www.cal.org/resources/digest/attain.htm. Wang, HL Development, 0106

3. Pathways to Proficiency • Start language learning early to build a strong base for second, third, and fourth language learning • Provide intensive immersion experiences for students at the postsecondary level, including overseas study in a target-language culture • Build on the language background ofheritage language speakers (Malone, et al., 2005, p. 2, 10/26/05) Wang, HL Development, 0106

4. Who Are Heritage Language Learners?--A National Debate • Sociolinguistic Perspective: (1) colonial languages; (2) indigenous American Indian or Alaska Native languages; and (3) immigrant languages brought by recent influx of immigrants (Fishman (2001) • Linguistic Perspective: home language, may or may not understand the heritage language, may be to some degree bilingual (Valdés, 1999, also see 2001) • Ecological Perspective: Any of the above and those who self-identify as heritage language learners of a particular language (Hornberger & Wang, in press)—e.g., multi-racial marriages; multi-national adopted families Wang, HL Development, 0106

5. The Big Question: How Do We Help Heritage Language Learners Develop High Levels of Proficiency? Wang, HL Development, 0106

6. Strategy 1:Frame Heritage Language Issues in the US • To engage in public discourse, we can’t simply talk about HL without mentioning English, the Dominant Language in the US (Crawford, 2003) • In reality, we are not “Reversing Language Shift” (Fishman, 1991) • Rather, we are concerned with moving HL proficiency forward along with English language development—Biliteracy Development (Hornberger & King, 1996) Wang, HL Development, 0106

7. Strategy 2:Rethink Heritage Language in the Global Context (Layering of Languages & Cultures) • Along with globalization, there comes localization of language and culture • In the global context, one’s native language and culture becomes one’s HL and HC, and so on—Everyone has a heritage language & culture • While one is developing competencies in a world-wide language of communication and global culture, one’s own sense of heritage becomes more salient and cherished Wang, HL Development, 0106

8. Strategy 3:Advocate the Notion of Biliteracy Biliteracy refers to heritage learners’ competencies in the literacies of the dominant society and their own heritage community. Biliteracy is at the juncture where bilingualism across modalities and biculturalism meet, and this competence can be used as learners’ human, cultural, and social capital (Wang, 2004). Wang, HL Development, 0106

9. Strategy 4:Be Mindful ofTwo Big Ideasabout Heritage Language Learning • HL competence develops in a language eco-system • Build and use biliteracy as a reservoir of human, cultural, and social capitals Wang, HL Development, 0106

10. Strategy 5:Consider Critical Elements in Heritage Language Development Proposing A Conceptual Framework of Heritage Language Transmission and Development Wang, HL Development, 0106

11. Biliteracy Resource Eco-System of Intergenerational Language and Culture Transmission Language Environment: Heritage and Dominant Discourses-in-Contact Language Evolution: Biliteracy in Development Continua of Biliteracy Biliteracy Resource Reservoir Heritage Discourses Dominant Discourses Heritage Language Counter-Endangerment: Biliteracy in Use Human Capital Cultural Capital Social Capital Wang, HL Development, 0106

12. Language Environment:Discourses-in-Contact(Wang, 2004) • An expansion of the notion of Languages in contact • Discourses (Paul Gee, 1996): Discourses with a capital D, which encompasses the language, culture, and the use of these systems in a group/society • Discourses shift: expanding from language shift Wang, HL Development, 0106

13. Identity/ies • Situated and performed (Erickson & Schultz, 1982) • Identity Kits (Gee 1996): multiplicity and shifting • perform chosen identities at different times in different places with different people • Heritage Discourses and Dominant Discourses Identities (Wang, 2004) Wang, HL Development, 0106

14. Sociolinguistic Deconstruction of a Native Speaker Expertise in a language; e.g., in heritage or dominant language, or both or none Allegiance --Inheritance toward the heritage group --Affiliation to the dominant group Rampton, 1995 Wang, HL Development, 0106

15. Language Environment: Heritage and Dominant Discourses-in-Contact Heritage Discourses (HD) Inheritance Identity KitDominant Discourses Hybrid (DD) ExpertiseAffiliation Wang, HL Development, 0106

16. Language Evolution:Biliteracy in Development • Heritage Discourses and Dominant Discourses exist in the language environment • Individuals must internalize these Discourses in order to turn them into personal biliteracy capital reservoir • How do we internalize the HD and DD?-- Via the Continua of Biliteracy Wang, HL Development, 0106

17. Build Biliteracy Capital Reservoir via Continua of Biliteracy(Hornberger, 1989; Hornberger & Skilton-Sylvester, 2000 • Continua of Context (micro to macro, oral to literate, & monolingual to bilingual) • Continua of Media (linguistic structures, orthographic systems, & exposures to the languages) • Continua of Content (minority to majority perspectives, vernacular to literary use, & contextualized to decontextualized texts) • Continua of Development (receptive to productive skills, oral to writing, & L1 to L2) Wang, HL Development, 0106

18. Heritage Language Counter-Endangerment:Biliteracy in Use • Biliteracy capital exists in All Levels from individuals to the society • The more we use these capitals, the more we possess them Wang, HL Development, 0106

19. Three types of biliteracy capitals can be deconstructed in language education • Human Capital (including linguistic capital) • Cultural Capital (including family’s and ethnic group’s educational and cultural heritage) • Social Capital (how we use language & culture to engage others in achieving our social goals) Wang, HL Development, 0106

20. Implications for Practice How do we enable heritage language learners to develop high levels of proficiency in the heritage language? • A checklist for intergenerational language and culture transmission Wang, HL Development, 0106

21. Align the Curriculum and Practice with the Five Goals of the National Foreign Language Content Standards • Communication • Cultures (Products, Practices, and Perspectives) • Connections (to Subject Matters) • Comparisons (of Cultures and Languages) • Communities Wang, HL Development, 0106

22. 1. Anchoring in Contexts: Make communities front and center2. Tracking Language Development3. Analyzing Language Exposure to the Heritage and Dominant Discourses4. Incorporating majority & minority content and connecting language use to all disciplines Wang, HL Development, 0106

23. 5. Adopting Community-Based Pedagogy:Examples • Linguistic biography studies: Make family language trees; role play multi-generational/multilingual/multiethnic family reunion • Cultural biography studies: trace the cultural backgrounds of the families or the group; delineate their cultural heritage or important values or beliefs; interview different generations of the family and write down their stories • Identity journaling: keep a log of one’s feelings and ideas about self in different situations and figure out the reasons why one feels in certain ways • Family photo-journalism: compile families’ pictures from the homeland to the host society; make oral or written histories about relatives Wang, HL Development, 0106

24. Community-Based Pedagogy (2) • Community funds of knowledge projects: explore/document ways of making things, doing math, cooking food, making home remedies, playing games, making crafts and trades, celebrating or commemorating important dates; to name some examples • Multiple literacies projects: make a video, film, digital movie, or album involving multiple languages and different modalities, images, sounds, and media • Multiple voices projects: tell/record/write stories from the dominant and minority sources and perspectives Wang, HL Development, 0106

25. Become Involved With the Alliance for the Advancement of Heritage LanguagesJoin the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL), the National Foreign Language Center (NFLC), and other language educators and researchers Visit the Web site: http://www.cal.org/heritage/programs/profiles.htmlContact Joy Peyton (joy@cal.org) Join the HL listserv: Write to Scott McGinnis, (sm167@umail.umd.edu) Wang, HL Development, 0106

26. Conclusion (1) • All languages and cultures interact in a ecological system • Everyone has a linguistic and cultural heritage that needs to be nurtured in the macro & micro environments • The development of the HL requires attention to the continua of context, content, media, and development Wang, HL Development, 0106

27. Conclusion (2) • Biliteracy resource is capitals to be used in the global context: • Human capital: enable us to advance educationally and economically • Cultural capital: help us claim our identities and rich cultural inheritance • Social capital: allow us to engage people in achieving our social, economic and political goals Wang, HL Development, 0106

28. 谢谢 Thank you! Wang, HL Development, 0106