This paper reports on an investigation into the reactions of 147 participants of various ethnicities to a language practice in the USA that has been characterized as Mock Spanish, a special register in which Spanish words or phrases are used to evoke humor by indexing an often unflattering image of Spanish speakers. Research questions include whether Mock Spanish is indeed racist discourse, whether it can by definition be used only by non-Latinos, and whether there are any correlations between individual reactions and informants' racial-ethnic selfidentification, gender, age, educational attainment, Spanish language proficiency, and frequency of contact with native Spanish speakers. Este trabajo informa sobre un estudio de las reacciones de 147 participantes de varias etnicidades a una práctica lingü ística en los Estados Unidos que se viene denominando Mock Spanish, un registro especial en el cual se usan palabras o frases para evocar el humor con imágenes de hispanohablantes que suelen ser poco favorables. Las cuestiones que se intenta resolver en este estudio incluyen si el Mock Spanish es en realidad un discurso racista, si por definició n puede usarse ú nicamente por los no-latinos, y si hay alguna correlació n entre las reacciones de los informantes y su autoidentificación étnica y racial, su sexo, edad, nivel de instrucció n, competencia lingü ística en el españ ol, y frecuencia de contacto con hablantes nativos del españ ol.
Research on 'heritage/community language education' (HCLE) has a relatively recent trajectory, but it has generated a large number of scholarly publications, particularly in relation to Spanish in the United States (U.S.) where the growth of Spanish heritage language learners (HLL) has been exponential. However, to date, limited research attention has been given to the intersection between heritage language learning and the development of intercultural communicative competence (ICC). This may be attributed to the assumption that, on a daily basis, such learners are required to move and effectively operate between languages and cultures and, therefore, already possess adequate levels of ICC. With the development of ICC, now considered an integral component in language education, the time appears ripe to examine its implications within HCLE. This paper articulates the key similarities and differences in the trajectories of ICC research in relation to university level heritage learners of Spanish in three distinct geographical contexts: Australia, Europe, and the United States.
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