Children learning Chinese as a home language in an English-dominant society

Abstract

Many Chinese families face many difficulties in maintaining their heritage language for their children in English-dominant societies. This article first looks at the losses from monolingualism and benefits of bilingualism. Then, it explores the common methods used today in teaching Chinese. We conclude that families and community play an indispensable role in their children's acquisition. For children to acquire adequate proficiency in the language, educators should inform families about this topic and partner with them. Families can indeed be active in the process. Hence, the article further describes a guide designed and written by the author to accommodate the needs of parents. It can be used as a model for future guides. Further, the article recommends effective media routes by which families can have access to similar guides.

Internal and External Factors That Support Children's Minority First Language and English

“…However, Jia and colleagues (2014) caution parents that weekend L1 classes may not be engaging due to older materials, antiquated teaching methods, and heavy reliance on untrained volunteers; researchers also propose that visits to the home country need thoughtful planning to provide rich and varied language experiences. Resources are needed for parents to make the daily commitment to promote children's L1 speaking and reading skills (Law, 2015).…”

The impact of religion on language maintenance and shift

“…That is, language socialization can be influenced not only by families but also by religious activities, including peer-group socialization. Considering that the absence of the heritage language can mean further significant social and cultural losses (Law 2015), religious leaders and parents should be made aware of how the current language practices of churches and temples will affect family language choice and socialization and the identities of future generations.…”

Repositioning White Monolingual English-Speaking Teachers’ Conceptions of Language: Counterstories and Embodied Learning

“…Iddings, Combs, and Moll (2012) state, "ELLs are often denied the right to draw on their own social, cultural, and linguistic resources for learning and are thus left educationally stranded" (p. 507). Although research demonstrates that maintaining students' home 2 language is key to the development of additional languages (Cummins, 2005;Law, 2015), and multilingualism is a key component of education in many countries (Commission of the European Communities, 2008) yet, monolingualism is pervasive in U.S. education (Brown, 2011;Caldas, 2006;Law, 2015), and tied to political anti-immigrant ideologies (Borden, 2014;Estep, 2017), especially against Spanish-speaking communities.…”