Heritage Language Learners in Mixed University Classes: Language Skills, Attitudes, and Implications for Curriculum Development

Vitality of Heritage Languages and Education

“…Finally, what seems to be decisive for students' enrollment in the two upper levels (intermediate and advanced) is the daily use of the language. Exposure to Modern Greek in the immediate social or professional environment seems to be consistent with their ethnic origin (Oikonomakou et al 2017) Indicators about the degree of language skills development (Brown 1994;Efstathiadis and Antonopoulou 2004) for the students who attend Modern Greek language classes at the University of Toronto (UT) and York University (YU) arise from analyzing their five-scale self-assessment statements, formulated by each level of study (Council of Europe 2001;Goodier 2014;North 2014). In summary, at the beginner's level, there is a clear distinction in the degree of development of oral and written language skills and substantial variation in productive and receptive skills.…”

“…In this context, the present study attempts to draw conclusions on the educational conditions governing the teaching and learning of the Greek language in Canada by focusing on two protagonists: the learners and the teachers (Aravossitas and Oikonomakou 2017;Oikonomakou et al 2017). Using questionnaires and interviews with two groups of participants -85 university Greek language students and 25 Greek language teachers, respectivelywe rely on a theoretical framework of recent HL research findings to analyze two vital issues in Greek/HL education: (a) teaching mixed classes of heritage and foreign language learners and (b) identifying the professional development needs of Greek language instructors who teach mainly HL learners.…”

“…The study of the social characteristics, as well as the personal and academic path of teachers and students (Aravossitas and Oikonomakou 2017;Oikonomakou et al 2017), constitutes a key research priority since it is linked to their (a) motivation to integrate into the language community and (b) educational or professional needs. It also highlights the importance of identity as a directing factor, because most participants have links to the country where the target language is spoken.…”

“…At the learners' level, those who attend Greek language courses in their university studies form three distinct groups: (a) 42% of the participants are second-generation heritage language learners, with parent(s) born in Greece (HLL2s); (b) 36% are third-generation heritage language learners, with parent(s) of Greek descent (HLL3s); and (c) 22% are students who study Greek as a foreign language (FLLs). The average age group of the students in Greek language courses is 18-25; most of them are major in humanities and social sciences (Oikonomakou et al 2017).…”

“…In the context of examining aspects of the educational reality, the expression of expectations, aspirations, and educational needs of teachers and learners was sought (Carreira 2015;Oikonomakou et al 2017). This approach highlights the identity issue (Gardner and Lambert 1972) and personal interests or inclinations for those who wish to learn Greek.…”