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Descriptors:
Measurement; Testing; Language Proficiency; Test Construction; Bilingualism; Language Variation; Generalizability Theory; Error of Measurement; Culture Fair Tests; Language Minorities; Second Language Learning; Validity; Scores; English (Second Language)

Abstract:
We discuss generalizability (G) theory and the fair and valid assessment of linguistic minorities, especially emergent bilinguals. G theory allows examination of the relationship between score variation and language variation (e.g., variation of proficiency across languages, language modes, and social contexts). Studies examining score variation across items administered in emergent bilinguals' first and second languages show that the interaction of student and the facets (sources of measurement error) item and language is an important source of score variation. Each item poses a unique set of linguistic challenges in each language, and each emergent bilingual individual has a unique set of strengths and weaknesses in each language. Based on these findings, G theory can inform the process of test construction in large-scale testing programmes and the development of testing models that ensure more valid and fair interpretations of test scores for linguistic minorities. (Contains 2 tables, 3 figures, and 1 note.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Linguistics; Ideology; Language Minorities; Global Approach; Romance Languages; Finno Ugric Languages; Political Influences; Language Attitudes; Ethnography; Self Concept; Second Language Learning; Foreign Countries; Russian; Spanish

Abstract:
Catalan and Estonian can be considered "medium-sized" languages with some key common features that allow us to analyze the evolution of the two cases comparatively. Firstly, other formerly hegemonic languages (Spanish and Russian, respectively) have historically minoritized them. Secondly, the political equilibrium has now changed in such a way that the "medium-sized" languages have been resituated in the public sphere, regaining some institutional recognition. In turn, this has caused the formerly dominating languages to be resituated too, where a high degree of contact between the two linguistic communities exists. Finally, in the globalization era, ideologies about (minoritized) languages may shift from identity-based values toward more pragmatic and instrumental ones. This article presents ethnographically collected data from both Tallinn and Barcelona (2008-2009), providing a reading of the Catalan case and evolution as seen through the Estonian experience. The study examines language-ideological constructs underlying the discourses of the linguistic groups in contact, how they affect and are affected by the context, how they interact with and co-modify each other and ultimately, how can they affect the process by which a "medium-sized" language may be adopted by "new speakers" and acquires a stable position at the level of its public functions. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Adult Students; Native Speakers; Social Class; Romance Languages; Spanish; Cultural Differences; Language Usage; Stereotypes; Sociolinguistics; Native Language; Language Minorities; Language Attitudes; Second Language Learning; Foreign Countries

Abstract:
Adult students of Catalan are worthy of study because they reveal complexities underlying taken-for-granted assumptions about Catalan speakers and Castilian speakers. Far from fitting into neat bundles aligning language of origin, social class, and national orientation, the students in this study exemplify the breakdown of boundaries traditionally assumed to exist between Catalan speakers and Castilian speakers. These findings point to a disjuncture between public discourse and the lived experience of language users. Close examination of actual speakers' motivations, classroom performance, and national orientations reveals much more nuance; in this classroom, the fault lines run along social class divisions, which are themselves contrary to stereotypes. This finding advances studies of linguistic authority, suggesting that native speakers may be positioned differently in different sociolinguistic contexts, depending on their social class and whether the language in question is an institutionalized code or a minoritized one. (Contains 1 table and 7 notes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Foreign Countries; Ideology; Language Planning; Language Maintenance; Interviews; Focus Groups; Romance Languages; Ethnography; Languages; Language Minorities; Classification; Cross Cultural Studies; Immersion Programs; Language Attitudes; Native Speakers; Second Language Learning; Social Class

Abstract:
This special issue devoted to Catalonia--one of the most successful and longstanding language movements in Europe--gives a unique opportunity to understand some of the complex social dynamics engendered as language revival unfolds and to appreciate the value of in-depth interviewing, focus groups, and ethnographic work in making sometimes subtle change-in-progress visible. With 30 plus years of proactive language planning behind it, Catalonia is a living laboratory for exploring the social dynamics and ideological transformations set in motion by language normalization projects. For the nearby Basque language advocates with whom the author works, the strong institutional support language revival has enjoyed along with the extensive immersion schooling program (now under some attack), has been a source of envy not easily reproducible in their own context. Nevertheless there are many parallels between the dynamics described for Catalonia and the Basque Autonomous Community. In her commentary to the papers by Pujolar and Gonzalez, Soler, and Frekko in this issue, the author will note some of the parallels but focus more generally on the lessons these studies hold for scholarship on minority language revitalization projects in general. Lessons that have to do with the value of ethnographic work on language ideology; the importance of class as a factor in language revitalization; the challenges of cross national comparison; and the necessity for refining ways of categorizing speakers. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Hmong People; Immigrants; Generational Differences; Cultural Differences; Educational Attainment; Time; Differences; Acculturation; Social Work; Social Integration; Marriage; Family Planning; Language Minorities; Ethnicity; Socioeconomic Status

Abstract:
Few studies have looked at the differences in culture, language, and educational attainments among generations of Hmong in the United States since the beginning of their immigration to the United States. This study of 195 Hmong participants examines the effects of generational status on Hmong immigrants across several factors including marriage and family planning practices, cultural identity, and educational attainment. Cultural identity and family practices of immigrants lean toward increased adaptation to American culture with each successive generation; however, educational attainment was lower among second-generation immigrants when compared to their first-generation counterparts. Explanations for lower educational attainment may be due to confounding factors such as time effect. This study informs social work practice by exploring the variations in acculturation trajectories among the Hmong in the United States. (Contains 4 tables.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Ideology; Bilingualism; Norwegian; Language Role; Language Planning; Foreign Countries; Language Minorities; Public Officials; Language Attitudes; Self Concept; Ethnicity; Letters (Correspondence); Newspapers; Conflict; Policy Analysis; Languages

Abstract:
The study focuses on local people's expressions of attitudes and ideologies in the light of proposed Sami-Norwegian bilingual policies in their Northern Norwegian hometown. The local politicians' plan to introduce the bilingual regulations of an "administrative area for the Sami language" in the town of Tromso encountered conflicting language ideologies and attitudes among the local population and precipitated a vivid and sometimes rude debate about identities, ethnicity, and local belonging. Focusing on the mechanisms of social evaluation vis-a-vis the Sami and Norwegian languages, the analysis of attitudes and stance-taking in texts (e.g., letters to the editor) in local newspapers reveals how writers anchor their evaluations and personal stances to the relations between the self, the recipients, and shared, ideological systems of values. Ideologies about Sami and Norwegian are mainly brought up implicitly in these relations. A large number of evaluations are expressed as judgements of other people's behaviour, and language plays only a relatively marginal role as a target of most writers' evaluations. The paper concludes by discussing the ideological boundaries that writers construe simultaneously with their construction of interactional bonds, and the metalinguistic contextualization of the Sami language within these debates. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
English (Second Language); Speech Communication; Reading Comprehension; Reading Fluency; Language Minorities; Structural Equation Models; Vietnamese; Tagalog; Spanish; Role; Morphology (Languages); Grade 6; Spanish Speaking; Elementary School Students; Vocabulary; Native Speakers

Abstract:
This study tested three hypotheses about the direct and indirect contributions of derivational morphological awareness to English reading comprehension in sixth-grade students from differing language backgrounds (n= 952). Students included Spanish-speaking, Filipino-speaking, and Vietnamese-speaking language minority learners as well as native English speakers. Multiple-group structural equation modeling indicated that morphological awareness made a significant direct contribution to reading comprehension, controlling for reading vocabulary and word reading fluency. Morphological awareness also made a significant indirect contribution to reading comprehension via reading vocabulary, but not via word reading fluency. Effects were similar across the four language groups. Findings suggest that morphological awareness may play multiple important roles in English reading comprehension for students from a variety of home language backgrounds. (Contains 8 notes, 1 table and 1 figure.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Foreign Countries; Linguistic Borrowing; Language Role; French; Language Minorities; English; Language Variation; Diachronic Linguistics; Surveys; Classification; Language Usage; Language Patterns; Vocabulary; Grammar; Transfer of Training

Abstract:
The variety of English spoken by about half a million people in the Canadian province of Quebec is a minority language in intensive contact with French, the local majority language. This unusual contact situation has produced a unique variety of English which displays many instances of French influence that distinguish it from other types of Canadian or world English. The most obvious instances involve the adoption of French words or senses of words, though influence at other levels of linguistic structure can also be observed. This paper discusses the historical background of the contact situation and how this motivates hypotheses about its linguistic effects. It then presents both anecdotal and quantitative survey data that demonstrate empirically the distinctive character of Quebec English. It concludes by categorizing the individual examples considered into a typology of five distinct patterns of influence arising from language contact. (Contains 1 table.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Reading Comprehension; Immigrants; Language Minorities; Literacy; Bilingual Students; Native Language; Language Proficiency; Second Language Learning; Social Influences; Power Structure; Academic Failure; Bilingual Education; Minority Group Students; Reading Achievement; Research

Abstract:
The present paper synthesizes the international research literature on the educational achievement of immigrant and minority language students by articulating three propositions for which there is strong empirical evidence: (a) print access and literacy engagement play a key role in promoting reading comprehension; (b) the development of bilingual students' L1 proficiency plays a positive role in L2 academic development; and (c) societal power relations play a direct causal role in promoting school failure among students from subordinated communities. This interpretation of the empirical evidence is contrasted with the conclusions of recent North American and European reviews. For example, the comprehensive review of literacy development among minority students conducted in the United States by the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth acknowledged the legitimacy of bilingual education as a policy option but said very little about the role of literacy engagement in promoting reading comprehension. By contrast, various reports of the Programme for International Student Achievement (PISA) conducted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) highlighted the importance of reading engagement for reading achievement but discounted bilingual education as a feasible or realistic policy option. The instructional implications of the present review include the need for educators to promote print access and literacy engagement, teach for cross-lingual transfer, and affirm students' identities in classroom interactions. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Language Planning; Sign Language; Bilingual Education; Deafness; Interviews; Civil Rights; Language Minorities; Disabilities

Abstract:
Sign Language Peoples (SLPs) across the world have developed their own languages and visuo-gestural-tactile cultures embodying their collective sense of Deafhood (Ladd 2003). Despite this, most nation-states treat their respective SLPs as disabled individuals, favoring disability benefits, cochlear implants, and mainstream education over language policies fostering native sign languages. This paper argues that sign language policy is necessary for language justice. Based on interviews with SLPs and policy makers in the UK, this paper argues that ideally sign language policy requires a shift in policy discourse away from a disability construction to one recognizing the minority language status of SLPs. However minority language policy support for the formulation of sign language policies hitherto has been very limited. Conversely, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) (UN 2007) offers the best hope for sign language policy notwithstanding its disability framing. The CRPD requires states to recognize sign languages and to support sign bilingual education, where appropriate. It employs a human rights approach, and is a potential stepping stone towards the emergence of minority language policies for SLPs. This paper argues that the CRPD offers a regulatory context that could enable a shift in policy discourse towards the eventual promulgation of the minority sign language policy that many Deaf-SLPs have called for. This strategy, as suggested here, offers the best chance of moving from a situation of social injustice for SLPs to one of language justice where full sign language access is promoted. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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