Synopses & Reviews
An increasing number of U.S. Latinos are seeking to become more proficient in Spanish. The Spanish they may have been exposed to in childhood may not be sufficient when they find themselves as adults in more demanding environments, academic or professional. Heritage language learners appear in a wide spectrum of proficiency, from those who have a low level of speaking abilities, to those who may have a higher degree of bilingualism, but are not fluent. Whatever the individual case may be, these heritage speakers of Spanish have different linguistic and pedagogical needs than those students learning Spanish as a second or foreign language. The members of the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese (AATSP) have identified teaching heritage learners as their second greatest area of concern (after proficiency testing). Editors Ana Roca and Cecilia Colombi saw a great need for greater availability and dissemination of scholarly research in applied linguistics and pedagogy that address the development and maintenance of Spanish as a heritage language and the teaching of Spanish to U.S. Hispanic bilingual students in grades K-16. The result is Mi lengua: Spanish as a Heritage Language in the United States. Mi lengua delves into the research, theory, and practice of teaching Spanish as a heritage language in the United States. The editors and contributors examine theoretical considerations in the field of Heritage Language Development (HLD) as well as community and classroom-based research studies at the elementary, secondary, and university levels. Some chapters are written in Spanish and each chapter presents a practical section on pedagogical implications that providespractice-related suggestions for the teaching of Spanish as a heritage language to students from elementary grades to secondary and college and university levels.
Synopsis
This volume examines issues in the research, theory, and practice of teaching Spanish as a heritage language in the United States. It addresses questions that have surfaced as an increasing number of Latinos have sought to become more proficient in a language to which they have had some exposure to in childhood but in which they are not fluent. Each chapter includes a section on pedagogical implications. Heritage language learners encompass a wide range of proficiency, from those who have a low level of listening comprehension from hearing their parents speak to those who are nearly, but not quite, bilingual or fully literate in Spanish. These learners have needs that differ from students learning Spanish as a second language with no prior knowledge of it. The members of the AATSP have identified teaching heritage learners as the second greatest area of concern (after proficiency testing). This book was developed (the essays were commissioned for it, not resulting from a conference) in response to a perceived hunger for this kind of information. The AATSP and ACTFL have each published a book on the subject (both in 2000, I think), but not much else is available except for Roca's work and journal articles. Some of the essays (5 of 13) are written in Spanish, which is common practice in collections of essays in the field of Spanish linguistics.
Table of Contents
Insights from research and practice in Spanish as a heritage language / M. Cecilia Colombi and Ana Roca -- Toward a theory of heritage language acquisition : Spanish in the United States / Andrew Lynch -- Profiles of SNS students in the twenty-first century : pedagogical implications of changing demographics and social status of U.S. Hispanics / Marâia M. Carreira -- Un enfoque funcional para la enseänanza del ensayo expositivo / M. Cecilia Colombi --