PROGRAM: Sessions

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18 — 9:00 - 11:30 AM

Pavilion 23

Association of Teachers of Japanese (ATJ), Heritage SIG
Meeting Leaders: Masako Douglas and Hiroko Kataoka, California State University, Long Beach

Pavilion 22

National Council of Associations of Chinese Language Schools (NCACLS)
Meeting Leader: Theresa Chao, NCACLS

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18 — 11:00 AM-12:00 Noon

Mezzanine 3

Heritage Language Journal Editorial Advisory Board
Meeting Leader: Olga Kagan, University of California, Los Angeles

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18 — 11:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Lobby Registration Desk

SESSION CHAIRS:

Catherine Ingold, National Foreign Language Center [BIO]
John Webb, Princeton University [BIO]
Akira Yamamoto, University of Kansas [BIO]

The United States faces new challenges in keeping our heritage languages alive and well. It is time for us to pool our resources and build on the strength of our linguistic and cultural diversity. Toward this end, this session looks at heritage languages, both indigenous and immigrant, from three major perspectives: as a way to personal and community identity, as a means to economic and political opportunities, and as a skill to be maintained and developed in our schools. A panel of presenters examines heritage language use and development from these perspectives and challenges the audience to pose solutions to issues raised.

Topic 1. The Individual and the Community

Moderator: Akira Yamamoto

Presenters:
Leanne Hinton, University of California, Berkeley [BIO]
Christine Sims, University of New Mexico and Linguistics Institute for Native Americans [BIO]

Focus Questions:

• Why do we need to consider indigenous languages as heritage languages?
  
  
• What are the language situations in indigenous communities that demand our attention?
  
  
• What has been done to counter language shift in indigenous communities?

Topic 2. The Linguistic Marketplace

Moderator: Catherine Ingold

Presenters:
María Brau, Federal Bureau of Investigation [BIO]
William Rivers, National Foreign Language Center [BIO]

Focus Questions:

Development of Language Proficiency

• How can we obtain wider recognition of the potential role of heritage language speakers in meeting needs of schools, communities, government agencies, and corporations?
  
  
• How can we capitalize on the multilingual, multicultural proficiency of heritage language speakers in the United States?
  
  
• How can we communicate more widely to heritage speakers the professional advantages of developing professional-level skills in their home language as well as in English?
  
  
• How can we remedy the paucity of early and ongoing language arts and literacy development in languages other than English?

Languages in the Workplace

• How can employers better understand the linguistic and cultural skills needed in the workplace?
  
  
• How can employers more effectively predict and evaluate the skills of job candidates who are heritage speakers?
  
  
• How can heritage speakers document for professional purposes the language and cultural skills they possess?
  
  
• How can heritage speakers augment these skills where necessary?

Topic 3. The Education Field and Our Nation’s Schools

Moderator: John Webb

Presenters:
Migdalia Romero, Hunter College of the City University of New York [BIO]
Diana Scalera, High School for Environmental Studies, New York City Board of Education [BIO]

Focus Questions:

• What are the most effective strategies for teaching heritage languages?
  
  
• What do schools and teachers need to know about heritage language learners that will enable them to work effectively with them?
  
  
• What forms of assessment will enable teachers to identify and respond to the strengths and needs of heritage language learners?

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18 — 5:00-6:15 PM
Grand Ballroom A

SESSION CHAIR:

Russell N. Campbell, University of California, Los Angeles [BIO]

Presenters:
Donna Christian, Center for Applied Linguistics [BIO]
Nancy Hornberger, University of Pennsylvania [BIO]
Terrence Wiley, Arizona State University [BIO]

Advances in the emerging field of heritage language education will depend, in part, on our ability to define and resolve research questions that relate to the design and implementation of language programs. This session reports on the results of recent meetings held at UCLA; Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia; and in Washington, DC, just prior to this conference to determine research priorities and directions.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18 — 6:15-8:00 PM
Lord Fairfax B

Children from heritage communities and schools in Delaware and Maryland present music and dances from their cultures, performing under the auspices of the Delaware Multicultural Education Council, with support from a grant from the Delaware Department of Education.

Performances:

Chinese: Dragon dance

Indian: A traditional dance incorporating the rhythm of sticks, lyrics, and music

Irish: Irish step dance

Japanese: Children’s dance and singing

Native American: Granddaughter and grandmother storytelling duet

Puerto Rican Culture Pageant Contest Winners: Poem recital in Spanish and English

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — 7:30 AM-12:30 PM
Lobby Registration Desk

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — 7:00-8:45 AM

Pavilion 23

Association of Teachers of Japanese (ATJ), Heritage SIG
Meeting Leaders: Masako Douglas and Hiroko Kataoka, California State University, Long Beach

Pavilion 22

National Council of Associations of Chinese Language Schools (NCACLS)
Meeting Leader: Theresa Chao, NCACLS

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — 8:00 - 8:45 AM
Grand Ballroom A

SESSION CHAIR:

Christina Hoffman, Foreign Service Institute, U.S. Department of State [BIO]

Presenters:
María Brau, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Marisa Curran, Foreign Service Institute
Pardee Lowe, Department of Defense
Beth Mackey, Department of Defense
Don Smith, Defense Language Institute
Cynthia Taskesen, Federal Bureau of Investigation

Language proficiency, an essential requirement in several federal government agencies, is assessed through rigorous testing. The Interagency Language Roundtable Skill Level Description of oral proficiency is used across agencies for agency-specific language proficiency testing. This federal government panel provides a succinct illustration of language proficiency testing for native and heritage language speakers who are proficient at higher levels.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — 9:00-10:30 AM
Grand Ballroom A

SESSION CHAIRS:

Presenter:
Laurie Olsen, California Tomorrow [BIO]
And Still We Speak…The Stories of Communities Mobilizing to Pass on Heritage Language and Culture

This presentation is based upon two years of research documenting the efforts of heritage language communities to support the development, maintenance, and reclamation of their languages and culture. The "voices" of parents, students, and community members offer a vision of a multilingual America. While the programs and schools these adults and children have created offer a wide range of models, they share common characteristics that can help us understand how to successfully engage young people in learning heritage languages and cultures. Communities represented include African American, Armenian, Cantonese, French (Cajun), Igbo, Khmer, Korean, Navajo, Spanish, and Yiddish. Laurie Olsen tells the stories of these communities and gives a multimedia presentation in which students, parents, and teachers speak about the impact of language loss and the value of language preservation.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — 10:30 AM - 11:00 AM

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — 12:30-2:00 PM

Purchase box lunches and view posters on the mezzanine level.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — 2:15-3:45 PM
Grand Ballroom A

SESSION CHAIRS:

Cecilia Colombi, University of California, Davis [BIO]
Ana Roca, Florida International University [BIO]

Presenters:
Reynaldo Macías, University of California, Los Angeles [BIO]
Issues and Problems in Spanish Heritage Language Teacher Preparation and Professional Development

Cecilia Colombi, University of California, Davis [BIO]
Ana Roca, Florida International University [BIO]
Pedagogical and Professional Challenges in Teaching Spanish as a Heritage Language: Curricula and Resources

Andrew Lynch, University of Florida [BIO]
What Does Language Acquisition Research Mean for Spanish as a Heritage Language?

Quality professional preparation of teachers is key to the success of heritage language programs in all settings and in all languages. This panel aims to start a dialogue among teachers, policymakers, and teacher educators about the current state of professional programs for K—16 educators of heritage languages. The session focuses on the lessons learned in the teaching of Spanish as a heritage language in the United States. The panelists are available for further discussion of the issues at the breakout sessions. Additional breakout sessions allow participants to discuss the challenges of teacher preparation in a variety of contexts.

Focus Questions:

• What heritage language programs/courses do institutions of higher education offer at the K—12/college level? What are the aims of those programs/courses? How are they implemented?
  
  
• What are examples of effective teacher preparation programs for heritage languages? Are these programs effective? Are they truly preparing teachers to teach heritage language K—12? Where are these programs placed within colleges and universities: in the education departments/schools/divisions, in the language departments, or in the ethnic studies departments?
  
  
• What resources and support do colleges and universities provide for the development of heritage languages? Are there any organizations or professional associations that assist in professional development–for example, summer institutes, Web sites, and discussion groups? How is this information disseminated?
  
  
• In what ways is the teaching of heritage languages different from teaching foreign languages? What does language acquisition research mean for the Spanish heritage language teacher? What are the implications of research in first and second language acquisition for the teaching of Spanish to native/heritage speakers in the U.S. context? How does the research relate to classroom practice?

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — 4:00-5:15 PM

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — 5:30-6:15 PM
Junior Ballroom

SESSION CHAIR:

Richard D. Brecht, National Foreign Language Center [BIO]

After a series of meetings and conferences sponsored by the Center for Applied Linguistics and the National Foreign Language Center, it is time for the heritage language community as a whole to decide its role in determining the future of heritage languages in the United States. The organizers of this conference invite official representatives of existing or anticipated organizations concerned with heritage languages to discuss the formal establishment of a National Coalition of Organizations for Heritage Languages in America. Among the questions that we need to ask ourselves are the following:

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20 — 7:00-8:45 AM

Pavilion 22

National Council of Associations of Chinese Language Schools (NCACLS)
Meeting Leader: Theresa Chao, NCACLS

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20 — 8:00-8:45 AM
Grand Ballroom A

SESSION CHAIR:

Gerda de Klerk, Arizona State University [BIO]

This interactive, multimedia presentation compares heritage languages in three regions of the world outside of North America in relation to

• their status and socio-political context,
  
  
• key issues confronting their speakers, and
  
  
• exemplary language maintenance or development.

The presentation includes perspectives and video footage solicited internationally for the conference from heritage language scholars and activists who work with the following populations:

Eastern Europe: Roma speakers

India: Multilingual speakers of heritage languages

South Africa: Speakers of indigenous and Asian languages

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20 — 10:00 AM-12:30 PM
Grand Ballroom A

SESSION CHAIRS:

Carol J. Compton, Council of Teachers of Southeast Asian Languages (COTSEAL) [BIO]
Kim Potowski, University of Illinois, Chicago [BIO]
Hyekyung Sung, Stanford University [BIO]

Presenters:

Legislation:
J. David Edwards, Joint National Commission for Languages and National Council for Languages and International Studies (JNCL-NCLIS) [BIO]

Funding:
Tom Adams, National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) [BIO]

Connections Among Organizations:
James E. Alatis, Georgetown University [BIO]

Educational Contexts (K—12 and Community-Based):
Youn-Cha Shin Chey, Intercultural Institute of California (IIC) [BIO]
Lenore Kim Blank, San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) [BIO]

Educational Contexts (Higher Education):
Kim Potowski, University of Illinois, Chicago (UIC) [BIO]

Summary:
Carol J. Compton, Council of Teachers of Southeast Asian Languages (COTSEAL) [BIO]

This panel of presenters involved in heritage language development through legislation, funding of heritage language efforts, national organizations, and different educational contexts addresses the following questions:

Focus Questions:

• What legislation and policies at the national, state, and local levels should we pursue to promote heritage language development?
  
  
• What funding sources are available to support heritage language development at the local, state, and federal levels, and how do we locate and apply for funding?
  
  
• How can we develop discussions and formalize linkages among national language and educational organizations regarding heritage language development?
  
  
• What policies, strategies, and research are needed to best serve heritage communities in different educational contexts (community-based, K—12, and higher education)?
  
  

Issues presented and their implications are summarized. After the panel, participants will meet for an hour to discuss these issues with individual speakers in breakout lunch sessions.

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20 — 12:30-1:30 PM

Purchase box lunches and join the presenters in breakout rooms

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20 — 1:45-3:30 PM
Grand Ballroom A

SESSION CHAIRS:

Nariyo Kono, The Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon and Portland State University [BIO]
Terrence G. Wiley, Arizona State University [BIO]

Presenters:
Richard D. Brecht, National Foreign Language Center [BIO]
Donna Christian, Center for Applied Linguistics [BIO]
Catherine Ingold, National Foreign Language Center [BIO]
Olga Kagan, University of California, Los Angeles [BIO]
Ana Roca, Florida International University [BIO]
Mary Eunice Romero, University of Arizona [BIO]
Harold Shiffman, University of Pennsylvania [BIO]
Bernard Spolsky, Bar-Ilan University [BIO]

The goal of this session is to produce language policy statements with the consensus of conference members and participating organizations. Prior to the conference, the session panelists, who have rich experiences in various heritage language policy areas, developed their own statements and discussed them over the Internet. During the session, the group addresses critical issues in language policy in the United States at national and state levels, particularly those relevant to heritage language development. Group members present their statements in the session and discuss the issues with the conference participants.