Early Heritage-language Education and the Abrupt Shift to a Dominant-language Classroom: Impact on the Personal and Collective Esteem of Inuit Children in Arctic Québec

Abstract

This research explored the impact of the abrupt shift from heritage-language to dominant-language education on Inuit children's personal and collective self-esteem. Specifically, the following question was addressed: will early heritage-language education serve as an inoculation against the potential negative impact of being submerged in a dominant second-language environment, or will it just delay the negative impact of this submersion? Results show that the shift from heritage-language to dominant second-language instruction in Grade 3 was associated with a significant decrease in personal self-esteem. As for collective self-esteem, results show no effects of the abrupt shift into a dominant-language classroom. However, a clear pro-White bias for all Inuit children at both the fall and the spring of Grade 3 emerged. The results suggest that a more gradual introduction to the dominant language may be needed in order to protect minority-language children's personal sense of self-worth. In addition, the data suggest that early heritage-language education did not prevent the development of negative collective self-views for Inuit children in the community and cannot fully protect children from the negative impact of late submersion in dominant second-language instruction. The implications for bilingual education programmes are discussed.