“English on a pedestal”: the language attitudes and practices of African migrant bilingual parents and early years professionals in the U.K

Abstract

ABSTRACT Bilingual parents must often make difficult and complex choices about which languages to use with their children. While existing research has explored family language practices and attitudes within certain language communities, the experiences of African parents are conspicuously absent from the literature. This study explores factors influencing intergenerational language transmission among African families in the UK. As educators can influence parental language choices, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with Early Years Professionals and parents of children attending nurseries. Interviews considered participants’ language backgrounds, attitudes and practices, especially in relation to heritage language maintenance. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analysed using thematic analysis. Findings revealed that being proficient in the English language was prioritised by all participants over maintaining the children’s heritage language, and the value of African languages was low. The findings suggest that the educators’ language practices were influenced by the monolingual education system and, for parents, colonial language ideologies that place English on a pedestal over African languages continue to play an influential role in shaping their language attitudes. Implications of this study include the need for increased understanding within Early Years practice of the unique language profiles and practices of bilingual African families.