Intergroup Contact and Minority-Language Education

Abstract

The authors consider two related approaches that may be important in the amelioration of language-based discrimination. The first focuses on the attitudes of the dominant-language group and applies recent perspectives on the intergroup contact theory to suggest ways of reducing prejudice among members of the dominant group. Research with White/Anglo children in California are used to show the potential benefits of bilingual over English-only education in this regard. The second approach focuses on the psychology of the minority-language group. Supported by research with Inuit children in Arctic Quebec, the authors describe how heritage-language education can have a positive impact on personal and social identity, support heritage-language development, facilitate second-language acquisition, and perhaps buffer the negative impact of discrimination on self-esteem and well-being by supporting the development of strong ingroup identification.