Family Language Policy Research Articles

Conceptualisation of family and language practice in family language policy research on migrants: a systematic review

AbstractFamily language policy (FLP) is increasingly recognised as a distinct domain of language policy concerned with the family as an arena of language policy formulation and implementation. While FLP is a relatively new research area, its conceptualisation of family and language practice requires re-examination due to social changes and technological developments, including the expansion of digital communication within families and the rise of globally dispersed families a product of global migration and transnationalism. In this systematic review of migrant FLP research, we investigate how the notions of family and language practice are conceptualised in research. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, we identified a total of 163 articles for analysis. Our analysis reveals that the majority of studies were conducted in nuclear families, i.e., those consisting of a father, a mother, and one or more children. Studies also tend to conceptualise the family as fixed and physically located in one place. Paradoxically, around half of the studies acknowledge the presence of geographically dispersed family relations, but this does not necessarily affect their conceptualisation of what comprises a family. Language practice was conceptualised as physical and face-to-face communication in 51% of instances, with only 11% incorporating an analysis of digital communications. Based on our review, we recommend that FLP researchers researching migrant families reconceptualise the family as geographically dispersed and language practice as digital and multimodal when necessary. Such a reconceptualisation will help researchers understand the hitherto underexamined contributions of dispersed family members and multimodal digital communications in migrant FLP.

Family language policy in the public eye: raciolinguistic ideologies at play

Family language policy in the public eye: raciolinguistic ideologies at play

Language in multilingual families during the COVID-19 pandemic in Norway: a survey of challenges and opportunities

Abstract The first lockdown of the Covid-19 pandemic resulted in school closures and homeschooling for families across the world. This provided a unique scenario to investigate multilingual family language interaction, and specifically, challenges and opportunities for home language (HL) use. This study is rooted in Family Language Policy (FLP) research, building on previous models of language policy as language beliefs, practices and management, as it addresses the effects of the lockdown on the use of, and exposure to, HLs. An online survey was used to assess the language beliefs, practices and management in a sample of families in Norway, a country with a significant and complex linguistic diversity. Our results indicate overall positive attitudes towards multilingualism in Norway, which are associated with an increased use of, and exposure to, Norwegian and HLs during the lockdown. Furthermore, we find a unique presence of English in multilingual families in Norway, especially across online spaces. Lastly, our study shows that the perception of multilingualism as a source of well-being is associated with positive effects of the lockdown in the use of HLs during the pandemic. We contend that this result can be taken as an example that, even in dire times of despair, families can find opportunities to promote multilingualism and language maintenance.

Сохранность этнического языка у уральских марийцев

This article presents linguistic biographies of several representatives of the Mari diaspora in the Moscow region, natives of the Sverdlovsk region who took part in the author’s sociolinguistic 2019-21 survey aimed at describing how an ethnic language functions within an internal diaspora. It is assumed that language use is due, among other things, to previous linguistic experience in the locality where one grew up. Thus, part of the survey questionnaire was devoted to language use in intra-family communication, preschool education, school education (language of instruction and language as school subject), and further education. The responses made it possible to establish which channels were used by respondents for learning Mari and Russian, as well as to identify the languages used for interacting with their neighbors in their home area. The data collected in the article is also offered as an attempt to describe the current Mari language situation in areas with a high concentration of Ural Maris in the Krasnoufimsky, Achitsky, Artinsky and Nizhneserginsky districts of the Sverdlovsk region. The author discusses Mari language use in the home and in the educational system. Some common language ideologies that underly family language policy and influence the choice of the language of intra-family interactions are described in detail. A separate section analyzes the dynamics of how the Mari language functions in education according to data obtained in interviews with teachers at local schools. The issues of Mari language-in-culture maintenance and its presence in religious rites are also explored. An important focus of the article is on preserving the ethnic identity of the Mari people residing in the diaspora that was formed in the 16-18th centuries.

Family language policy and language shift in postcolonial Mozambique: a critical, multi-layered approach

Family language policy and language shift in postcolonial Mozambique: a critical, multi-layered approach

Life satisfaction of 10-year-olds in a bilingual context in France: the predictive role of parental language practices and children’s use of the minority language

ABSTRACT The transmission and maintenance of minority languages is at the core of family issues that can influence children’s life satisfaction. It is only very recently that family language policy studies have turned their attention to the socio-emotional domain. This study examined some predictors (parental language practices, children’s minority and majority language skills, their language use at home) of the life satisfaction of 86 children aged 10, living in France in a bilingual context, and whose language practiced at home is minorated. The children individually and collectively filled out questionnaires about their life satisfaction, their language practices, those of their parents and their own language skills. The results indicate that the parents’ language practices and the children’s use of languages at home are the only two variables that significantly predict the children’s life satisfaction. Although linked to their life satisfaction, the children’s skills in the minority language do not have a significant impact in the tested model. The data of this study thus tends to open new avenues for reflection on the place of child well-being in the study of family language policies.

‘I don’t want to see the foreign languages connected with our family disappear’: building and maintaining a multilingual family in the monolingual context of Vietnam

ABSTRACT At a meso level, families have shown an imperative role in language policy in general and language education in particular. Predicated on the theories of family language policy and a transdisciplinary framework for L2 development, this study was undertaken to explore what three generations of a family did with the foreign languages they had learned in order to build and maintain their multilingual family. Data was gathered through informal interviews with the family members as well as field notes taken by the principal researcher during each visit to the family. The findings indicate that the members conformed to the prevalent discourses of L2 learning in mainstream education. They had specific strategies to sustain ‘old-fashioned’ L2s while simultaneously demonstrating their complete openness to emergent L2s. Of acute significance in research results is their interaction with L2s in multiple ways of learning and the system of values and ideologies they associated with the L2s in the monolingual context of Vietnam. The study offers implications for family stakeholders’ engagement in the policy, research, and practice of language education.

Family language policy in Swedish-English families: Rhizomatic conceptualisations

AbstractAlthough past research has established that family language policies are composed of numerous complex, entangled, heterogenous elements, as of yet, most works grounded within this research paradigm do not attempt to fully embrace this complexity. This article argues that the complexity can be more fully engaged with by conceptualising a family language policy as a rhizomatic system which consists of a multiplicity of temporary assemblages. Drawing on video recordings, interviews, and stimulated recall protocols from a project on the dimensions of language in Swedish-English families, this article aims to consider how interactional episodes within these families can be viewed as an assemblage of material elements, experiences, agential forces, and conceptual discourses. It is argued that through the analysis of multiple assemblages, and through the consideration of the connectivity between such assemblages, that a holistic picture of the rhizomatic structure that is a family language policy begins to be built.

“What is language for us?”: Community-based Anishinaabemowin language planning using TEK-nology

Language planning and policy (LPP), as a field of research, emerged to solve the “problem” of multilingualism in newly independent nation-states. LPP’s principal emphasis was the reproduction of one-state, one-language policies. Indigenous languages were systematically erased through top-down, colonial medium-of-instruction policies, such as in Canadian residential schools. To this day, ideologies and policies still privilege dominant classes and languages at the expense of Indigenous and minoritized groups and languages. To prevent further erasure and marginalization, work is required at multiple levels. There is growing consensus that top-down, government-led LPP must occur alongside community-led, bottom-up LPP. One shared and common goal for Indigenous language reclamation and revitalization initiatives across the globe is to promote intergenerational language transmission in the home, the community, and beyond. The affordances of digital and online technologies are also being explored to foster more self-determined virtual communities of practice. Following an Indigenous research paradigm, this paper introduces the TEK-nology (Traditional Ecological Knowledge [TEK] and technology) pilot project in the Canadian context. TEK-nology is an immersive, community-led, and technology-enabled Indigenous language acquisition approach to support Anishinaabemowin language revitalization and reclamation. The TEK-nology pilot project is an example of bottom-up, community-based language planning (CBLP) where Indigenous community members are the language-related decision-makers. This paper demonstrates that Indigenous-led, praxis-driven CBLP, using TEK-nology, can support Anishinaabemowin language revitalization and reclamation and more equitable, self-determined LPP. The CBLP TEK-nology project has implications for status and acquisition language planning; culturally responsive LPP methodologies; and federal, provincial, territorial, and family language policy.

Family Language Policy: The Case of Arabic Sojourners in the United Kingdom

Family Language Policy: The Case of Arabic Sojourners in the United Kingdom

Code Choices Among Multilingual Families: a Pilot Study

Living in a multi-ethnic and multilingual country, Indonesian citizens have the privilege of being exposed to different languages and using them in various degrees of proficiency. As it becomes typical for an individual to mix and/or switch languages in everyday interaction, there is certainly room for more in-depth investigation, especially in determining the pattern of code choices among multilingual families. Using a descriptive qualitative approach, we observed how code choices occur in the family of two multilingual young adult speakers in Universitas Negeri Malang. The data of this current study were collected from two interview videos as a part of a larger project (Family Language Policy) we carried out in 2021 with a focus on how language selection processes work in their families. The results showed that there were different code choice patterns practiced in these two families; for example, the first family used Javanese as a primary communication code among family members, while the second family chose to use Indonesian. However, interestingly both families communicate in Indonesian when speaking to very young members or children. The findings of this current paper are important particularly in predicting the language shift phenomena in Indonesian contexts.
 Keywords: code choices, family language policy, multilingual families, Indonesia

The Role of Parents' Social Background in Home Language Practices: A Family Language Policy Perspective

Departing from Indonesia’s unique and complex multilingual environment, our study sought to investigate the role of the social background of multilingual parents in implementing home language use. Specifically, we ask whether home language practice is shaped by parents’ education level, ethnicity, and occupation, particularly in parent-child interaction. Our analysis draws from an online survey of 1.344 multilingual parents from different parts of Indonesia, with the survey being mainly distributed to over 28 provinces, including NAD, North Sumatra (North & West), Lampung, Bangka Belitung, Jambi, Bengkulu, Jakarta, West Java, Central, and East Java, Yogyakarta, Maluku, Kalimantan (North, South, West, East, and Central), Riau, Sulawesi (North, South, and Southeast), Bali, Nusa Tenggara (West and East), West Papua, and Papua. A single paragraph of 200 words maximum. Our findings indicate that education, ethnicity, and occupation significantly shape parents’ decisions to manage home language practice with their children.
 Keywords: social background, multilingual parents, home language practices

Iranian parents’ attitudes towards their children’s early additive bilingualism

ABSTRACT This study aimed to explore parents’ attitudes towards children's additive bilingualism in the underrepresented context of Iran. A second aim was to delve into the parents’ underlying reasons for their related decisions and choices. Results of a questionnaire submitted to 96 randomly chosen parents from a small town and follow-up interviews showed that the parents generally held a positive attitude towards additive bilingualism, although some were worried that the children may mix up the two languages, hence their preference for a later starting point for a foreign/second language (L2). Results also indicated that of the languages that they could choose as an additional language for their children, all preferred English and that they themselves were willing to improve their own English to use it at home. An examination of the parents’ responses revealed three main themes, namely immigration plans mixed with feelings of disappointment, obtaining an international image for the children, and career aspirations. We argue that family language policies (FLPs), at times planned implicitly and covertly, could run contrary to macropolicies and be under the influence of a wide range of factors ranging from sociopolitical, sociological, and sociocultural to language spread catalysts.

Language policies and multilingual practices in Icelandic preschools

ABSTRACT This article aims at exploring family language policies and practices of immigrant families in Iceland as well as educational practices and partnerships in their children’s preschools. The article draws on interviews with preschool principals and teachers in three preschools in Iceland, and presents findings related to state, municipal, and school language policies as well as multilingual practices in these preschools. The findings indicate that despite the generally positive attitudes and interest in multilingual practices among preschool personnel, there is room for improvement in terms of more structured and systematic integration of the diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds of families, as well as fostering stronger partnerships with parents from different linguistic and cultural communities. Furthermore, teacher education should include both theoretical and practical knowledge of multicultural and multilingual education to better equip teachers for cultural and linguistic diversity in schools.

Family language policy through the lenses of parents

AbstractThe present study describes family language policy (FLP) concerning the Azerbaijani Turkish language as an under-investigated context in Iran. Drawing upon Spolsky’s (2004) model of FLP with three major components of language ideologies, practices, and management strategies, we adapted Kaveh’s (2018) questionnaire to investigate language policies of Azerbaijani families in Urmia. To this end, 150 families completed the questionnaire about their language policies at home and their children’s competency in their heritage language and second language, and how they impacted one another. Moreover, seven families took part in semi-structured interviews to elicit further ideas on the key themes of the questionnaire. Analysis of the FLPs revealed that a host of factors played a role in improving the use of dual languages by the children of these families. However, it was found that clear-stated language policies were not spelled out in most families, and poor media coverage and schooling in Persian augmented parents’ worries concerning heritage language attrition. The findings showed that apart from the family, a number of macro-based sociocultural elements seem to govern the language-based choices families and their children make, and high-quality media programmes in heritage language and bilingual educational system (use of both official and heritage languages) can alleviate families’ concerns to a great extent.RésuméLa présente étude décrit la politique linguistique familiale (FLP) concernant la langue turque azerbaïdjanaise, en tant que contexte sous-exploré, en Iran. En nous appuyant sur le modèle de politique linguistique familiale de Spolsky (2004) avec trois composantes majeures d’idéologies, de pratiques et de stratégies de gestion linguistiques, nous avons adapté le questionnaire de Kaveh (2018) pour enquêter sur les politiques linguistiques des familles azerbaïdjanaises à Urmia. À cette fin, 150 familles ont rempli le questionnaire sur leurs politiques linguistiques à la maison et sur la compétence de leurs enfants dans leur langue d’origine et leur langue seconde, et sur leur impact mutuel. De plus, sept familles ont participé à des entretiens semi-structurés pour obtenir des idées supplémentaires sur les thèmes clés du questionnaire. L’analyse des FLP a révélé qu’une foule de facteurs jouaient un rôle dans l’amélioration de l’utilisation de la double langue par les enfants de ces familles. Cependant, il a été constaté que des politiques linguistiques claires n’étaient pas énoncées dans la plupart des familles, et une mauvaise couverture médiatique et une scolarisation en persan augmentaient les inquiétudes des parents concernant l’attrition de la langue d’origine. Les résultats ont montré qu’en dehors de la famille, un certain nombre d’éléments socioculturels macroéconomiques semblent régir les choix linguistiques que font les familles et leurs enfants, et des programmes médiatiques de haute qualité dans la langue d’origine et le système éducatif bilingue (utilisation à la fois des langues officielles et langues d’origine) peuvent apaiser dans une large mesure les inquiétudes des familles.

Family language policy in an endangered heritage language context: Gagauz mothers’ perspectives

ABSTRACT This paper investigates family language policy reported by Gagauz migrant mothers using a qualitative approach. The Gagauz language, the native language of the participants, is one of the languages which is at risk. Data were collected from 14 Gagauz mothers who were living in Turkey. Semi-structured interviews were held with the participants to examine family language practices, beliefs and management strategies. Although language beliefs about family language policy differ from each other, generally Gagauz mothers expect their children to speak Russian due to its status as a lingua franca in trade, education and employment in the post-Soviet context. Moreover, it was found that the Gagauz mothers employed a wide range of family language practices. Majority of participants reported that they spoke mainly Russian whereas others stated that they preferred Turkish at home. As for language management strategies, the lack of educational and audiovisual materials in the Gagauz language affected the Gagauz mothers’ family language management strategies in a negative way. Additionally, the Gagauz language has a symbolic function which is considered a part of Gagauz identity. The findings also revealed insights about Gagauz language maintenance and a shift in heritage context.

Migrant bilingual youth, family, and school language policy: ethnographic insights for urban Quechua education

Abstract In this paper, I draw on the ethnography of language planning and policy to consider how urban Indigenous language education might benefit from understanding the meanings and processes behind other language planning and policy activities migrant youth participate in, specifically, family language policymaking activities. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork and interviews conducted in the region of Cusco, Perú I examine the experiences of two youth from rural hometowns and of their families. My analysis discusses how family language policies influenced youth’s shifting repertoires towards and away from Quechua, how youth drew on their Quechua–Spanish bilingualism to act as family language policy agents guided by local crianza and raciolinguistic ideologies, and how youth experienced Quechua language education in urban high schools. I argue that urban Quechua education efforts need to consider how migrant youth experience and shape their bilingualism and that of their families across rural-urban continua in order to craft safe and meaningful spaces where youth can participate in the strengthening of their Quechua language practices and identities.

Language practices and policies of Singaporean-Japanese families in Singapore

The few studies on Family Language Policy in Singapore (FLP) have generally focused on FLP in local and immigrant Chinese families. This article explores language policies that seem to undergird Singaporean-Japanese families’ language practices. In-depth interviews and observations with five such families showed that Japanese only functions as the language of communication between the Japanese parents and their children if parents have invoked particular language policies to support its transmission and use at home. For most families, English was the main medium of communication among family members. Language policies and practices in these families were heavily influenced by the value emplaced on each language within the parents’ linguistic repertoire and their beliefs regarding language learning.

Family language policy in retrospect: Narratives of success and failure in an Indian–Iranian transnational family

In this study, we investigate family language policy in a transnational family through a collaborative autoethnography. Following the theoretical underpinnings of family language policy (Spolsky in J Multiling Multicult Dev 31:3–11, 2012), we present parental language beliefs, management, and practices in retrospect to shine a light on the long-term impact of the family’s language policy on their daughter’s linguistic development in heritage languages (i.e., Persian and Hindi) and English. The components of the family language policy in this cross-cultural transnational family are sketched in the second author’s narratives of her experiences of multilingual childrearing and heritage language maintenance. We engage with, and critique, recent family language scholarship that apply postmodernist lens to examine families’ translingual use of languages at home to get by their daily life, showing how having failed to set boundaries between the home/heritage languages and English over the past nine years has resulted in their child’s predominant proficiency in English. We argue that such failure has its roots in parents’ own past lived, and future imagined, experiences, as well as language ideologies that are polycentric and scaled, the consequences of which concern emotional, linguistic, cultural and social frictions across generations. Drawing on the narratives of success and failure in the family, we call for critical adoption of translingual frameworks in examining family language policy paying careful attention to the long-term impact of such practices at home on children’s linguistic development.

The role of home language environment and parental efforts in children’s English development in an EFL context

ABSTRACT Despite the unique status of English as a super-power among foreign languages in Korea, and researchers’ increasing interest in Korean parents’ zeal for achieving their children’s early bilingualism and willingness to invest heavily in private English education outside of school, insufficient attention has been paid to the role of parental involvement and English-friendly home environments in Korean children’s early bilingual education. Accordingly, this case study of one Korean family provides an in-depth exploration of how the home language environment, family language policy, and parental investment affected the children’s bilingual development as well as other aspects of family dynamics. The results show that such family capital as parents’ English language proficiency, ability to support and sustain English language practice at the home domain in an ELF context, and access to learning resources can support their consistent efforts to provide a rich linguistic environment with positive psychological support in the home domain. Pedagogical implications for Korean parents with high aspirations for their children’s bilingual development are discussed.