Home Language Literacy Research Articles

Factors Affecting Home Language Literacy Development in Japanese-English Bicultural Children in Japan

Simultaneous bilingual and bicultural children who are schooled in the dominant societal language can acquire literacy in their home language through home literacy practices and weekend school. Twenty-eight Japanese-English bilingual–bicultural children (ages 9 to 14) attending English weekend schools in Japan were assessed using the standardized Test of Written Language (TOWL, 4th ed.). Their overall age-adjusted writing scores showed that most were on a par with same-age US peers. The parents’ responses to parental questionnaires revealed that the children’s regular attendance and enjoyment of weekend school, coupled with parental home support and access to plenty of appropriate English reading materials, helped to establish their English literacy. Nevertheless, the children attained different writing scores. Although many performed within the Average range, some scored either in the Above Average or higher range or the Below Average or lower range. Further analysis of these three groups of children revealed a strong relationship between reading practices and writing scores. Better writers tend to read frequently in English; they enjoy reading independently and voluntarily. These findings underscore the importance of recreational reading as an accessible and affordable means for developing home language literacy in bilingual and bicultural children in Japan.

Home language literacy practices: learning opportunities for primary EAL students

It is well-established in both scholarship and policy documents that students’ home language practices can be leveraged as a key resource for their learning. However, it can be challenging for teachers to embed students’ language resources in class activities in ways that link to wider learning objectives. We report how the inclusion of home language literacy practices can both enhance English language learning and promote multiliteracies. Data are drawn from a design-based study on the incorporation of home languages in the teaching of English. In the article, we focus on the teaching and learning that occurred in the classroom of two English as an Additional Language (EAL) teachers. Data collected comprised lesson sequences, teacher reflection, student work samples and student reflection. It was found that teacher-initiated support for home language literacy practices led to positive student engagement. The support included giving an active role to bi/multilingual teaching assistants and Google Translate.

Can virtual replace in-person coaching? Experimental evidence on teacher professional development and student learning

Virtual communication holds the promise of enabling low-cost professional development at scale, but the benefits of in-person interaction might be difficult to replicate. We report on an experiment in South Africa comparing on-site with virtual coaching of public primary school teachers. After three years, on-site coaching improved students’ English oral language and reading proficiency (0.31 and 0.13 SD, respectively). Virtual coaching had a smaller impact on English oral language proficiency (0.12 SD), no impact on English reading proficiency, and an unintended negative effect on home language literacy. The top-performing students consistently benefited most. Classroom observations show that on-site coaching improved teaching practices, while virtual coaching led to larger crowding-out of home language teaching time. Implementation and survey data suggest technology itself was not a barrier to implementation, but rather that in-person contact enabled more accountability and support.

Adult Migrants with Little or no Formal Education: Language and Literacy Learning

Some adult migrants and refugees have no home language literacy, because they have attended little or no school in their home country. There are few studies of the literacy development of these adult learners and limited professional development for teachers who work with them. Recent research, and the formation of the LESLLA organization, are bringing about a shift in research focus, practitioner training, and researcher and practitioner engagement. This article reviews research on literacy development of children and adults learning a second language and describes three projects focused on literacy development for this adult learner population.

Play to learn: self-directed home language literacy acquisition through online games

Home language literacy education in Australia has been pursued predominantly through Community Language Schools. At present, some 1000 of these, attended by over 100,000 school-age children, cater for 69 of the over 300 languages spoken in Australia. Despite good intentions, these schools face a number of challenges. For instance, children may lack motivation and perceive after-hours schooling as an unnecessary burden. Trained teachers and suitable teaching materials are often not available. Moreover, not every language can be offered in each city or region. Hence, home language speakers’ needs are often not met. This situation has detrimental effects for children, families and communities, and entails a loss of opportunities for the country. Reporting on an alternative approach, this paper presents a pilot study conducted in Australia with English–German bilinguals. We sought to investigate whether primary school-aged children can self-direct their home language literacy acquisition through playing online educational games in the privacy of their homes and with little adult input. Results indicate that the games can be effective in promoting emergent literacy development. Thus, such a grassroots approach could become a viable option for multilingual societies, addressing some of the practical challenges faced by, for instance, Community Language Schools.

Somali immigrant youths and the power of print literacy

This article examines some of the ways in which the politics of a written script are enacted among Somali refugees and immigrants in present-day schools and classrooms. Analysis focuses on data gathered with Somali youths in one all-immigrant high school classroom in the US. Data are examined to illustrate how global processes, some of which have developed across timescales of multiple decades, including the decision about a Somali script, the Somali civil war(s) and the rise of Somali Diaspora, play out in everyday classroom interactions. Here we extend the academic conversation about the cognitive and educational benefit of home language literacy and schooling when learning a new language by exploring the dynamic relationship between the symbolic power of Somali print literacy on the one hand, and current classroom practices and informal policies on the other. These findings illustrate how the history of the Somali script, differential access to formal schooling along gender lines and the benefit of hav...

Emergent bilingual students in secondary school: Along the academic language and literacy continuum

This article offers a critical review of research about emergent bilingual students in secondary school, where the academic demands placed upon them are great, and where instruction typically remains steadfast in its monolingualism. I focus on recent scholarship about the diversity within this student population, and center on ‘students with interrupted formal education’ (SIFE, new arrivals who have no home language literacy skills or are at the beginning stages of literacy learning) and ‘long-term English language learners’ (LTELLs, primarily educated in their receiving country yet still eligible for language support services). Little has been published about these students, making this a significant area of inquiry. Moreover, both groups are characterized by poor performance and together illustrate the characteristics of secondary students at various points along an academic language and literacy continuum. While existing research provides important information to help us improve secondary schooling for emergent bilinguals, it has also perpetuated deficit views of these students by focusing solely on their perceived academic shortcomings. Grounded in a new body of research in applied linguistics that examines the students’ complex, creative, and dynamic language and literacy practices, I apply a translanguaging lens to critique the positioning of such students as deficient, with implications for research and practice.

An Examination of the Validity of English-Language Achievement Test Scores in an English Language Learner Population

Approximately 1,700 English language learners (ELLs) and former ELL students, in Grades 4 and 10, were tested using both an English-language (Stanford Achievement Test, 9th ed.) and a Spanish-language (Aprenda, 2nd ed.) achievement test. Their performances on the two tests were contrasted. The results showed that ELL students, for the most part, answered more items correctly on a home-language mathematics test, compared to a similar Englishlanguage math test, regardless of their level of home-language literacy. Additionally, former ELL students are often unable to exhibit their content-area knowledge on English-language achievement tests, possibly due to language and cultural barriers. In summary, the results show that the achievement test results of ELL students, when tested in English, are not always valid measures of their content-area knowledge.

Home Language Literacy and the Acculturation of Recent Chinese Immigrant Students

Abstract The implications of an emerging cross-group identity and the acquisition of second language and culture by bilingual and bicultural students is explored in this study. The results of this research detail the importance of home language and culture as it affects the social adaptation of new Chinese American immigrants. As these new immigrant students become part of the main society, the cultural similarities and differences characteristic of their native culture and language become evident to them. Students’ understanding of the cultural and linguistic similarities and differences between their first and second backgrounds is essential. This understanding affects how students learn about the new culture and how they interpret, acquire and produce English. The findings of the study have broad implications about the bicultural and bilingual experiences of individuals across cultures.