Running Head: HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE
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Running Head: HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE A CASE STUDY OF THE EXPERIENCES AND PERSPECTIVES OF HISPANIC IMMIGRANT PARENTS ON HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE AND BILINGUAL EDUCATION IN THE RURAL COMMUNITY OF BRANDON, MANITOBA Thesis Presented to Dr. Burcu Yaman Ntelioglou, Dr. Karen Rempel, and Dr. Chris Beeman Faculty of Education, Brandon University by Erika Serrano-Hidalgo June 11, 2018 HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE Brandon University FACULTY OF EDUCATION The undersigned certify that they have read, and recommended to the Senate for acceptance, a MASTER’S THESIS entitled: A Case Study of the Experiences and Perspectives of Hispanic Immigrant Parents on Heritage Language Maintenance and Bilingual Education in the Rural Community of Brandon, Manitoba Submitted by: Erika Serrano-Hidalgo In partial fulfillment for the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF EDUCATION Date: June 11, 2018 ______________________________ Advisor: Dr. Burcu Yaman Ntelioglou ______________________________ Committee member: Dr. Karen Rempel ______________________________ Committee member: Dr. Chris Beeman Permission has been granted to the LIBRARY OF BRANDON UNIVERSITY to lend or sell copies of this thesis to the NATIONAL LIBRARY OF CANADA, to microfilm this project, and to lend copies of the microfilm to UNIVERSITY MICROFILMS to publish an abstract. The author reserves other publication rights, and neither the project, nor extensive extracts from it may be printed or otherwise reproduced without the author’s written permission. HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE To all the immigrant mothers and international students who are struggling to complete a master’s thesis while holding a baby in their arms. Having you going through these lines demonstrates that despite the difficulties, the goal can be achieved. A mi esposo, Jaime, por su apoyo, paciencia y amor i HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Hispanic immigrant parents. I wish to express my gratitude to the all the parents and members of the Hispanic community who took part in this study. My thesis supervisor. Special gratitude I give to my advisor, Dr. Burcu Yaman Ntelioglou, for the useful comments, remarks, and engagement through the learning process of conducting this study. Without her guidance, patience, and help, this research would not have been possible. My committee members. I would like to acknowledge with much appreciation the role of my committee members, Dr. Chris Beeman, and Dr. Karen Rempel, who provided me with useful comments during the completion of this study. ii HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE Abstract This study investigated and described the experiences and perspectives of Hispanic immigrant parents on heritage language maintenance and bilingual education in the City of Brandon, Manitoba. Hispanic immigrant parents were interviewed to explore how they perceived and experienced the maintenance of the home language and bilingual education of their children. The study used a qualitative embedded case study methodology (Yin, 2014). Data collection methods included five individual semi-structured interviews and three focus group interviews. Sixteen first-generation Hispanic immigrant parents took part in this study, and they were divided into two subunits of analysis: Colombian, Honduran, and Salvadoran immigrant parents and non-Colombian, Honduran, and Salvadoran immigrant parents. The results of this study reveal that despite the importance that both groups of Hispanic immigrant parents place in their native language as a fundamental core value in their ethnic identity, they perceived a gradual erosion of their children’s home language. Colombian, Salvadoran, and Honduran immigrant parents had more challenges and difficulties in preserving their home language in comparison with Hispanic non-Colombian, Honduran, and Salvadoran immigrant parents. Data suggest that the Colombian, Salvadoran, and Honduran immigrant parents were less aware of the cognitive advantages of bilingualism and heritage language preservation in comparison with the Hispanic non-Colombian, Honduran, and Salvadoran immigrant parents. However, both groups of parents perceived the need to implement heritage and bilingual programs in the school and in the community for supporting their efforts to preserve the home language. Language barriers that parents faced, along with socioeconomic conditions, repercussions of intrafamilial conflicts, separation, and family disruption were factors negatively influencing home language maintenance in children. In summary, this research sought to raise awareness of heritage iii HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE language maintenance issues that affect the Hispanic immigrants in a rural city of Manitoba. The results confirm that changes in heritage and bilingual policy are needed to support the Hispanic immigrant community in their efforts to maintain the heritage language. Teachers, school personnel, and parents need to develop ‘collaborative power relations’ (Cummins, 2001; Ntelioglou, Fannin, Montanera, & Cummins, 2014) to achieve the outcome of empowering Hispanic immigrant children. Keywords: Language maintenance, bilingual education, heritage language, Hispanic immigrants iv HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE TABLE OF CONTENTS Dedication………………………………………………………………………………………..i Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………….………......ii Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………………iii Table of Contents……………………………………………………………………………......v List of Tables & Figures…………………………………………………………………...........xi Chapter I: Background to The Research ………………................………...........................12 Introduction to the Importance of Home Language Maintenance ……….....................12 Introduction to the Research…………………………………………...........................15 Research Question………………………………......………………………...16 Problem Statement …………………………………………………................16 Purpose of the Study……………………………………………………..........22 Rationale and Significance………………………………………………........23 Overview of the Methodology………………………………………...............26 Delimitations and Limitations…………………………………………………27 Assumptions……………………………………………………………...........28 Research Context: Hispanic Immigration in Brandon Manitoba………...........29 Organization of the Thesis……………………………………………….....................32 Definition of Terms……………………………………………………………............33 Chapter 2: Theoretical Framework and Literature Review…..............................................35 Critical Theory…………………………............………………………………...........35 Core Value Theory……………………………………………...........…………..........37 v HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE Relations of Power in the Wider Society…………………............…………...…........37 Home Language Maintenance…………………………………………………...........41 Heritage Language Maintenance and Bilingual Education………...........….…44 Immigrant Parents and Heritage Language Maintenance…………............…..47 Hispanic Immigrant Parents and Heritage Language Maintenance…...............50 Challenges in Accessing Heritage Language and Bilingual Education.............52 Ethnic Identity and Home Language Maintenance…………………............…53 Summary………………………………………………………………………............55 Chapter 3: Methodology of The Study…………………...……….....................................…57 Research Methodology…………………………………………………..…................58 Embedded Case Study Methodology………………………………………….…........58 Research Context…………………………………………..………………….......…..63 Selecting Sampling Procedure and Rationale………………………………................65 Participants…………………………………………………………………….............68 Profile of Participants………………………….................................................68 Colombian, Honduran and Salvadoran Immigrant Parents...................68 Non-Colombian, Honduran and Salvadoran Immigrant Parents...........70 Research Instruments…………………………………………………………….........70 One-on-one Semistructured Interview...............................................................73 Focus Group Interview.......................................................................................74 Field Notes.........................................................................................................76 Data Collection Procedure……………………………………………………….........77 Data Analysis Procedure……………………………………………………............…79 vi HERITAGE LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE The Trustworthiness of the Study…………………........…………………………......80 Credibility..........................................................................................................80 Confirmability....................................................................................................81 Dependability.....................................................................................................81 Transferability....................................................................................................81 Researcher’s Positionality……………………………………………………..............82 Ethical Considerations………………………………………....………………...........86 Summary………………………………………………………………………............87 Chapter 4: Results and Discussion…….........….....................……………………………….88 Chapter Overview……………………………………………………………..............88 An Overview of the Parents’ Profile .............................................................................90 Colombian, Honduran, and Salvadoran Participants……….............................90 Gabriela.................................................................................................90 Lucy........................................................................................................91