A Guide to Language Policy and Planning for B.C. First Nations Communities First Peoples’ Cultural Council First Peoples’ Cultural Council A Guide to Language Policy and Planning for B.C. First Nations Communities Handbook Development Team Scott Franks Suzanne Gessner Photographs are provided by the First Peoples’ Cultural Council, the Office of the Wet’suwet’en, and Brian Ladue. Acknowledgments We respectfully thank and acknowledge the New Relationship Trust for funding for this guide. This guide has been improved due to substantial feedback from our reviewers: Maxine Baptiste, Peter Jacobs, Mandy Jimmie, George Kaliszewski, Feddie Louie, Sherry Stump, Tye Swallow and Judy Thomp- son. We thank and acknowledge them for their contribution. We are also grateful to Arliss Daniels, Tracey Herbert, Patti Hupe, Megan Lappi, Aliana Parker, Hannah Virtue, and Alex Wadsworth. Any errors or omissions are the responsibility of the authors. Finally, we thank and acknowledge the B.C. First Nations communities who continue to work tirelessly in their efforts toward language revitalization. In particular, we acknowledge the following organiza- tions whose experience with their Language Authorities has helped us in the development of this guide: Coqualeetza Cultural Education Centre, En’owkin Centre, Tahltan Central Council, Nicola Tribal Associa- tion, Secwepemc Cultural Education Society, SENC´O T- EN EL- TÁL- N_ EW_ SC/SÁS, Treaty 8 Tribal Association, Tseshaht First Nation, Tsilhqot’in National Government, Upper St’át’imc Language, Culture & Education Society, and Xaad Kihlgaa Hl Suu.u Society. First Peoples’ Cultural Council (FPCC) 1A Boat Ramp Road Brentwood Bay, B.C. V8M 1N9 Telephone: (250) 652-5952 [email protected] www.fpcc.ca Copyright © 2013 by First Peoples’ Cultural Council ISBN: 978-0-9868401-4-2 2 A Guide to Language Policy and Planning for B.C. First Nations Communities Table of Contents Table Table of Contents Quick Start Section: Key Points ............................................................................................................................6 Quick Start Section: Templates ............................................................................................................................ 7 Chapter 1: Introduction ........................................................................................................................................11 Purpose of the guide .....................................................................................................................................11 Organization of the guide .............................................................................................................................11 Who is this document for? ............................................................................................................................11 What is language planning and policy? .......................................................................................................11 Status of First Nations languages in B.C. ................................................................................................... 12 Language shift and renewal ......................................................................................................................... 12 Why care about language shift and language renewal? .......................................................................13 Stages of language shift .........................................................................................................................13 Language revitalization and renewal .....................................................................................................15 Chapter summary ........................................................................................................................................ 16 Chapter 2: Community Language Policy and Planning .................................................................................... 19 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 19 Language Authorities ................................................................................................................................... 19 Step 1: Language Status ..............................................................................................................................24 Surveys and questionnaires ..................................................................................................................24 Survey templates ....................................................................................................................................26 Step 2: Community mobilization and support .........................................................................................28 Step 3: Research ...........................................................................................................................................29 Research on your language ...................................................................................................................29 Research on language revitalization best practices ............................................................................30 Where to look for resources ..................................................................................................................30 Carrying out a literature review or annotated bibliography .................................................................31 Start your own archive ............................................................................................................................31 Step 4: Setting language goals .................................................................................................................. 32 Thinking “big picture”: ideal language goals for the community ...................................................... 32 How to make it happen ..........................................................................................................................33 Developing a vision statement ............................................................................................................. 34 Step 5: Planning .............................................................................................................................................35 Developing a language plan ...................................................................................................................35 Project and action step planning .......................................................................................................... 38 Table of Contents 3 First Peoples’ Cultural Council Step 6: Implement language projects ......................................................................................................... 41 Grants and funding ................................................................................................................................42 Language funding opportunities .......................................................................................................... 45 Step 7: Use the language more....................................................................................................................49 Develop language policies ....................................................................................................................49 Step 8: Keep the language alive ..................................................................................................................50 Language Authority Terms of Reference ......................................................................................................51 Language Authority best practices ...............................................................................................................51 Chapter summary ......................................................................................................................................... 52 Chapter 3: Language policy for education & documentation ...........................................................................57 Language policies for education ..................................................................................................................57 The best educational policy for language: immersion .........................................................................57 Early childhood education and pre-school language nests ................................................................ 58 Language education for children and youth: school programs ......................................................... 59 Adult language programs: master-apprentice method ......................................................................62 Family and home language activities ...................................................................................................63 How to certify teachers with the B.C. Ministry of Education .............................................................63 Language policies for documentation ........................................................................................................64 Language archives ................................................................................................................................. 65 Language databases .............................................................................................................................