Heritage Languages, Motivation and Technology
Welcome to the web site for Heritage Languages, Motivation and Technology. This web site was originally created as a tool to use in a staff development workshop for the Springfield School District that took place in the summer of 2006. Since then, it has been expanded to include resources that may be useful to any teacher who works with heritage language learners whether those students are learning their home language or another language. The purpose of this web site is to support teachers and to encourage the broadest enrichment of the heritage language abilities of our students.
What is available on this site?
ARTICLES
This page links to several articles written by Diana Scalera over the years on the topic of heritage language learners. It may also include links to articles written by others that have relevance to the topics discussed. One topic of great importance to heritage language instruction is third language acquisition theory.
VIDEOS
This a link to three videos created for Integrated Curriculum and Instruction Learning Support Organization (New York City Department of Education). They demonstrate best practices in ESL, Content Area and Spanish Native Language Arts classes.
FLTEACH
These pages include posts to the FLTeach list serve that relate to the politics and pedagogy of heritage language instruction.
SYLLABUS
This is the syllabus that was used for the Springfield workshop. This can be used as a model to provide staff development for heritage language teachers.
BIOGRAPHY
Heritage learner instruction is often dependent on supporting your students' affective domain. To best accomplish this task, it is important for teachers to be aware of their own affective issues as a multilingual person. Sharing our own biographies with our students and colleagues is one way we can be aware enough of our own issues to effectively support our students.
WEB RESOURCES
These are links to important resources that will support heritage language instruction with or without technology. It also includes some simple handouts that may aid in classroom management.
I SPEAK ARABIC
I Speak Arabic is a film about Arabic heritage learners in the New York Metropolitan area. This is a valuable resource for any school with a heritage language population.