Heritage Language

UW STARTALK Aviation Learning Center
Russian Heritage Language Learners in the UW STARTALK Program

Resources for developing and supporting Heritage Language programs.

Getting Started

To get started, think about why it would be important to honor all languages spoken by human beings around the world and in our local communities.

Speak Your Language Campaign

Watch the video: Honoring the Home Languages

Think about these definitions of who is a heritage language learner.

Heritage Languages: at the crossroads of research and teaching
https://www.govtilr.org/Publications/heritage2011.pdf
from 2007 paper, “Heritage Languages: In the ‘Wild’ and in the Classroom” https://dash.harvard.edu/handle/1/3382973

Note that there is not universal agreement on how to define a heritage language. As noted in Wikipedia (accessed 4/26/2020):

“One idea that prevails in the literature is that “[heritage] languages include indigenous languages that are often endangered. . . as well as world languages that are commonly spoken in many other regions of the world (Spanish in the United States, Arabic in France)”.[4] However, that view is not shared universally. In Canada, for example, First Nations languages are not classified as heritage languages by some groups[9] whereas they are so classified by others.[10]“

What is involved in Heritage Language Learning?

Overview of Heritage Language Learning (Carreira, NHLRC 2018)
Key concepts of Heritage Language Learning shared by Dr. Maria Carreira, Co-Director of the National Heritage Language Resource Center.

Washington State Resources

Grants for Heritage Language Programs

Heritage Language Schools in Washington

Please contact us if you would like your school listed here at intledwa@gmail.com.

UW STARTALK Programs (Events)
Summer Language Student Programs for Russian and Portuguese Heritage Language learners have been offered since 2011. Teacher Programs have been offered supporting a variety of STARTALK languages. Each winter, the UW STARTALK Team organizes the Heritage Language Symposium and posts presentation links and handouts on the Events pages:

World Language Competency-Based Credits and Seal of Biliteracy

Learn more:

National Resources

Coalition of Community-Based Heritage Language Schools
The Coalition of Community-Based Language Schools is a nationwide initiative established to support, guide, and promote the interests of community-based heritage language schools and organizations across the United States. 

Endangered Native Languages of the United States
A large number of indigenous languages of the United States are classified as endangered, necessitating the immediate protection of them.
“In the US, native languages spoken by the indigenous peoples have been declining since Europeans began arriving. Before colonialism, approximately 300 languages were used throughout the country. Today, there are around 167 languages, and estimates suggest that only 20 of these indigenous languages will remain by 2050.”

National Heritage Language Resource Center
The National Heritage Language Resource Center, at the University of California, Los Angeles, is a federally funded language resource center whose mission is to develop effective pedagogical approaches to teaching heritage language learners, both by creating a research base and by pursuing curriculum design, materials development, and teacher education.

The Global Seal of Biliteracy
The Global Seal of Biliteracy is a credential that celebrates language skills and expands future opportunities for its recipients.