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Student voices: Maintaining heritage languages

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  • Student voices: Maintaining heritage languages

    The Sundial, CSUN, CA
    Nov 22 2014

    Student voices: Maintaining heritage languages

    By Negin Daneshfar


    There is an overwhelming lack of foreign language education throughout
    schools in the United States. Many individuals experience a withdrawal
    from their mother tongue and either speak English with their families
    or drop out of foreign language programs at a young age.

    In Europe maintaining one's heritage language along with learning
    English is encouraged throughout their education. According to the
    European Commission, educational systems in some European countries
    have an official language policy, which requires schools to teach two
    foreign languages. Of course the maintenance of such languages relies
    on how often that language is practiced in a particular area.

    According to Forbes 18% of Americans report speaking a language other
    than English, while 53% of Europeans speak a second language. As a
    result of this, more students continue to encounter struggles
    maintaining their mother tongue while learning English. Colleges and
    universities no longer require foreign language classes but still tend
    to include a handful of language courses, which are not always
    emphasized in high schools.

    Amirbahador Allahnejad, 25, senior business law major and
    international student speaks fluent Turkish and English and moderate
    Arabic. He picked up Turkish as a child while learning English through
    college. He said maintaining Turkish was difficult while speaking
    English with others.

    "Here and there, you may forget some words because you keep talking in
    English," Allahnejad said. "In general I think I kept up with my
    native language, but it was vaguely introduced in schools and I had to
    learn through family and friends."

    A study from University of Arizona reports that 67 percent of second
    generation students of Mexican and Asian descent in Southern
    California preferred to use English over their heritage language.
    Among Spanish speakers, 50 percent were fluent speakers and Asian
    Americans were comprised of less than 10 percent fluent speakers.

    While Allahnejad was taught the basics of Turkish grammar and language
    at his school, he learned English from classes taught by a private
    teacher since they weren't offered as part of his school curriculum.

    Amir Yazdani, 25, senior construction management major speaks fluent
    Armenian and English and moderate Farsi. Yazdani began to learn
    Armenian at two-years-old and picked up Farsi from reading, writing
    and speaking with family and friends. Like Allahnejad he become more
    familiar with English while attending college.

    "When I was 15 I wanted to have an international education mostly
    focused on English and we didn't have those services or facilities in
    Iran so I had to move out of the country," Yazdani said. Yazdani was
    not fluent when he moved to the United States which was a challenge
    but with practice he was able to gain a better understanding of the
    language.

    Yazdani shifted from mastering his native language and began to
    develop his English at a young age. He continued to maintain his
    Armenian skills while building on his English between grade schools.

    "Learning Armenian at first gave me the ability to learn different
    languages like English through experience and made it easier for me to
    learn more quickly," Yazdani said. "It would have been harder if I had
    learned English first and then Armenian and Farsi since foreign
    languages tend to be more complex."

    Yazdani said he learned English for 10 years in college until he
    completely mastered it.

    "It's one of the best tools that I have so far," he said. "I believe
    that it is important to introduce more native languages in schools,"
    said Yazdani.

    Ifrah Moalih, 19, freshman psychology major speaks fluent Spanish,
    English and moderate Somali. Moalih said she did not learn these
    languages in school but while she grew up around family members and
    friends who spoke Spanish and Somali. Eventually, she was taught how
    to read and write Spanish until she developed her English skills in
    school.

    "I think that the second language should be introduced more in U.S.
    schools and universities, I don't think that it should just be
    English," Moalih said. "Teaching more of the second language in
    elementary school actually is easier to learn and a faster process to
    remember."

    There are plenty of academic and social benefits that come with
    maintaining a heritage language or learning a second language.
    Although students such as Moalih are able to use their skills to their
    advantage, it is never too late to become more familiar with another
    language. The Department of Modern and Classical Languages and
    Literatures offers courses in Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, German, Hebrew
    and Korean all of which allow students to work on their language
    skills and gain valuable knowledge of another culture.

    http://sundial.csun.edu/2014/11/student-voices-maintaining-heritage-languages/

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