ERIC Number: EJ1143305
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0015-718X
EISSN: N/A
Toward Useful Assessment and Evaluation of Heritage Language Learning
Son, Young-A.
Foreign Language Annals, v50 n2 p367-386 Sum 2017
With a growing population of heritage language speakers in the United States and an increasing enrollment of heritage language learners (HLLs) in language classrooms (Beaudrie & Ducar, 2012; Carreira & Kagan, 2011), heritage language (HL) education has become a special concern within the language acquisition research community. Although there has been a proliferation of studies in this field, research oriented toward assessment and evaluation in HL education has been limited. This article addresses three major areas of research on the design and implementation of assessment for adult HLLs and the evaluation of the programs that serve them. First, the article examines the considerable ongoing discussion of appropriate HL assessments, in particular the applicability of the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines (ACTFL, 2012). Next, it examines investigations of different sociocultural factors that may predict HL proficiency. Finally, the article considers the small but growing line of research on the evaluation of HL programs, often conducted through national-level surveys or through the systematic evaluation of HL programs. Developing from these existing lines of inquiry, the review offers a number of recommendations to improve future research in this area.
Descriptors: Heritage Education, Second Language Instruction, Second Language Learning, Native Language Instruction, Language Tests, Native Language, Sociocultural Patterns, Guidelines, Prediction, Language Proficiency, Program Evaluation, Test Construction, Adults, National Surveys, Evaluation Research, Futures (of Society)
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A