Interrogating constructs of linguistic equity: Latine families in Mandarin-English dual language immersion

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 3:45 pm - Gold 3
  In Roundtable Session: Identities, Communities and Voices in DLBE

Abstract

Bilingual education is rooted in histories of serving the “heritage language learner,” or linguistically minoritized students who speak languages other than English at home. Yet, in our globalizing world where languages are commodified as skills, more diverse families are choosing bilingual, and especially dual language immersion (DLI) programs. While much scholarship critiques the gentrification of DLI by predominantly White, middle-class, English-speaking families, there is a dearth of research on ethnoracially, socioeconomically, and linguistically minoritized families who choose DLI in languages other than their home languages. This paper uplifts the complex experiences of Spanish-speaking parents and students at a Mandarin-English DLI school in California to interrogate historical frameworks of linguistic equity and imagine more expansively equitable futures for all linguistically diverse families.

Author

• Catherine Park, University of California - Berkeley