Mandarin: Positive Environments for Heritage Language Maintenance

 

Danielle Goldenberg

Dr. Soohee Kim

HONORS 394: Language That Binds Us

June 7, 2015

 

 

            Use of the Mandarin language in the United States has grown tremendously over the past several decades. Demographically, it has expanded from around 631,000 speakers in 1980, to over 2,400,000 as of 2007 (US Census Bureau). Increased immigration to the United States from China and other countries over the past several decades has contributed to the growing diversity of the US, and encourages us to consider what happens to languages and cultures as they “enter the fray”. Do we mainly witness assimilation into “mainstream” American society, or a strengthening of cultural practices as they were expressed in the home country? Do immigrant families place increasing emphasis on English-speaking practices, or do they encourage continued communication in the heritage language, as an additional way of connecting to family and heritage culture? A variety of environmental and educational factors may illuminate whether Mandarin lies on a clear path towards maintenance, or whether, despite its incredibly widespread use internationally, it may see the same attrition as many other languages do by the third generation. It is also important to recognize both sources that stress a strong link between Mandarin language use and Chinese identity and culture, and those that do not observe such essential ties, in order to allow for a more personal assessment of whether maintaining the language is an activity that “should” be maintained in every context with equal importance for all Mandarin HL speakers. 

 

         In the Journal of Language Culture and Curriculum, Jingning Zhang mentions that “in the USA, the English-only mentality is operative explicitly or implicitly in social institutional processes as well as people’s everyday life” (Zhang). This often competes with the notion of prioritizing heritage language maintenance, particularly in the public school context. At the same time, Zhang recognizes the increasing popularity of Mandarin as a “strategic” language that has encouraged the growth of foreign-language courses in Chinese; still, Zhang stresses that this overshadows the issue of Mandarin maintenance in 1.5 and 2nd generation heritage language students (Zhang). Additionally, even if these foreign language courses were to be utilized by heritage language speakers of Mandarin, we would already see certain educational challenges in Washington State. As of 2009, only 7% of WA state public high schools (of those 300+ surveyed) offered Chinese language classes (MELL). Also, of the 18 counties in the state that have community colleges, only eight offered 1st year Chinese, three offered a 2nd year course, and none offered 3rd year classes (MELL). So, if heritage language students were to pursue Mandarin at the community college level (and it is possible that they might seek out upper-level classes because of their higher proficiency in different areas of language use) they may see little opportunity to do so in the public school context. With regard to the public school teaching environment itself, it is also interesting to note that Zhang, who interviewed three 1.5/2nd generation children between the ages of 10 and 17, learned that while social studies and foreign language instructors often demonstrated positive responses to the children’s bilingual abilities, instructors in other disciplines were indifferent (Zhang). In this case, it would be helpful to explore, in the classroom, ways of encouraging students with a bilingual skill-set as they are students that, as Dr. Maria Carrera of UCLA stresses, are “culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD)” resources that provide valuable insights in the classroom environment (Carrera).

 

        Though there is a lack of resources for heritage language learners of Mandarin in public schools across Washington, there are a large variety of international and community language schools that cater specifically to the needs of heritage Mandarin speakers. It is important to note that student experiences in these schools may have both negative and positive effects that influence Mandarin language maintenance. Community language schools provide a level of immersion and rigorous study in the language that is not possible at the public school level; these schools can also offer general education courses and culture appreciation-related courses that bolster knowledge of heritage culture. However, the success of community language school learning may often be dependent on the individual learner. I interviewed Chieni McCullough, a woman who immigrated from Taiwan but spent most of her life in the United States, and is a heritage language speaker of both Mandarin and Taiwanese. She explained to me that she had previously enrolled her two daughters in an international school that the children would attend once a week; however, for the girls, Saturday school “became a chore”. Chieni sees “[learning] more naturally” by having everyday exposure to and experience with the language as a more effective tool in language maintenance for her children. Zhang referenced the overall strength and effectiveness of community schools, but mentioned that these schools may often express contradicting values with public schools. She noted that often, Chinese community language schooling structured around “social hierarchy and rote memorization” and that this may possibly feel like a “burden or punishment” for students (Zhang). While one of her interviewees was highly enthusiastic about her Chinese language community school, the other was completely unmotivated, though engaged and successful in his general public school pursuits. Zhang mentioned the presence of “gap-bridging” measures to align values between public schools and community schools (such as teaching SAT prep at community language schools, or transferring heritage language credit from community language school to public schools) as potential motivators that may encourage heritage language learning (Zhang). It seems like these measures are especially beneficial because both schools would then be able to demonstrate even more commitment to the student, emphasizing that he is not just a heritage language student of Mandarin, nor just a public school learner, but a unique member of society with a variety of experiences to share and explore in both spaces.

 

       Through my small-scale study, I have recognized that discrimination has served as an unambiguously detracting force in heritage language use. Chieni McCullough immigrated to an Okinawa military base at age 4, and began to speak English at the base and after she moved to the US. She explained to me that as a middle-schooler in the 1980’s “it was very embarrassing to admit I spoke Mandarin, or that I was an immigrant”. She would only speak English during this time. Dr. Carrera, co-director of the National Heritage Language Resource Center at UCLA, acknowledges the variety of language management strategies that young heritage language speakers employ in response to adverse situations, one of which is “evasion and rejection of the heritage language” (Carrera). She explains this strategy as a kind of “linguistic hibernation” that aids in self-protection (Carrera). However, it is encouraging to see that Chieni’s description of college also aligns with concepts of “ethnic emergence” and “identity incorporation” that Carrera defines in her description of ethnic/identity development. In response to a question about when she saw resurgence in her use of the language, Chieni explains, “it wasn’t until college… people were a little more civilized [laughs] compared to middle-schoolers and high-schoolers. And also, times were changing, this was then the ‘90s, when suddenly… well maybe not suddenly…being Asian was less embarrassing, and it became cool at one point.” Today, Chieni encourages the use of Mandarin and actively speaks it with her children, which reveals that those negative experiences have not deterred her goals in sharing the language and culture with her family. However, despite Chieni’s resilience in response to negative people and experiences, it is important that discrimination be actively and proactively tackled in the education system, regardless of HL students’ abilities to respond positively to these environments. Carrera recommends “[creating] HL-safe and HL-friendly spaces” in places of education – perhaps we would be able to see more identity incorporation and less language evasion in the presence of a more welcoming environment.

 

       Family influence may be one of the strongest factors in assessing Mandarin language maintenance prospects in the US across generations: many families actively and enthusiastically pursue Mandarin language communication. In Zhang’s study, she found that for all three of her interviewees, the children’s parents pursued “Mandarin speaking and instruction policies at home” (Zhang). For example, some parents pretended not to understand their children when they spoke English (a tactic Chieni mentioned that she had sometimes practiced as well). They also gave their children reading assignments at home, and watched and discussed Chinese television programs with their children (Zhang). Even with these efforts, however, Zhang noted that the “pressure of English assimilation is very strong”, when she mentioned that even siblings fluent in Mandarin would speak English amongst themselves. Still, family efforts seem to be some of the most effective strategies in continuing use of Mandarin. During Chieni’s interview, she mentioned that she shares the Chinese language and culture with her daughters and wants them to have immersive experiences with the language; in a 2-month trip to Taiwan this year, she will enroll her daughters in local schools to increase their exposure to the language. These studies seem to indicate that Chinese families generally encourage the use of the language, which aids in its long-term maintenance. However, this may not be true of all Chinese families; different family values and generational differences may deemphasize the importance of learning Mandarin. This encourages us to ask how closely Chinese families associate culture with Mandarin use, and whether language maintenance is even a concern in cultural identity for HL Mandarin speakers.

 

       In Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, Su Yeong Kim and Ruth K. Chao studied how closely Chinese and Mexican first- and second-generation (and third-generation for Mexican students) associated fluency in the heritage language with ethnic identity, and also worked to see if they could use these factors as indicators of school effort and performance (CDEMP). They mentioned that some challenges in heritage language use for 2nd generation Chinese students could include the vast structural differences between Mandarin and English, as well as the wide variety of dialects spoken by Chinese immigrant families (CDEMP). They also noted that values expressed by immigrant parents place high importance on education, hard work, and academic achievement, but that these goals often end up involving more exclusive emphasis on English rather than Mandarin (CDEMP). In this way, it is possible that some families may de-emphasize Mandarin transmission in the interest of preserving other family values and goals. It is also interesting to note that in terms of the connection between language use and ethnic identity, the bonds may not be as strong as we might imagine. Between first- and second-generation Chinese students, Kim and Chao observed similarly strong level of ethnic identity among the groups, even though language fluency was much lower in the 2nd-generation group (CDEMP). Though one limitation they noted in their study was that questions they posed to students regarding “ethnic exploration” may have held different meanings for first- and second-generation students, it is still possible to infer that students can and do possess strong cultural connections with their heritage, even without fluency in their heritage language. This makes the case for maintaining Mandarin more ambiguous, and rooted more heavily in individual motivation and desire to know the language.

 

       In an interview, when I asked Dandi Meng, a heritage speaker of Mandarin who came to the US at age 8 (and writing tutor at the OWRC) whether or not she believed the Mandarin language should be maintained, she provided a “non-answer” on the topic. “I feel like… yeah I don’t know, I feel like its hard to answer that because it really just depends on whether the person cares about it, and if they don’t care that’s okay, and if they do care a lot, that’s also okay”. She mentioned that she wouldn’t want kids to forcibly study their heritage language culture, but that she would not want full cultural assimilation to take place either. In this case, it becomes increasingly important to consider the individual’s pull towards use of the language, and understand that heritage language maintenance may not be something that is universally desired or needed by all 1.5-, 2nd-, or 3rd-generation children.

We note the need to be cautious when we seek connections between Mandarin language use and cultural identity, and the need to be similarly careful in determining whether individuals want to maintain the language. However, because families see so many different environments, challenges, and experiences, the most important element in ensuring Mandarin language maintenance is creating a space that allows it to happen, if it is motivated and desired. We need to acknowledge the active roles that educational environments, families, and society may play in creating an environment that welcomes heritage language use and maintenance but does not force it. Chieni does happen to view strong ties between the Mandarin language and culture that motivate her use of the heritage language with her family: “I think there’s a very strong connection...sometimes some of the words or some of the idioms say a lot about [the] language and the culture”. She referenced a Chinese idiom that referred to drinking water and thinking about its source. The point of the metaphor was to encourage oneself to think about and appreciate the people who had benefited her through her life. Similarly, we can work to show openness and appreciation towards the diverse contributions of heritage language speakers who have been eager in sharing their knowledge and generous in sharing their culture, and who continue to shape our experiences as peers, colleagues, and friends today.

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

Carreira, Maria M. "Securing the Future: Stories of Linguistic and Cultural Resilience." Washington, Seattle. 20 May 2015. Lecture.

 

 Zhang, Jingning (2009) Mandarin maintenance among immigrant children from the People's Republic of China: an examination of individual networks of linguistic contact, Language, Culture and Curriculum, 22:3, 195-213, DOI: 10.1080/07908310903308279

 

Kim, S. Y., & Chao, R. K. (2009). Heritage Language Fluency, Ethnic Identity, and School Effort of Immigrant Chinese and Mexican Adolescents. Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology, 15(1), 27–37. doi:10.1037/a0013052

 

"Languages Taught in Washington's High Schools and Community Colleges." (n.d.): n. pag. Mapping and Enhancing Language Learning in Washington State. Language Learning Center UW, Winter 2010. Web. 7 June 2015. <http://depts.washington.edu/mellwa/Reports/MELL_policy_brief_08.pdf>.

 

US. U.S. Department of Commerce. Language Use in the United States: 2007 (American Community Survey Reports). By Hyon B. Shin and Robert A. Kominski. U.S. Census Bureau, Apr. 2010. Web. 6 June 2015.