Making the Case for Fostering In-School Heritage Identity to Advance Heritage Learners’ Mainstream Classroom Performance ABSTRACT This research bridges Applied Linguistics and Sociolinguistics in order to examine the relationship of language, identity, and ideology as it pertains to identity development amongst Ukrainian and Russian heritage language school children in the United States. The aim of the present study is to better understand the sociocultural dynamics of a mainstream classroom and to investigate how Heritage Language speakers negotiate the dynamics and expectations of this classroom. Corinne A. Seals Georgetown University RESEARCH QUESTIONS RQ1: How do children who are HLSs from multilingual backgrounds negotiate learner identity development in a multilingual school setting? RQ2: How do experiences in mainstream classrooms affect their identity development? EXAMPLE METHODOLOGY Comparable students with different L1s were identified through surveys. Ethnographic methods were used, with audio and video recordings one hour each day for four weeks (20 hours class time, 80 hours total data). The data is triangulated with field notes, student and teacher daily journals, and parent interviews. NVivo9 and the grounded theory approach were used to code and analyze data. POPULATION/SITE Third grade mainstream classroom at a rural primary school in Oregon with an on-site HLL program • Vika: L1 Russian speaker, ethnically Ukrainian, prefers English, born in US • Tolya: L1 Ukrainian speaker, ethnically Ukrainian, prefers all 3 languages, born in Ukraine • Julia: L1 monolingual English speaker, family DATA ANALYSIS/FINDINGS • At classroom level, most commonly seen acts are floor taking moves, which while accepted in the HLL classroom, are interpreted by teachers and administrators as a violation of mainstream classroom norms • Recordings at the small group level show the positioning of HLSs within peer groups as independent leaders often taking on a pseudo- teacher role, though there is a variation in individual acceptance of this role • In-school program supporting heritage culture and language allows cultural expression and agentive learner identity construction in mainstream class, which can be further supported by giving teachers the sociolinguistic knowledge to recognize this CURRENT/FUTURE RESEARCH Current in-depth ethnography extending to six HLSs in HLL classroom and HLL school bus (~120 hours), including audience design, topic, language use frequency, and phonological systems Selected References: 1. Duff, P.A. (2001). Language, literacy, content, and (pop) culture: Challenges for ESL students in mainstream courses. The Canadian Modern Language Review/La Revue canadienne des langues vivantes, 58(1), 103-132. 2. Hornberger, N.H., & Wang, S.C. (2008). Who are our heritage language learners? Identity and biliteracy in heritage language education in the United States. In D.M. Brinton, O. Kagan, & S. Bauckus (Eds.), Heritage language education: A new field emerging (pp. 3-38). New York: Routledge. 3. Seals, C. (2012). Making Heritage Language Speakers Visible in the Mainstream Classroom. Heritage Briefs Collection. Washington, DC: Alliance for the Advancement of Heritage Languages, Center for Applied Linguistics. Acknowledgments: Thank you to NHLRC, UCLA, CAL, the Alliance for the Advancement of Heritage Languages, Dr. Alison Mackey, Georgetown University, and all participants • Vika self‐positions as teacher and leads group through problem step‐ by‐step, even returning to beginning • Direct statements issued in lines 14, 15, 17, 22, 25, and 27 • Most frequent nodes at small group level for Vika: (1) direct order given, (2) correction of other, (3) verbally solves problem • Most frequent nodes at small group level for Tolya: (1) rejection of other, (2) ahead of group • Most frequent nodes at the classroom level for Vika and Tolya: (1) standing up in class, (2) talking out of turn, (3) questioning other Vika leads her group through solving a math problem 4 Vika: Okay. 5 Okay. 6 [So there’s] seventeen, 7 Nick: [Stop it!] ((playfully in his group)) 8 Vika: minus, eight. 9 Equals, nine. 10 Nick: What? 11 Seventeen, minus eight, [equals nine]. 12 Vika: [Yes! Equals nine!] 13 Nick: Now what? 14 Vika: You have to look- 15 First! You ex [ 1 out of], 16 Nick: [ 1 One two three] four [ 2 five six seven eight] nine ten eleven twelve thirteen fourteen fifteen sixteen seventeen. 17 Vika: [ 2 eight of these]. 18 Ian: Better watch out. 19 Vika: Five six seven eight. 20 Whoo:! 21 Ian: There’s supposed to be nine exactly. 22 Vika: You’re supposed to have seventeen at first. 23 Then XXX like this. 24 One two three four five six seven eight nine ten eleven twelve thirteen fourteen fifteen sixteen seventeen. 25 So you have to erase from seventeen until you get nine. 26 One two three four five six seven eight nine. 27 So erase the rest.