Author Archives: sparksr

Module 2: Weblog 5: Language Extinction

I have been finding weblogs about language revitalization strategies and examples of where it is currently happening. I decided to look for information explores the opposite side of this issue, language extinction. This website is an article about “language death.” It takes on a pessimistic view of current endangered languages around the world.

“John McWhorter estimates the 6,000 languages spoken today will dwindle to only 600 next century.” McWhorter argues despite language revitalization strategies there is no public need for Indigenous language as the dominant languages are used day to day. He says that most Indigenous languages currently spoken are Indigenous people who are isolated and marginalized and this isolation is caused by their inability to communicate in mainstream language. He goes on to say that if these Indigenous cultures want a better life for their future they need to convert to speaking a dominant language, the need to speak their own language will become irrelevant and eventually die out.

McWhorter thinks that language is unique to each culture, and is important to preserve but he takes the pessimistic view, Indigenous languages will not stay around much longer. He thinks that recording and documenting the language for future records is important. However, the efforts to revitalize language will cease just as “ice melts to water”.

http://io9.com/5442321/90-percent-of-languages-will-be-extinct-next-century-+-and-thats-good

Module 2: Weblog 4: Ntsayka Ikanum’s Story

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Ntsayka Ikanum is an Indigenous tribe of Grand Ronde, Orgeon. This website is a documentation and archive of their history, tradition and current culture. There are videos of elders speaking in their Indigenous language and telling stories with English subtitles at the bottom. The language is also scripted in writing with the spoken alphabet recorded. Currently, the Ntsayka Ikanum tribe is practicing language revitalization. There are immersion pre-schools and kindergartens for the young children to learn the language fluently.

There is also information about their history, their struggle of relocation, current community events and traditions, and stories of their elders. There are many audio clips within the website to hear the language and listen to the stories or song being told/ chanted.

The title of the home page is Our Story , I feel that this website was created by the tribe members to take control of their history and represent their own tribal identity through their own stories from their perspective for the world to understand.

http://www.grandronde.org/ikanum/index.html

Module 2: Weblog 3: Global Language Hotspots

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My third weblog is about Global Language Hotspots. Language hotspots are small geographic areas of high diversity grouped with endangered languages. This website defines five categories of language endangerment and rates the various language hotspots around the world according to the appropriate category.

The website defines and expresses the concern of language endangerment. “A language dies when the last speaker of that language dies, and the world loses the knowledge that was contained in that language. Even before the last speaker dies, a language is useless when it no longer defines a community and cannot be used to communicate meaning.”

I think the purpose of this website is to educate people about language extinction and become aware of how important language is to culture. One section has an interactive map of all the language hotspots in the world. When you click on a specific hot spot area for example the Northwest Pacific Plateau, it will give you information on the area and rank the category of language endangerment.

This website was also created by language researchers who go on expeditions to high risk language endangerment areas and help to create language revitalization programs and make interview recordings with the elders.

This website had a lot of information and statistics about world language endangerment and show the reality of how quickly languages are being lost forever.

http://www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/langhotspots/index.html

Module 2: Weblog 2: Language Retreats

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My first weblog was about Aboriginal language revitalization strategies. There were links posted of specific examples of language revitalization initiatives. This example is an immersion program to promote the Tlingit language of Alaska. In this immersion program, the language learners go on a 10 day retreat to remote communities where they can only speak the Tlingit language.

This is unique because the aim of the program is to create a natural setting where the language can be used and re-create the feeling of living in an all-speaking Tlingit community. It creates an opportunity for Tlingit speaking people to converse with others and new language learners to learn from the elders. Previous students of these retreats have also moved on to become teachers of the language and take on the responsibility of keeping the language alive. It was also noted that the Aboriginal communities created tighter bonds as a culture since they have been able to communicate in Tlingit language.

Not only are Aboriginal Alaskans trying to revitalize their own language they are also creating a model for learning language for other southern Aboriginal tribes to adopt to help revitalize their own language.

After reading this article, I thought it was a useful strategy for these learners to go on a retreat together. In our readings this week, Turner emphasized how stories are connected to the land and how important it is to create that relationship. I think this shows a great example of how the Aboriginal Alaskans connect their language to the land in a retreat making it more meaningful.

http://www.sealaskaheritage.org/news/news_article_sitka_immersion_2004.htm

Module 2: Weblog 1: Strategies for Language Revitalization

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The topic of my final assignment is about Indigenous language revitalization using technology. I have not yet narrowed down my topics. Hopefully after researching my five weblogs this week, I will be able to find an interesting aspect to focus on.

My first weblog for module 2 is about language revitalization strategies. I will summarize some of the key points made:

Master/Apprentice programs- one on one learning between an elder and the learner.
Mentorships- intermediate level language learners pair up to practice conversing together.
Immersion- language immersion should start with children when they are best are learning language. Pre-schools and kindergarten with Aboriginal language instruction.
Bringing language back into the home.
Putting language back into everyday situations.
Reviving traditional community practices such as basket weaving so the language can be used in context.
Help develop written language so it can be used as a community resource.
Recording voice and videos of elders speaking Aboriginal language and performing traditional ceremonies.
Creating realistic goals for the community.
Curriculum development to enhance Aboriginal language learning.
Dictionary development.
Using online language tools.

There are many useful strategies for helping to revitalize Aborginal language on this website. There are also links to communities who are already using many of these strategies. I will check out these links to find some specific examples of language revitalization in action.

http://www.fpcc.ca/language/toolkit/Language_Revitalization_Strategies.aspx

Statement Connecting Blog to Research Project

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Language Revitalization Using Technology

The final weblog I posted last week was about the first graduates from Nawahi, the Hawaiian Immersion University. I was inspired by the news article as many of the first graduates continued finding careers using their own Native language after University.

Language preservation is a vital component to keeping Indigenous cultures alive as language itself holds different meanings, metaphors and values that cannot be expressed once it’s gone. According to Cultural Survival “More than 70 could fall silent in the next 5 years unless immediate action is taken to teach them to younger generations of tribal citizens.” I would like to focus on how technology can improve and empower Indigenous cultures through language revitalization.

Language revitalization seemed to be a resonating theme in many weblogs I posted. Native American Public Telecommunications is a site that provides media, film, podcasts, music and radio created by a board of Native Americans about Native North Americans. Cultural Survival is a website for all Indigenous cultures around the world to connect. To help protect indigenous languages from disappearing, there is a radio broadcasting section to share radio spoken in different Indigenous languages around the world. Since most people have access to radio, new generations can enjoy listening to their own language.

The digital divide creates boundaries for Indigenous people who are unable to connect and use technology as an educational tool. According to Cultural Survival “Indigenous Peoples constitute about 5% of the world’s population, yet account for about 15% of the world’s poor.” I would also like to explore the theme “Is technology culturally neutral?” as I carry out my research.

References

Eisenlohr, P. (2004). Revitalization and new technologies: cultures of electronic mediation and the refiguring of communitiees. Annual Review of Anthropology, 33 (21), p. 21- 45.

Hermes, M. (2012). Designing indigenous language revitalization. Harvard Educational Review, 82 (3), p. 381- 402.

Hermes, M. (2013). Ojibwe language revitalization, multimedia technology, and family language learning. Language Learning and Technology, 17 (1), p. 125 – 144.

Hinton, L. (2003). Language revitalization. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 23, p. 44- 57. Doi: 10.1017/S0267190503000187

Warschauer, M. (1998). Technology and indigenous language revitalization: analyzing the experience of hawai’i. Canadian Modern Language Review, 55 (1), p. 139 – 159.

http://www.culturalsurvival.org/

http://www.fpcc.ca/language/toolkit/Language_Revitalization_Strategies.aspx

http://www.nativetelecom.org/

http://www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/langhotspots/revitalization.html

http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/enduring-voices/revitalization/

Module 1: Post 5: Hawaiian Language Immersion

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I have been gaining interest in language revitalization. One of the most successful places in creating a language revolution is Hawaii.

This website is a news article featuring some of the first graduates from Nawahi, the first Hawaiian Immersion University. It began as a pilot program driven by Hawaiian activists, the entire curriculum was instructed in Hawaiian but there would not be fully qualified professors teaching when the University first started in 2001.

The article focused on a girl named Kuuwehi Hiraishi, who is currently 28. It is difficult enough graduating from an English program to find jobs in your qualified field. However Hirasihi was able to graduate in journalism and found a job as a news reporter with the Hawaii News Now Sunrise newspaper in the Hawaiian language news segment.

In an interview with Hiraishi, she was proud to say she is able to use her language in her career and the skills she learned in University. She was also confident to say that she thinks careers in her language will become more and more available for students as they graduate from Nawahu University.

Hawaii has used technology as a way to help revitalize the Hawaiian language. This example allows hope for other Indigenous cultures to create educational programs in their own language and use technology such as radio broadcasting to keep their languages from disappearing.

http://www.honolulumagazine.com/Honolulu-Magazine/March-2012/Na-Puka-Kula-Hawaiian-Immersion-Graduates/index.php

Module 1: Post 4: Rising Voices

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My third post was about a website about Cultural Survival. I decided to keep searching for sites which help connect and reach out to indigenous communities around the world. This website is titled Rising Global Voices Online, it was created by a group of Indigenous bloggers in 2004. They began to invite other Indigenous peoples around the world to engage in conversation online and shed light to issues and news in their communities which is often overlooked by mainstream media.

Rising Voices allows Indigenous people around the world to voice their opinion to others, it shares Indigenous media and news coverage and support projects that help protect Indigenous peoples worldwide.

The downfall to this website is in order for Indigenous Voices to be heard online the documentation needs to be translated to English. It is sometimes difficult translating various issues and problems from an Indigenous language to English. It is also difficult for people to use many of the tools offered on Global Voices such as podcasts, blogs or online videos because it is only translated into 6 languages and many people do not have the language skills or experience to use this technology therefore unable to voice themselves properly.

http://rising.globalvoicesonline.org/projects/

Module 1: Post 3: Cultural Survival

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My first blog post was about the Indigenous Peoples of South East Asia, which was a news article. The news article mentioned the United Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous peoples, so I decided to look further into it and lead me this:

“For 40 years Cultural Survival has partnered with Indigenous communities around the world to defend their lands, languages, and cultures.” This organization was founded on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The goal of Cultural Survival is protect Indigenous cultures, languages and lands. There is a statistic on the website which says “ Indigenous Peoples constitute about 5% of the world’s population, yet account for about 15% of the world’s poor.” Cultural Survival helps to educate peoples in their own language, protect the rights of their land and controlling their own resources, promote cultural heritage and fight against marginalization. There are many programs created to promote the rights of these peoples. One example is the Artisan Bazaar, which sells Indigenous arts and crafts, which helps to create a sustainable income and promotes artistic tradition through fair trade.

A very interesting section of the website I came across was radio broadcasting. In order to protect disappearing languages around the world, Cultural Survival believes that in order to keep a language it must be passed down to the new generation. One way is through listening to radio broadcasting in one’s own language, as many people already have access to radio. To entirely lose a language is to also lose a culture because the spirituality, knowledge and values is embedded into language.

It is really sad reading and learning about the abuse and suffering that Indigenous People encounter each day around the world. However, I think through educating people and creating programs through an organization like Cultural Survival it gives hope to the people who have no voice.

http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news

Module 1: Post 2: Native Stories For Public Broadcasting

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I came across this website titled Native Stories for Public Broadcasting. It is a website created and produced by North American Natives who broadcast stories, podcasts, films, TV and news based on tribal stories, history, or current events. These stories are meant to represent Native culture and values with Native communities and with the world.

The board members of this website is made up of Native North Americans from different tribes who are representing the voices of Native North Americans in a global media world. The aim to the website is to share, collaborate, encourage creativity and bring honour to Native cultures

I decided to go to the films category of the website. I watched some of the previews and read some summaries of the films listed. The films ranged from documentaries, personal experiences of elders during war time, stories told through film, films based on athletics, music and even comedies. There was a large range of types of films about Native culture told through a Native perspective.

I think this website is very empowering because it is way for Native North Americans to broadcast their own heritage and culture through media. It is a way for tribes to accurately portray their identities anNatid values rather than allowing Western media to continue to romanticize Native North Americans from an ethnocentric view.

http://www.nativetelecom.org/