Multilingual Early Language Transmission (MELT) - Mercator ...

needs of different types of learners, and the absence of such differentiation for L2 and L1
learners compromises the value of native speaker competence in the minority language and
essentially accords it the status of supporting L2 learning. Such prioritising of the needs of L2
learners of the language without due regard for the use of the language among those
already fluent will be shown to be counterproductive.
Considering minority language use as well as acquisition
Settings that involve mixing L2 learners of a language (who are native speakers of a majority
language) with L1 speakers of an endangered or minority language have been studied in
Wales (G.E. Jones (1991), Ireland (Hickey, 2001, 2007), Canada (Mougeon and Beniak, 1994)
and in the Basque Autonomous Community (Zalbide and Cenoz, 2008). Where L2 learners
and native speakers are mixed, research has identified some deficiencies in the provision for
native speakers, such as lack of language enrichment in input that is simplified for L2
learners, as well as insufficient promotion of the use of the language between mothertongue
speakers of non-dominant languages. Thompson (2000) found that children from
minority language backgrounds in her study established their initial friendships through their
minority language, but over the course of a year in preschool, they shifted towards English in
general and away from speaking only the minority language even with these friends. This
points to the difficulty of maintaining minority language networks between children even
when they have already been established, given the overwhelming influence of the majority
language. Immersion preschools offering immersion in endangered languages, therefore,
need to consider, not only the issue of how best to support children’s acquisition of the
language, but also how to promote and maintain children’s minority language use when they
are in situations of high language contact such as the preschool, which Hickey (2001, 2007)
and Thompson (2000) show can be akin to unofficial English submersion. It is relevant to
note that establishing and promoting ‘natural use of Irish’ among young children is a stated
aim of Comhar Naíonraí na Gaeltachta Teo., the group which supports and oversees the
naíonraí in the Gaeltacht.
It has long been acknowledged (see, for example, Sylva, Roy and Painter, 1980) that
preschoolers thrive in pairs and smaller groups rather than the type of larger class groups
found in primary schools. Hickey (2005, 2007) discussed the language learning opportunities
afforded by different types of grouping (individuals, pairs, small groups, larger groups, whole
group, each with/without the Leader) depending on the type of play engaged in and the
children’s level of target language competence. It is a highly demanding task to allow
children to explore and learn by discovery, while offering developmentally appropriate
language input, in conjunction with appropriate activities to promote learning through play.
This demanding task requires planning that recognises the centrality of interaction in
children’s language development. When the majority of children in a group are L2 learners,
the Leader and Assistants are the primary sources of target language input, particularly at
the outset, and these children will profit from an adult’s language scaffolding in order to
acquire the language relevant to their activity when they are working alone, in pairs or in
small groups (Mhic Mhathúna, 2008). On the other hand, children who are able to speak the
target language can benefit from a different balance of activities with similarly fluent peers,
provided that their use of the target language with such other children is actively monitored
and promoted.
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