Heritage language education: status, challenges and perspectives

Recent years have seen an unprecedented rise in the migration of people, families, and even entire communities, transforming the linguistic and cultural landscapes of many countries. Concurrent with this unprecedented movement of people, there are specific critical issues that arise. A major issue is the abandonment, unwillingness, or inability to foster the many heritage languages (HLs) that migrant families have brought with them to the host countries. Government practices and legislation do not always include migrant languages and culture in public policy, public educational systems often struggle to respond to the linguistic and cultural demands brought about by such changes, and schools, through a lack of support, resources, and facilities, often fail to meet the needs of children of migrant families. HL development is linked to identity construction, yet despite the intensified migration movements in recent years, little attention has been given to these issues. This chapter offers a critical reflection on the precarious status of HL identity at a micro (school), meso (community), and macro (government) level. Recognizing HL from a top-down and bottom-up approach, this chapter offers implications for families, communities, the education sector, and policymakers.