Reclaiming Our Languages

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Reclaiming our languages Annotated BibliographyDownload

“teepaalilaani” © Hannah Buchanan 2025

  • Revitalization of an indigenous language: Which is better the teacher or the app?

    Ramirez et al. investigate whether or not digital technology can be effective in teaching Indigenous languages. They evaluate students in a Secwepemctsin classroom and students taught using two digital games created for the study. They find that teacher-taught students learn more and continue to grow their vocabulary between sessions, while the digital-based students stagnate, suggesting that digital technology can supplement teacher-taught classes, but should not replace them.

    Ramírez, G., ElMiligi, H., Walton, P., & Billy, C. (2018). Revitalization of an Indigenous language: Which is better the teacher or the app? International Conference on E-Learning, 344-350, XVII. https://www.proquest.com/docview/2081757033/abstract/B53EAC4CCDAE4F67PQ/1

  • Is early immersion effective for Aboriginal language acquisition? A case study from an Anishinaabemowin kindergarten

    Morcom and Roy explore Indigenous language immersion in Canada and evaluate fluency, academic development, and pride in kindergardners at Mnidoo Mnising Anishinabek Kinoomaage Gaming (MMAK) Anishinaabemowin immersion school. They provide an overview of the enrichment immersion method, as well as the MMAK school development. They argue for continued funding for immersion programing, especially in consideration of its evidenced effectiveness.

    Morcom, L. A., & Roy, S. (2019). Is early immersion effective for Aboriginal language acquisition? A case study from an Anishinaabemowin kindergarten. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 22(5), 551–563. https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2017.1281217

  • Revitalising language through music: a case study of music and culturally grounded pedagogy in two Kanien’ke:ha (Mohawk) language immersion programmes

    Vallejo aims to generate discussion on how music can be incorporated into every subject in an Indigenous language immersion classroom, and to show that music and language should be equally considered as revitalization priorities. She details how Kanien’ke:ha communities are already incorporating music into immersion spaces, and how the use of music enhances language learning by offering synergistic effects on language and cultural reclamation. She argues for increased use of music in language revitalization projects, especially immersion classrooms.

    Vallejo, J. M. (2019). Revitalising language through music: A case study of music and culturally grounded pedagogy in two Kanien’ke:ha (Mohawk) language immersion programmes. Ethnomusicology Forum, 28(1), 89–117. https://doi.org/10.1080/17411912.2019.1641124

  • Narrative Inquiry as Praxis: Examining Formative Assessment Practices in a Nature-Based Indigenous Language Classroom

    Baker (the researcher) and Germain (the Mi’gmaq immersion teacher) collaborate to investigate assessment in an Indigenous language immersion nature-based classroom and then consider how their findings relate to theory-practice connections. They offer specific and comprehensive examples of learning and assessment. In addition to modelling a nuanced researcher-teacher relationship, they also strongly support immersion, place-based programming, and culturally-relevant assessment as integral to language revitalization projects.

    Baker, B., & Germain, J. (2020). Narrative inquiry as praxis: Examining formative assessment practices in a nature-based Indigenous language classroom. In M. E. Poehner & O. Inbar-Lourie (Eds.), Toward a reconceptualization of second language classroom assessment: Praxis and researcher-teacher partnership (pp. 107–127). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-35081-9_6

  • Supporting rich and meaningful interaction in language teaching for revitalization: Lessons from Macuiltianguis Zapotec

    Riestenberg explores how Indigenous language teachers can facilitate rich and meaningful interactions in their teaching, while maximizing on limited time, resources, and access to proficient speakers. She models the successful incorporation of Communicative language teaching (CLT) in a Macuiltianguis Zapotec revitalization classroom and discusses how CLT can be uniquely suitable for Indigenous language reclamation. She also offers strategies that teachers can use in small, informal language revitalization programs to increase oral proficiency and speaking capacity.

    Riestenberg, K. J. (2020). Supporting rich and meaningful interaction in language teaching for revitalization: Lessons from Macuiltianguis Zapotec. Language Documentation and Conservation, 20SI.

  • A worksheet, a whiteboard, a teacher-learner: leveraging materials and colonial language frames for multimodal indigenous language learning

    Engman explores the relationships between teacher-learners, multilingualism, classroom materials, and print literacy in an Ojibwe kindergarden class in the Great Lakes Region. She is especially interested in how English can be used to cultivate Ojibwe literacy in an English-majority environment. She comments on the challenges of providing high quality immersive language education within an English-majority classroom given a lack of time for planning, schedulaing constraints, and the presence of other instructional staff. She learns that using English may allow students to experiment across languages, and that the presence of an Indigenous language in a classroom, no matter how ineffectual in promoting proficiency, disrupts colonial education norms.

    Engman, M. M. (2021). A worksheet, a whiteboard, a teacher-learner: Leveraging materials and colonial language frames for multimodal indigenous language learning. Classroom Discourse, 12(1–2), 75–100. https://doi.org/10.1080/19463014.2020.1856696

  • Community-Anchored Assessment of Indigenous Second Language Learning in K-12 Schools

    Tulloch et al. discuss the results of the Nunatsiavut K-12 Inuktitut Evaluation, and specifically explore the necessity of grounding Indigenous language learning and assessment in families and community. They consider Indigenous language assessment options, and highlight the necessity of aligning programming goals with community goals. They note that having explicit, targeted outcomes are a next step for their K-12 program, and that even in public schools, families and communities must be a fixture in language learning.

    Tulloch, S., Moore, S., Lane, J., Townley, S., Dicker, J., Boase, D., & Adams, E. (2022). Community-anchored assessment of Indigenous Second Language learning in K-12 schools. Frontiers in Education, 7, Article no. 733047. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2022.733047

  • Remote language revitalisation efforts during COVID-19

    Wiley-Camacho et al. investigate how digital learning tools, such as videoconferencing and flipped classrooms, can be best leveraged to support teachers engaged in language revitalization in tribal elementary schools. They find that at the Salish School of Spokane, video conferencing and flipped classrooms can both prompt community-building, intergenerational transmission/connections, and comprehension as students work on understanding class content without traditional in-class supports. They report that the flipped classroom structure can lead to improved pronunciation; however, both the flipped classroom and use of video conferencing decrease unprompted language use.

    Wiley-Camacho, G., Hillaire, G., Buttimer, C. J., & Colwell, R. (2022). Remote language revitalisation efforts during COVID-19. Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 31(3), 331–345. https://doi.org/10.1080/1475939X.2022.2077819

  • Creating Books for Use in Language Revitalization Classrooms: Considerations and Outcomes

    Nee considers the development, implementation, and consequences of using three different types of storybooks in a Teotitlan del Valle Zapotec language camp for 5-12 year-olds. She demonstrates how the collaborative creation of a storybook by students creates a culturally relevant teaching aid and inspires students to engage with the language on their own. She also models how to pair classroom instruction and supported interactions with community members in public spaces.

    Nee, J. (2020). Creating books for use in language revitalization classrooms: Considerations and outcomes. L2 Journal, 12(1), 39–52. https://doi.org/10.5070/L20042838

  • Learning through an Aboriginal Language: The Impact on Students’ English and Aboriginal Language Skills

    Usborne et al. explore how learning through an Indigenous language impacts student language skills in English and in the Indigenous language, by contrasting a Mi’kmaq immersion program with a Mi’kmaq as a second language program in a Nova Scotian public school. They provide an example of how community-anchored assessment-based longitudinal research can serve the language needs of an Indigenous community and they find that Indigenous immersion language programs can actually correlate to higher language skill development in both the Indigenous language and English.

    Usborne, E., Peck, J., Smith, D.-L., & Taylor, D. M. (2011). Learning through an Aboriginal language: The impact on students’ English and Aboriginal language skills. Canadian Journal of Education, 34(4), 200-215. https://www.jstor.org/stable/canajeducrevucan.34.4.200