A Moving Target: Literacy Development in Situations of Diglossia and Bilingualism

Autor/in	Sayahi, Lotfi
Titel	A Moving Target: Literacy Development in Situations of Diglossia and Bilingualism
Quelle	In: Arab Journal of Applied Linguistics, 1 (2016) 1, S.1-18 (18 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	2490-4198
Schlagwörter	Bilingualism; Literacy; Semitic Languages; Standard Spoken Usage; Disadvantaged; Nonstandard Dialects; French; Foreign Countries; Language Proficiency; Language Variation; Socioeconomic Status; Academic Achievement; Language of Instruction; Language Maintenance; Heritage Education; Native Language Instruction; Elementary Secondary Education; Higher Education; Tunisia + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Bilingualismus; Alphabetisierung; Schreib- und Lesefähigkeit; Arabisch; Hebräisch; Gesprochene Sprache; Umgangssprache; Französisch; Ausland; Language skill; Language skills; Sprachkompetenz; Sprachenvielfalt; Socio-economic status; Sozioökonomischer Status; Schulleistung; Teaching language; Unterrichtssprache; Sprachpflege; Native language education; Muttersprachlicher Unterricht; Hochschulbildung; Hochschulsystem; Hochschulwesen; Tunesien
Abstract	The present paper analyzes the challenges of literacy development in cases of classical diglossia and bilingualism. The main argument is that the diverse levels of proficiency in the varieties present in a given linguistic market have implications for and are shaped by processes of literacy development, feelings of linguistic insecurity, and the overall outlook for educational and socioeconomic success. With a special focus on Tunisia, where diglossia and bilingualism are part of the students' linguistic reality, this paper argues that surmounting the initial marginalization of the native vernacular in favor of literacy in Standard Arabic does not seem to be enough of a guarantee for academic success since competence in French becomes indispensable as students move higher up the educational ladder. This results in a generalized feeling of linguistic insecurity and a shared skepticism about the proficiency levels achieved through the educational systems in the languages of instruction that adversely affect school success rates. The paper also shows that heritage speakers of Arabic face more challenges for language maintenance than heritage speakers of other languages that are not in a diglossic situation. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Faculty of Human and Social Sciences of Tunis, Tunisia. 94 BD du 9 Avril Tunis 1007, Tunisia. Tel: 216-71564797; Fax: 216-567551; Web site: http://www.arjals.com/ojs/index.php/Arjals2016
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01