TY - THES
KW - Bilingualism
KW - Mennonites
KW - Mexico
KW - Language use
KW - German (Low)
AU - Steven Sider
AB - Within language retention and attrition research, limited attention has been given to the perspectives and reflections of people who have experienced the retention or loss of a first language. The key question that this study responds to is: What experiences do Mennonite children from Mexico have with the retention of first language skills when their families move to Canada? This case study provides an examination of the first language retention experiences of four individuals. The cases, who are now adults, were Mennonites who moved to south-western Ontario, Canada from colonies in Mexico. Each participant spoke Low German as his/her first language. This is the language spoken by Mennonites for the 500 years of their faith tradition and during five major migratory moves. The participants have had a variety of experiences with first language retention and attrition. A description is provided of these experiences and five key themes are examined: family experiences, peer experiences, school experiences, church experiences, and the meaning of the language retention experiences. Within this last area, I examine five sub-themes: a desire to retain (or not retain) the first language, circumstances which supported (or detracted from) maintaining Low German, a desire to help others, a sense of self and identity, and the participants' perspectives on the maintenance or loss of the first language. By examining the participants' stories, and related themes, this case study provides descriptive, evaluative, and interpretive elements. The conclusion examines how teachers and school systems can be supportive of the linguistic and cultural needs of immigrants. As well, suggestions are made to support the retention of Low German amongst the growing number of Mennonites who are moving from colonies in Mexico to communities in Canada. Keywords. first language retention, language maintenance, language attrition, language retrieval, Mennonites from Mexico, Low German, identity, immigrant experiences, case study.
C7 - Unknown(0)
DP - ProQuest Dissertations and Theses
ET - Ph.D.
ID - 410
LA - English
M1 - Dissertation/Thesis
M3 - Print(0)
PB - University of Western Ontario
PY - 2006
SP - 1
EP - 216
EP - 
T1 - Experiences with language retention: Case studies of Mennonites from Mexico
ER -