“iza maa 3arafuu armani mazbuut, no problem!”

‘If they don’t know Armenian correctly, no problem!’:

Discourses of “Fluency”

among Speakers of an Endangered, Diasporan

Language

Anke al-BatainehPhD student, INALCO

ParisLaboratoire SeDyL

Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation

What challenges can we expect for minority language schooling programs?

What factors influence parent choices of minority language schools or other schools?

How can minority language schools compete with mainstream schools?

Western Armenian SchoolsDistinct from language of Armenia

In diaspora since 1915Enrollment in schools fallingLanguage skills are major factorin parent choiceof schools

MethodologyLanguage attitudes ≠ language behaviors

(Sallabank, 2013)Discourse and perception play a role in action

(Duchêne & Heller, 2007)Subjective beliefs, Interpersonal Network of

Linguistic Contacts (INLC), and Language Proficiency influence the survival of languages(Allard & Landry, 1986, 1992, 1994)

Post-structuralist Discourse Analysis (cf. Baxter, 2002)

Discourses of

“Fluency”

Should speak with ease

(integration)

Language is necessary for

identity

Should think in the language

Alphabet = literacy = fluency

Written, examined

language is importantShould speak

without code-mixing

Should speak without

grammatical mistakes

Should speak without an “accent’

Speaking is learned outside

school

Speaking is learned in school

Can be learned as a second language

Can NOT be learned as a

second language

The Arabic QuestionDiglossia: the kind of

Arabic that allows social integration isn’t part of any school curriculum

Instructionally, only a third of Lebanese students pass national Arabic exams

Students in prestigious, non-Armenian private schools often do not speak Arabic with peers

What can we learn?Parents and students may hold

different standards for each language learned

School discourses and curricula may have different imperatives in terms of the linguistic profile of speakers

The school and social environment should be considered together in order to balance resources for multiple languages

Communicative Competence Model(Hymes, 1972; Savignon, 1983)

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Questions welcome