In recent years, writing in Spanish as a foreign or heritage language has assumed more prominence in research and curricular policy in the United States. Increasing numbers of heritage language learners, the emergence of social media tools, renewed interest in writing genres, and changing instruction methods have all influenced how we understand…

Despite the increase of Spanish heritage language (HL) courses in response to the linguistic needs of HL learners, these courses often combine this student population with advanced second language (L2) learners. This common scenario presents a challenge to many instructors who lack the training to negotiate intercultural and linguistic issues in…

Despite the growing number of heritage language (HL) learners in language courses, the interaction between second language (L2) and HL learners has not been fully explored in the research, and thus, it still remains unclear whether mixed (L2-HL) or matched (L2-L2, HL-HL) dyads are more beneficial for language learning. This study investigates…

Whereas myriad studies have been published in the field of Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) in the past thirty years, research on the use and implementation of technology in the teaching and learning of Spanish as a heritage language (SHL) is very scarce. This study is aimed for those SHL instructors and researchers who are interested in…

This study presents the development and implementation of inquiry-based cultural projects in a Spanish Heritage Language (SHL) Program. Four different inquiry-based curricula are described to illustrate how university students in an SHL program advance their knowledge of Spanish while carrying out research to understand Hispanic cultures. First-,…

Following a cognitively-oriented framework, this study builds upon the authors' previous work (Elola and Mikulski 2013; Mikulski and Elola 2011), which analyzed writing processes (planning time, execution time, revision time), fluency, and accuracy of Spanish heritage language (SHL) learners when composing in English and in Spanish. By analyzing…

This qualitative study investigated the language ideologies and instructional practices of an entire Spanish language faculty at a high school in a new gateway state for immigration. The study examined additive and subtractive practices of teachers as they strived to teach Spanish to heritage language learners (HLLs) enrolled in mixed…

The current debate in second language acquisition and heritage language learning is no longer about whether communicative language teaching should include a focus on form, but rather "how" and "when" this is most effective. The proposals for Spanish for heritage language learners (HLLs) courses show a marked preference for an integrated approach…

Over the past four decades, scholars have debated the pedagogical and sociolinguistic needs of heritage language learners. It is widely accepted that these learners present several characteristics that are different from those of foreign (or non-heritage) language learners. However, scholars have also pointed to similarities between the two groups…

Discusses how the learning process in first year Spanish can be enhanced by incorporating the game of baseball into the lesson plan. Phonetic improvement, vocabulary building, and reading skill development are explained within the baseball teaching methodology. (GLR)

Problems are discussed and recommendations made for developing programs and materials for Spanish instruction of Spanish speakers. General and specific suggestions are made for material selection and class activities, including spelling, composition, self-editing, dialog writing, transcription, translation, student-teacher conferences, journals,…