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Article In:
Thematic Issue: Trends in Second Language Pragmatics Research Part 2
[Applied Pragmatics 6:2] 2024
► pp. 148–168

Heritage learner pragmatics

Moving beyond monolingual norms

ORCID logo | San Francisco State University
| St. Olaf College
The diversity of heritage language learners and inclusivity of pragmatics usher in a new era of research that explores the unique nature of “heritage learner pragmatics.” This article provides a review of this emerging field, drawing on a thematic analysis of the literature over the past decade. Major findings reveal that a high degree of hybridity underlies heritage learners’ pragmatic competence and performance and that the reasons for this hybridity are complex. The hegemony of the majority language, the assimilative pressure from the host society, the status of the heritage language in the home country, and access to formal education, together with learner factors such as proficiency, attitude, and agency, all appear to have meaningful impacts. We propose that the research of heritage learner pragmatics needs an extension beyond the binary convention of monolingualism and bilingualism to embrace intersectional inquiries that focus on identity, multiculturalism, translanguaging, and social justice for minoritized communities and their languages.
Keywords: heritage learner pragmatics, identity, multiculturalism, social justice, translanguaging
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Defining “heritage learner pragmatics”: Key terms and concepts
    • 2.1Heritage languages
    • 2.2Heritage speakers and learners
  • 2.3Heritage learner pragmatics
  • 3.Reviewing the field of heritage learner pragmatics: Then and now
    • 3.1Recent synthesis on pragmatics in the context of heritage language learning
    • 3.2Three observations on pragmatics in the literature of heritage language learning
      • 3.2.1Complexity of heritage learners’ pragmatic competence
      • 3.2.2Identity and pragmatics of heritage learners
      • 3.2.3Norms in pragmatics instruction
  • 4.Refining heritage learner pragmatics: Suggestions for future research and pedagogy
    • 4.1Transdisciplinary conceptual framework in a multilingual world
    • 4.2HLP and pedagogy in the 21st century classroom
  • Conclusion
  • Author queries
  • References
This content is being prepared for publication; it may be subject to changes.
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