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Feature Article
Using New Technology to Teach Native American Languages

Journal Review
Winds of Change

News Corner

This publication was prepared with funding from the National Library of Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education, under contract no. ED-99-CO-0008. The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the positions or policies of NLE, OERI, or ED.

Feature Article

Using New Technology to Teach Native American Languages

Sally Morrison, ERIC Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics
Liz Peterson, Center for Applied Linguistics

In linguistics and education literature, the term heritage language has been defined in many ways. For strictly pedagogical purposes, a definition has been advanced that accounts for speakers who range from having some exposure to a heritage language to being functionally proficient or even a native speaker of the language (see Wiley, 2001). When it comes to Native American languages, however, heritage language learners may have no proficiency at all in the language, but they have an affiliation to it through their ethnolinguistic group (Wiley & Valdés, 2000). For these learners, as for any other type of heritage language learner, learning the heritage language is a link to their personal history.

For Native Americans in particular, language loss can be attributed to political, economic, and social factors. For example, language loss can be influenced by a belief that native languages are inappropriate for school use (McHenry, 2002). This way of thinking may not influence the viability of other heritage languages to the extent it does for Native American languages. A significant challenge in preserving Native American languages involves finding authentic materials such as original texts, films, or recordings with which to teach the language. Most have relatively few native speakers and a relatively short history of a written form (Villa, 2002). One reason for the dearth of recorded indigenous materials may even be cultural aversion to writing and recording the native languages (Adley-SantaMaria, 1997).

Despite these difficulties, many Native American communities are making significant strides in preserving their heritage languages. For many, it’s a case of history merging with the future: Tribes are utilizing the newest online and multimedia technology to bring their heritage languages to new generations. This article will profile three current projects that are working to preserve and teach Native American languages with the latest technology.

Lushootseed on the Web

The fourth grade students at Tulalip Elementary School on the Tulalip Indian Reservation near Seattle, Washington, have developed an online project that teaches the language and culture of the Puget Sound. This beautiful Web site presents not only basic Lushootseed language lessons but also many instances of native artwork and music. As described on the Web site, the project’s purpose is to promote “research and learning about the Native language, literature and culture of the Puget Sound.” The site is also a showcase for student work. According to the site, students produced most of the photography and art and much of the writing for the project. The site is a collaborative effort, involving students, teachers, and other members of the Tulalip tribe (McHenry, 2002).

What makes this site really special is the integration of language learning activities with the teaching of culture. An interactive animation tells a story with student artwork and traditional Tulalip music. Samples of traditional artwork, some with detailed explanations of the stories behind the art, can be seen throughout the site. Native stories are written in English and Lushootseed and are accompanied by pictures drawn by students. Native music accompanies many of the pages.

The teaching of Tulalip culture is prevalent on the site. There is a section on Native math that includes the Tulalip way of counting on one’s fingers accompanied by sound files of the words. The site features sections on traditional ways of measuring using the hands and on the 13-month native calendar. Each section includes Lushootseed words that have been transcribed into a modified version of the phonetic alphabet. Words are also accompanied by the English translation and often a phonetic spelling. Many but not all words and phrases on the site can be clicked and the language can be heard. “The most amazing aspect of this site is its non-reliance on English,” notes Tracey McHenry, a professor at the University of Eastern Washington. “To see so many non-English words, especially in unfamiliar IPA characters, while hearing the Lushootseed words spoken at the click of a mouse, can serve as a visceral reminder that the world does not speak English only and that Native American languages like Lushootseed have a much-deserved place on the World Wide Web” (McHenry, 2002).

Development of Heritage Language CD-ROMs

The American Indian Studies Research Institute (AISRI) at Indiana University serves as an interdisciplinary research center, working to promote language, culture, and history of the Native American peoples. The Institute has longstanding relationships with Native American communities, where it has engaged in, as well as supervised, fieldwork designed to document the Native American histories and languages.

The Institute’s researchers work with four different Native American communities to create language curriculum projects in heritage languages. These languages are Arikara (Fort Berthold Reservation, ND), Assiniboine (Fort Peck and Fort Belknap Reservations, MT and Canada), Pawnee (North Central Oklahoma), and Meskwaki (Tama, IA and the Sac and Fox Reservations on the Eastern Kansas/Oklahoma border and in Central Oklahoma). The projects involve developing software that enhances linguistic documentation, analysis, and publication, as well as innovative instructional media for teaching the languages. The materials that the institute helps to develop are used in primary and secondary schools, as well as in community colleges.

The Arikara Language Program, for example, a collaboration between the American Indian Studies Research Institute and the White Shield School District (Roseglen, ND), has produced a three-volume set of printed textbooks for language instruction, a multimedia dictionary that incorporates speech from native speakers, and an interactive CD-ROM teaching culture and language that features immediate feedback and offers self-recording devices so language learners can evaluate their own performance.

Online and Televised Courses in Choctaw

In 1997, the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma began to develop community language classes (Haag & Coston, 2002). They developed a 48-week curriculum based on literacy, vocabulary acquisition, conversation, and learning orthography. In 1998, the Nation decided to start televising the Choctaw courses through closed circuit television filmed in a studio at the University of Arizona. Recently, the Nation took the further step of creating a series of online lessons in Choctaw that are available to anyone who has access to the World Wide Web.

According to the Choctaw Web site, the Choctaw telecourses are available for use at four Bryan County public high schools that otherwise would not have access to a qualified Choctaw language instructor. The Choctaw Nation also has developed audiotapes and workbooks to supplement the course. The telecourses are broadcast via OneNet, a telecommunications and information network for education and government in the State of Oklahoma. According to the Choctaw Nation Web site, the televised classes are part of a pilot program that satisfies the Oklahoma foreign language requirement at the secondary level.

To supplement the televised course, the Choctaw Nation developed an online course that began in February 2000. These online courses are open to anyone who has access to a computer and the World Wide Web, not just members of the Choctaw Nation. The online courses utilize the AVAcaster learning system. AVAcaster is a multimedia content delivery system that enables the course developers to integrate the language learning content with audio, video, discussion groups, quizzes, and direct teacher-student interaction. The AVAcast system requires Windows Media Player or Macromedia Shockwave that can be easily downloaded by the student.

Conclusion

This article has discussed projects that use computer-based technology to teach Native American heritage languages. While only three examples are highlighted here, this is part of what appears to be a growing trend. Fishman (2001) notes that never before in the past 100 years has there been the current proportion of American Indian children engaged in heritage language learning, under tribal control or with tribal input (see also McCarty, Yamamoto, Watahomigie, & Zepeda, 1997; McCarty & Zepeda, 1998). The teaching of Native American languages using these tools is not limited to Native Americans. The interactive and audio features of the products make it possible for potentially anyone, anywhere in the world, to study these languages.

References

Adley-SantaMaria, B. (1997). White Mountain Apache language: Issues in language shift, textbook development, and native speaker-university collaboration. Retrieved February 26, 2003, from http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jar/TIL_12.html

Fishman, J. A. (2001). 300-plus years of heritage language education in the United States. In J. K. Peyton, D. A. Ranard, & S. McGinnis (Eds.), Heritage languages in America: Preserving a national resource (pp. 109-142). McHenry, IL, and Washington, DC: Delta Systems and Center for Applied Linguistics.

Haag, M., & Coston, W. F. (2002). Early effects of technology on the Oklahoma Choctaw language community. Language Learning & Technology, 6, 2. Retrieved February 25, 2003, from http://llt.msu.edu/vol6num2/haag/

McCarty, T. L., Yamamoto, A., Watahomigie, L. J., & Zepeda, O. (1997). In J. Reyhner (Ed.), Teaching indigenous languages: Proceedings of the 1997 Stabilizing Indigenous Languages Conference (pp. 85-104). Flagstaff, AZ: Northern Arizona University, Center for Excellence in Education.

McCarty, T. L., & Zepeda, O. (Eds.). (1998). Indigenous language use and change in the Americas [Special issue]. International Journal of the Sociology of Language, 132.

McHenry, T. (2002). Words as big as the screen: Native American languages and the Internet. Language Learning & Technology, 6, 2. Retrieved February 25, 2003, from http://llt.msu.edu/vol6no2/mchenry/.

Villa, D. J. (2002). Integrating technology into minority language preservation and teaching efforts: An inside job. Language Learning & Technology, 6, 2. Retrieved February 25, 2003, from http://llt.msu.edu/vol6num2/villa/.

Wiley, T. G. (2001). On defining heritage languages and their speakers. In J. K. Peyton, D. A. Ranard, & S. McGinnis (Eds.), Heritage languages in America: Preserving a national resource (pp. 109-142). McHenry, IL, and Washington, DC: Delta Systems and Center for Applied Linguistics.

Wiley, T. G., & Valdés, G. (2000). Editors’ introduction: Heritage language instruction in the United States: A time for renewal. Bilingual Research Journal, 24(4).

Resources

Heritage Languages

Web Site
The Heritage Languages Initiative

Book
Heritage Languages in America: Preserving a National Resource

ERIC Digests
Chinese Heritage Community Language Schools in the United States
Heritage Spanish Speakers' Language Learning Strategies
Involuntary Language Loss Among Immigrants: Asian-American Linguistic Autobiographies
Selecting Materials to Teach Spanish to Spanish Speakers
Spanish for Native Speakers: Developing Dual Language Proficiency
Tapping a National Resource: Heritage Languages in the United States

Resource Guide Online
Less Commonly Taught Languages

Journal
Language Learning & Technology
Special Issue: Technology and Indigenous Languages

Using Technology toTeach Language

Resource Guide Online
Creating Web-Based Language Learning Activities

ERIC Digests
Enhancing Authentic Language Learning Experiences Through Internet Technology
Evaluating Technology-Based Curriculum Materials
Interactive Language Learning on the Web
Interactive Multimedia Computer Systems
Uncovering the Hidden Web, Part II: Resources for Your Classroom

Journal Review

In each issue of ERIC/CLL Language Link, we feature one or more of the journals that have been abstracted and indexed for Current Index to Journals in Education (CIJE), the ERIC database's index to education-related journals. In this issue, we profile Winds of Change.

Winds of Change
 
Winds of Change: A Magazine for American Indian Education & Opportunity focuses on career and educational advancement for Native people. Articles highlight topics such as health and the environment, leadership, educational and career resources, and traditional knowledge. Most issues include book and resource reviews. Each issue of Winds of Change also features native artwork on the cover and throughout the magazine. This full-color magazine is published quarterly and is associated with the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The following articles focus on preserving indigenous languages and cultures.

Dancing Around the Same Fire: Exploring Seminole Culture Through Oral Histories (Vol. 17, No. 3, Summer 2002).
Preserving Tradition through Technology (Vol. 16, No. 1, Winter 2001).
The Warm Springs Heritage Language Program (Vol. 16, No. 1, Winter 2001).
Awakened Voices: Recordings of Indigenous Language and Song Find Their Way Home (Vol. 16, No. 1, Winter 2001).
American Heroes: Warriors for the Language (Vol. 16, No. 3, Summer 2001).
Native Tongues (Vol. 14, No. 2, Spring 1999).

You can search online for articles from this and other journals indexed in Current Index to Journals in Education.

You can recognize journal abstracts in the ERIC database by their "EJ" prefix followed by a six-digit number. ERIC abstracts can be read at ERIC centers in libraries in the United States and overseas, as well as on the Web.

Subscriptions to the journals indexed in ERIC can be obtained from the publishers. Individual articles from many journals are available from the article reproduction service ingenta: 800-296-2221; www.ingenta.com; ushelp@ingenta.com

NEWS CORNER

 

News from ERIC/CLL

Directory of Foreign Language Immersion Programs 

This recently updated and revised directory lists elementary and secondary schools that teach all or part of their curriculum through a second language.

New Digests

• Model Early Foreign Language Programs: Key Elements
• Interactive Language Learning on the Web
• Textbook Selection for the ESL Classroom
• Nonnative-English-Speaking Teachers in the English Teaching Profession

New Resource Guides Online

• American Sign Language
• Self-Directed Language Learning

Teaching Spanish to Spanish Speakers: Online Resources for Professionals

This new ERIC/CLL Web page provides links to publications, Web sites, projects, and events related to the teaching of Spanish to Spanish speakers.

New ERIC/CLL Partner

ERIC/CLL is pleased to welcome the American Association for Applied Linguistics as our newest partner. ERIC partners are organizations that have agreed to promote ERIC, disseminate ERIC information through newsletters and journals, enhance the ERIC database through the addition of documents, and encourage joint projects such as publications and workshops.

News from the National Center for ESL Literacy Education (NCLE)

New NCLE Publication on Adult English Language Instruction

Adult English Language Instruction in the 21st Century, researched and written by NCLE staff members Carol Van Duzer and MaryAnn Cunningham Florez, provides an overview of the field of adult English as a second language instruction in the United States today. This publication describes trends and issues in areas such as program design and instructional practices, assessment, and integration of research and practice.

Latest Issue of NCLEnotes (v 11, n2) Now Online

The Winter 2002-2003 issue of NCLEnotes offers articles and resource updates that focus on assisting adults learning English for the workplace and community. In addition to favorites such as The Book Shelf and News Notes, this issue includes reviews of both new and classic resources.

News from ERIC and the U.S. Department of Education

Secretary of Education Rod Paige Testifies on the 2004 Budget

In an appearance before the House Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Subcommittee, Secretary Paige said the $53.1 billion sought for Education Department programs in 2004 represents more than a 25% increase since 2001 and a 130% increase in federal education funding since fiscal year 1996. 

Key increases for the cornerstones of the Federal role in education include the following:

$12.4 billion for Title I, a 41% increase since the passage of No Child Left Behind
$9.5 billion for IDEA grants to states, a 50% increase since Bush was elected President
$12.7 billion for Pell grants, for a record 4.9 million students

Read more.

Online Teachers College Open for Business

U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige hailed the launch of Western Governors University's (WGU) new online competency-based Teachers College, which offers accredited certificate, undergraduate, and graduate academic degrees for current and prospective teachers.

The university provides a creative path to alternative teaching certification. Its approach to education is based on competency in critical knowledge and skills measured by assessments, not on the number of hours spent in a college classroom. Rather than developing its own courses, the university collaborates with colleges, universities, corporations, and training organizations across the United States to make the best use of distance learning materials available to students through the Internet. Read more.

News from Our Colleagues

The Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL)

Tucker Fellowship

The Center for Applied Linguistics invites applications for the 2003 G. Richard Tucker Fellowship. During the period of June 2003 through May 2004, including a four-week residency at CAL in Washington, DC, the Fellow will interact with senior staff members on one of CAL's existing research projects or on a suitable project suggested by the Fellow. The fellowship pays a stipend plus travel expenses. Priority will be given to proposals that focus on topics in language education or testing or on language issues related to minorities in the United States or Canada.

The competition is open to candidates for a master's or doctoral degree in any field that is concerned with the study of language. Minorities are especially encouraged to apply. Applicants must be currently enrolled in a degree program in the United States or Canada and must have completed the equivalent of at least one year of full-time graduate study. Applications must be received on or before April 18, 2003. For further information, contact Grace S. Burkart at the Center for Applied Linguistics, 4646 40th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20016. Telephone: (202) 362-0700 ext. 208. Internet: grace@cal.org


Culture Profiles

Designed primarily for service providers and others assisting refugees in their  new communities in the United States, these booklets by CAL's Cultural Orientation Resource Center provide a basic introduction to the people, history, and cultures of  specific refugee populations.

The Somali Bantu: Their History and Culture
by Dan Van Lehman and Omar Eno

The Montagnards (of Vietnam): Their History and Culture
by Raleigh Bailey


Walt Wolfram Elected to CAL Board of Trustees

On January 3, 2003, Walt Wolfram began a three-year term on CAL's Board of Trustees. A sociolinguist and former Director of Research at CAL, Dr. Wolfram has served as William C. Friday Distinguished Professor in  the English Department at North Carolina State University since 1992. Over the past three decades, Professor Wolfram has  pioneered research on a broad range of vernacular dialects, including African American English, Puerto Rican English,  Appalachian English, Ozark English, Southern English, American Indian English, Vietnamese English, and currently, Outer  Banks and Lumbee English. In 1969, he published the first descriptive linguistic book on African American Vernacular English  and helped launch the national awareness about the role of vernacular dialects in American society and in education.  Supported through grants from agencies such as the National Science Foundation, the National Institute for Education, the  Department of Education, The National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Institute of Mental Health, and the  Educational Testing Service, Dr. Wolfram has conducted research in more dialect communities than any current  dialectologist or sociolinguist in North America.



The Center for Research on Education, Diversity & Excellence (CREDE)

New Publications


A National Study of School Effectiveness for Language Minority Students’ Long-Term Academic Achievement
The study on the long-term academic achievement of language minority students in five U.S. school districts is ground-breaking in scope. The study examined student performance across different language program designs. This report describes the study, provides extensive data and analysis, and offers thought-provoking implications for educational policy at all levels.
The report is available for $25 from the CALstore.

Two-Way Immersion 101: Designing and Implementing a Two-Way Immersion Education Program at the Elementary Level (Educational Practice Report No. 9, 2002)
by Elizabeth R. Howard and Donna Christian.
Drawn from over 15 years of research on two-way immersion programs, this report is designed to inform decisions for implementing such programs. It describes essential features of all two-way programs and variable features for which practitioners must make deliberate programmatic decisions. It also incorporates advice from educators working in two-way programs. This publication is available for $5.00 from the CALstore.

The Dual Language Program Planner: A Guide for Designing and Implementing Dual Language Programs (2003)
by Elizabeth R. Howard, Natalie Olague, and David Rogers.
This guide offers a collection of tools: discussion prompts, graphic organizers, and quizzes to be used by a dual language or two-way immersion program planning team. The team is encouraged to work through the guide together in order to assess the levels of support and readiness existing in the community for a dual language or two-way immersion program and to develop a plan for moving forward with implementation of the program. This publication is available for $10.00 from the CALstore.

A National Study of School Effectiveness for Language Minority Students’ Long-Term Academic Achievement (Research Brief #10).
This brief provides an overview of the study design and selected findings from the "National Study of School Effectiveness for Language Minority Students' Long-Term Academic Achievement" (Thomas & Collier, 2002) conducted through CREDE's Project 1.1. This brief is available online.

SIOP Institutes

More three-day SIOP Institutes have been announced for the upcoming year. Participants will enjoy intensive training in a research-based model of sheltered instruction known as the SIOP Model. The institutes will be led by Dr. Jana Echevarria (California State University, Long Beach), Dr. Mary Ellen Vogt (California State University, Long Beach), and Dr. Deborah Short (Center for Applied Linguistics) and will take place in Long Beach, Denver, Sacramento, and Chicago.


The National Capital Language Resource Center (NCLRC)

Russian Webcasts

The National Capital Foreign Language Resource Center is proud to announce the launch of NOVOSTI NEDELI NA UPROSHCHENNOM RUSSKOM JAZYKE

NOVOSTI NEDELI delivers a survey of the previous week's news in simplified standard Russian. The news itself is taken from a number of Russian sites. The accompanying exercises provide pre-listening background information, vocabulary support, and post-listening activities. The news items, style, and exercise level are aimed at students with listening skills at ACTFL Intermediate Mid to Intermediate High levels. In most cases, that corresponds to two years of college Russian.

Summer Institutes for Foreign Language Educators

May 19 - June 8, 2003
Washington, DC
The 2003 program for NCLRC's Summer Institute is now online. This year's institutes will offer programs on teaching culture, teaching with technology, teaching diverse student populations, and many others.

The Elementary Immersion Learning Strategies Guide

This is a guide to incorporating learning strategies into an existing immersion curriculum in Grades K-6, complete with explicit learning strategy instruction and sample lesson plans. Available for $13.50. Order from info@nclrc.org.


Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA)

Eighth Annual Summer Institute Program

Linking research and theory with practical applications for the classroom, the CARLA Summer Institute workshops include discussion, theory-building, hands-on activities, and networking with colleagues. This year's institute will include workshops such as the following:

• Material Development for Less Commonly Taught Languages
• Developing Assessments for the Second Language Classroom
• Styles and Strategies Based Instruction
• Immersion 101: An Introduction to Immersion Teaching
• Using Technology in the Second Language Classroom

See the CARLA Web site for more information.


National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE)

The latest issue of NABE News is available for $10.00. The theme of this issue is implementing the No Child Left Behind Act.


Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)

New Book

Content-Based Instruction in Higher Education Settings
JoAnn Crandall and Dorit Kaufman, Editors
Content-based instruction (CBI) challenges ESOL teachers to teach language through specialist content in institutional settings. This volume addresses CBI negotiation between ESOL teachers and subject specialists in higher education.

Invitation to Writers

TESOL is sponsoring a new series and invites offers to write one of three open volumes. For All Our Students: Collaborative Partnerships Among ESL and Classroom Teachers addresses a gap in the teacher education/professional development literature by focusing on ESL and classroom teachers working together. These volumes recognize that fields intersect in terms of the academic needs and achievement of English language learners. This series informs readers about best practices that represent ESL and classroom teachers' collaborative partnerships. The full call for participation is available online.

Questions about the collection and applications to participate should be sent to Series Editor Debra Suarez at suarez@debrasuarez.com. The deadline is March 2003.

TESOL 2003: Hearing Every Voice (Annual Convention)

March 25-29, 2003
Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Volunteer Program Reviewers

TESOL is currently recruiting volunteer program reviewers to serve a 3-year term on the first review panel for the Standards for P-12 ESL Teacher Education Programs. Five qualified persons are needed this year. Find reviewer qualifications and application forms online.


National Council of State Supervisors of Foreign Languages (NCSSFL)

Announcement of First-Time Award for State Supervisor of the Year

In November 2002 at the ACTFL Pre-Convention Meetings of the National Council of State Supervisors of Foreign Languages (NCSSFL) and the National Association of District Supervisors of Foreign Languages (NADSFL), Prentice Hall Publishing announced that they would sponsor an annual award for National State Supervisor of the Year. This award is an addition to the existing award program for National District Supervisor of the Year also sponsored by Prentice Hall.

The purpose of this award is to acknowledge outstanding foreign language supervisory leadership at the state level among professionals whose leadership in facilitating the implementation of standards-based reform and advocacy for foreign languages has had a profound impact in their state and throughout the country.

Nominations for this award will be accepted from state foreign language organizations, the five regional foreign language organizations, and national language-specific organizations. Any questions related to the nomination and selection process should be forwarded to David Hellwig, NCSSFL Awards Committee Chair, at dhellwig@isbe.net. Download criteria for nomination and selection here.

If your organization is interested in nominating a state supervisor for the 2003 award, please note that the deadline for submission of the required nomination materials to the chair of the NCSSFL Award Committee is June 1, 2003. Please mail these materials to:
David Hellwig
Illinois State Board of Education
100 North First Street #E 418
Springfield, IL 62777


Course Crafters

The ELL Outlook

The ELL Outlook provides profiles of state and district methods for educating English language learners; interviews with in-the-field educators, policy makers, and researchers; and analysis of current ELL laws and research. Read the current issue and subscribe to the free e-newsletter online.


Language Policy Research Unit

The Language Policy Research Unit is pleased to announce a new Web site feature called Forums. The initial Forum presents policy statements and prespectives from the Second Annual Conference on Heritage Language Education. Future forums will include postings from other major conferences and roundtables addressing language policy issues.


Alice Cozzi Heritage Language Foundation

Small Grants Competition

This new, non-profit organization dedicated to heritage language vitality announces its first small grants competition. Individuals and groups working to revitalize and maintain endangered heritage languages are invited to apply for small grants (up to $500). Interested parties should submit a detailed essay addressing the following topics:

(1) Where the language is spoken and how many people speak it.
(2) The project objectives, project timeline, and other funding received or applied for.
(3) Your past, present, and planned involvement in language work.

Applicants should include the following information:
Name(s)
Organization name (if applicable)
Mailing address
E-mail address
Phone number
Project location, address, and phone (if different from above)

The deadline for receipt of applications is May 15, 2003. In awarding grants, preference will be given to those projects whose plans, objectives and budgets are considered most practical and that serve the most economically and educationally disadvantaged communities. Decisions will be announced in May; funds will be available in July. For more information, contact the Alice Cozzi Heritage Language Foundation at P.O. Box 10754, Marina del Rey, CA 90295, or by e-mail at alice_cozzi_hlf@hotmail.com.


Society for the Study of Indigenous Languages of the Americas (SSILA)

Ken Hale Prize

The Ken Hale Prize is presented annually by the Society for the Study of Indigenous Languages of the Americas (SSILA) in recognition of outstanding community language work and a deep commitment to the documentation, maintenance, promotion, and revitalization of indigenous languages in the Americas. The Prize (which carries a small monetary stipend and is not to be confused with the Linguistic Society of America's Kenneth Hale Book Award) will honor those who strive to link the academic and community spheres in the spirit of Ken Hale, and recipients will range from native speakers and community-based linguists to academic specialists, and may include groups or organizations. No academic affiliation is necessary.

Nominations for the award may be made by anyone and should include a letter of nomination stating the current position and affiliation, if appropriate, of the nominee or nominated group (tribal, organizational, or academic) and a summary of the nominee's background and contributions to specific language communities. The nominator should also submit a brief portfolio of supporting materials, such as the nominee's curriculum vitae, a description of completed or ongoing activities of the nominee, letters from those who are most familiar with the work of the nominee (e.g., language program staff, community people, academic associates), and any other material that would support the nomination. Submission of manuscript-length
work is discouraged.

The 2003 Ken Hale Prize will be announced at the next annual meeting of SSILA, in Boston, in January 2004. The deadline for receipt of nominations is September 30, 2003. The nomination packet should be sent to the chair of the Committee:

Akira Y. Yamamoto
Department of Anthropology
University of Kansas
Fraser Hall 622
1415 Jayhawk Blvd.
Lawrence, KS 66045-7556

Nominations will be kept active for two subsequent years for prize consideration, and nominators are invited to update their nomination packets if so desired. Inquiries can be e-mailed to Akira Yamamoto at akira@ku.edu.