Family language policy all too often occurs without direct input from children, leaving them at the 'receiving end' of parents' plans and decisions - for example, King and Fogle's (2013) research timeline reports no studies where children where directly involved in the development of family language policies. The study presented here was jointly developed at the initiation of a child, aged 6 at the time research planning began. For two-and-a-half years, mother and son chronicled both family language practices, and emotional reactions linked to language and identity development. Together, the researchers negotiated a fluid, evolving and workable family language policy that allowed the resurrection of the child's German after a two year hiatus, against the backdrop of an increasing school focus on English literacy practices and the political climate around Brexit. Through the use of third space theory (Bhabha, 1990) and Gadamer's Fusion of Horizons (1989), mother and son explored factors impacting on family language use, linked to external factors, including macro level influences linked to education and general political climate, as well as social aspects linked to peers and family circumstances. The study gives direct and unique insights into links between home language use and links to socio-affective aspects around identity development, whilst highlighting the importance to involve children directly in family language policy discussions. The paper will be presented jointly by mother and son, who is 13 years old at the time of the conference. A paper is available (Little and Little, 2021)
References:
Bhabha, H. K. (1990). DissemiNation: Time, narrative, and the margins of the modern nation. In H.K. Bhabha (Ed.), Nation and narration. London: Routledge, pp. 291-322.
Gadamer, H. G. (1989) Truth and method (2nd revised edn). London: Continuum.
King, K. A. and Fogle, L. W. (2013). Research Timeline: Family language policy and bilingual parenting. Language Teaching, 46.2; 172-192.
Little, S. and Little, T. (2021, online first): An un/familiar space: children and parents as collaborators in autoethnographic family research. Qualitative Research DOI: 10.1177/1468794121999018
