Indigenous Language Revitalization: Success, Sustainability, and the Future of Human Culture

• Main Author: Lewis, Grace
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: ScholarWorks@Arcadia 2022
• Subjects: Indigenous; North America; United States; Canada; Mi'kmaw; Salish; linguistics; language education; culture-based education; language revitalization; First Nations; decolonization; native Americans; native; endangered languages; language extinction; First and Second Language Acquisition; Indigenous Studies; Native American Studies; Other Languages; Societies; and Cultures; Other Linguistics; Race; Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies; Reading and Language
• Online Access: https://scholarworks.arcadia.edu/showcase/2022/pgl/2; https://scholarworks.arcadia.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1431&context=showcase

This thesis looks at different styles of Indigenous language revitalization programs and seeks to delineate the three most successful characteristics seen across differing designs in an effort to promote the presence of these characteristics in existing programs. The literature analyzed outlines three main schools of thought: first, that language-based education is the most effective program design, second, that language-based education is only effective if it is directed and driven by the community it serves, and third, that culture-based education is the most effective design. The data rejects the idea that one design is superior to another, and instead presents three characteristics of successful programs no matter the design: first, that it is community-driven, second, that culture-based education is present in the curriculum design, and third, that the program has connections and partnerships with outside organizations. Overall, the author seeks to promote language revitalization programs and add to the existing research in the field about the most effective way to teach endangered languages and save them from extinction.