Subtractive bilingualism and the survival of the Inuit language: Heritage-versus second-language education

A longitudinal study examined the impact of early heritage- and second-lang uage education on heritage- and second-language development among Inuit, Wh ite, and mixed-heritage (Inuit/White) children. Children in an arctic commu nity were tested in English, French and Inuttitut at the beginning and end of each of the first 3 school years. Compared with Inuit in heritage langua ge and mixed-heritage children in a second language, Inuit in second-langua ge classes (English or French) showed poorer heritage language skills and p oorer second-language acquisition. Conversely, Inuit children in Inuttitut classes showed heritage language skills equal to or better than mixed-herit age children and Whites educated in their heritage languages. Findings supp ort claims that early instruction exclusively in a societally dominant lang uage can lead to subtractive bilingualism among minority-language children, and that heritage language education may reduce this subtractive process.