“We Don’t Want Their Yoruba Language to Fade”: Examining the Home Literacy and Cultural Practices of Yoruba Families in the Midwest U.S.
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Abstract
This qualitative study engages sociocultural and New Literacy Studies theories to investigate the home literacy and cultural practices utilized by Yoruba parents to help their children develop their bilingualism and biliteracy (English/Yoruba). Using ethnographic methods, the study explored two main questions: 1. What are the home literacy and cultural practices utilized by Yoruba parents to help their children develop their bilingualism and biliteracy in English and Yoruba? 2. How do the focal parents conceive the relationship between language and culture in their children’s development of bilingualism and biliteracy in English and Yoruba? The findings revealed that the focal parents employed various home literacy and cultural practices such as sharing poems, folk stories, and teaching from religious texts to help their children develop their bilingualism and biliteracy in English and Yoruba. Furthermore, the findings show that these parents espouse a holistic approach to language learning that considers cultural practices a fundamental element in this process. The findings from this study provide important insights into the understanding of the literacy and cultural practices of African immigrant populations in the U.S. and contribute to the existing literature that seeks to bridge the gap between school and home literacy practices.
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