Język odziedziczony a dwujęzyczność – o konieczności badań komparatywnych
Heritage language and bilingualism – the necessity of comparative research studies

Summary/Abstract: Due to global social and economic changes the educational past and language biographies of Polish migrant children are currently more complex. Observations and research prove that a significant ratio of these children are bilingual. They learn the majority code relatively fast and at the same time they acquire/maintain Polish, their heritage language (HL). The level of their competency in Polish varies, however, due to limited contact with it and “little practice”. Most of the young migrants are therefore naturally bilingual, only rarely however may they boast cognitive bilingualism. In the paper, we analyze the phenomenon of bilingualism placing it in the learning/teaching perspective. We also emphasise the necessity of conducting comparative research into language competences of Polish bilingual teenagers. Such research would considerably expand our knowledge of bilingualism, in particular of the rarely studied cognitive form. It should also show a more systematic and thorough description of HL itself as a phenomenon situated somewhere ‘in between’ a native language and a foreign one. The results of such research would be applicable not only in socio-, psycho- and applied linguistics and pedagogy, but also in the sphere of education

• Details
• Contents