Newswise — "Deadly serious" is how one University of Alberta researcher describes the decline of aboriginal languages in Canada and if something is not done to preserve them, they are at risk of dying out within two generations. A U of A program is hoping to change that.
The Canadian Indigenous Languages and Literacy Development Institute (CILLDI) is an intensive summer school whose goal is to train aboriginal speakers and educators in First Nations languages, linguistics, curriculum development, research and second language teaching methodologies. The mandate is to help preserve endangered languages by developing research skills and teaching resources for the speakers of these languages themselves. It runs from July 28 to Aug. 14.
"This situation is deadly serious," said Dr. Heather Blair, from the U of A's Faculty of Education. "No one, not even the speakers of the languages, has paid much attention to what has been happening and now they are in big trouble. The youngest speakers of any indigenous languages in most of Saskatchewan and Alberta are in their 40s—it's one thing to preserve an active living language and another thing to have to retrieve it."
In some Alberta First Nations communities, only 10 per cent of the residents—most of whom are elders—still speak an indigenous language. English as the primary measure of communication has been gaining momentum for generations.
The institute, which was modelled after a course in Arizona, is the only one of its kind in Canada. It began in 2000 on Onion Lake First Nations in Saskatchewan, with 14 people in attendance. This year's session will see 150 people from the western provinces and the north flock to the U of A campus, where sessions include an introduction to Dene language and culture, web-based resource development for indigenous languages and literacy and drama in aboriginal language education. School principals and teachers, elders and students, some of whom have never been to a large city before, will be in attendance. Graduates of the institute will leave the U of A armed with the knowledge, motivation and materials to help preserve and teach indigenous languages.
Another highlight of the institute is a Cree immersion day camp for children, aged four to 12 during the institute's three-week run.
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