Swedish and Greek Teachers’ Perceptions of their Role in Heritage Language Education

Abstract: Migration flows have created various educational needs worldwide. One such is HeritageLanguage Education as people claim their right to connect with their cultural, traditional,religious and linguistic background while they reside abroad. Ethnic communities haveestablished settings in which they aim to sustain their ethnolinguistic capital. The presentthesis explores how heritage language teachers perceive their role in two HeritageLanguage Community Schools, in Athens and in Stockholm. Based on a qualitativedesign, the research focuses on sociolinguistic phenomena such as language use andmaintenance, and ethnic identity creation. Data were collected in Athens and Stockholmthrough semi-structured interviews with nine teachers. The analysis of findings revealsself-perceptions of teacher role that include cultural and linguistic connotations. Teacherscontribute to language use and maintenance and to some extend to ethnic identityformation. Teacher practices and experiences strive not only for linguistic developmentbut for group’s ethnolinguistic vitality as well. The study concludes that there is a needfor further research on teachers of Heritage Language Education since the topic has notgotten the attention it deserves.