British Sikhs in complementary schooling: the role of heritage language proficiency and ‘culture learning’ in ethnic identity and bicultural adaptation

While the debate regarding bilingual benefits persists within the cognitive sciences, education research has documented various functions that heritage languages (HL) serve their speakers through bicultural adaptation. The present study adopted a mixed-methods approach to gauge HL proficiency and use, cultural participation and ethnic and mainstream identities, and to examine multiple perspectives on HL learning with complementary schooling (CS) among British Sikhs. Seventy-four 6- to 15-year-olds completed scales for perceived oral and literate abilities, language use across contexts, British and Sikh identifications, and participation in cultural activities. Children filled in open-ended items, while parents and teachers discussed in interviews and focus groups, their motivations for HL learning and CS experiences. The majority of children self-reported ‘good’ proficiency, which differed between generations as impacted by home use and was associated with cultural participation and Sikh identification. Most children referred to practical utility while most parents regarded culture retention as the dominant motivation for HL learning. Teachers discussed how teaching beyond the second generation and language shifts presented both challenges and opportunities. Still, all parties corroborated on the pertinence of HL maintenance as facilitated by CS through ‘culture learning’ towards a strong ethnic identity and bicultural adaptation

Public Health Nurses’ Knowledge and Attitudes Regarding Climate Change

Background: Climate change affects human health, and health departments are urged to act to reduce the severity of these impacts. Yet little is known about the perspective of public health nurses—the largest component of the public health workforce—regarding their roles in addressing health impacts of climate change

When digital capital is not enough: reconsidering the digital lives of disabled university students.

publication-status: Publishedtypes: ArticleThe relationship that disabled university students have with both their technologies and institutions is poorly understood. This paper seeks to illuminate this relationship using the conceptual lens of digital capital. The results from a study that explored the technology experiences of 31 disabled students studying in one university were analysed with a view to revealing evidence for both cultural and social digital capital. The analysis suggests that disabled students possess significant levels of both cultural and social capital, but that there are times when this capital is compromised or insufficient to enable students to fully benefit from technologies. Possessing digital capital does not appear to guarantee complete inclusion into university life

Politicians must heed health effects of climate change.

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