User:Reblc/Language nest

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A language nest is an immersion-based approach to language revitalization in early-childhood education. Language nests originated in New Zealand in the 1980s, as a part of the Māori-language revival in that country. The term "language nest" is a translation of the Māori phrase kōhanga reo. In a language nest, older speakers of the language take part in the education of children through intergenerational language transference. With that, these older fluent speakers act as mentors and help children use the target language in many different settings. The language nest is a program that places focus on local Indigenous cultural practices and perspectives, and with that incorporates traditional activities, cultural products, and Indigenous language discourse. Additionally, the quality of these early childhood immersion programs helps in aiding the development of linguistic and cultural competence for participants.

United States
In Minnesota, the Enweyang Ojibwe Language Nest started in 2009. In collaboration with UMD's College of Education and Human Services Professionals and Eni-gikendaasoyang, the Center for Indigenous Knowledge and Language Revitalization, the program targets 4- to 5-year-olds in a half day session in the Duluth area. The main goal of this program was to teach Ojibwe language and immerse preschool children, families, and university students in the language and culture. The needs of the program were identified by the Indigenous community and participating post-secondary students. This program had a high success rate based on feedback from the participating families and showcased a lot of benefits of this type of learning. Additionally, the program structure used surveys and allowed for researchers to track the learning experience. There were 12 main takeaways that came from this program that can be applied to other program. The first three were focussing on the target language, meaning not using English in the program, starting from the beginning, and starting today, as starting from a young age has its benefits. The next few including respecting different dialects, supporting families and community members, and focussing on a culture-centred approach. Building a community of support, strong leadership, and kindness within the program were also highlighted. The last few include quality language and promoting active speech communities, allowing for quality teaching, and valuing the small accomplishments made along the way.