Presents model using elements of status, social group or speech community, and values for treating literacy as a sociolinguistic phenomenon and in support of bilingual education. Uses Navajo and medieval Jewish languages as examples. (BK)

Both sociolinguistics and psycholinguistics are relatively recent areas of study and they tend to overlap. One way in which they overlap is in the selection of topics, among them bilingualism and linguistic relativity. Studies of linguistic relativity demonstrate that, although there are clear surface distinctions between the way languages map…

This is both a report on the numbers of native speakers of Apachean languages and a statement of the need for sociolinguistic studies of these languages. (CK)

Current trends in American Indian bilingual education are discussed. An overview of American Indian bilingual programs is presented. The model utilized shows the range of variation in situation, programs and goals. (HP)

The development of literacy in selected bilingual societies was investigated. Historical and comparative studies were conducted of medieval Jewish communities, the Navajo community, a northern New Mexico village, and the countries of Paraguay and Tonga. The goal of the case studies was to develop a model for the development of literacy in the…

This report discusses trends in the study of Athapaskan, concentrating on language maintenance and bilingualism. It presents both the potential richness and the actual poverty of studies of sociolinguistic aspects of the Athapaskan languages. Noted are two trends--(1) There is a greater interest among linguists in the studies of language in use:…

The amount of English spoken by six-year-old Navaho children as they enter first grade is increasing and will probably continue to increase. Contacts outside the reservation contribute to this increase as do the almost completely monolingual (English) schools. Location of residence is also a factor. Linguistic borrowing of English words is another…