Home Environment and Second-Language Acquisition: The Importance of Family Capital
Author(s): Guofang Li
Source: British Journal of Sociology of Education, Vol. 28, No. 3 (May, 2007), pp. 285-299
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http://www.jstor.org
British
ofEducation
JournalofSociology
Vol.28, No. 3, May 2007,pp. 285-299
I
Routledge
WFrancis
Taylor
Group
Home environmentand secondlanguage acquisition: the importance of
familycapital
GuofangLi*
USA
MichiganStateUniversity,
Framed withinColeman's theoryof familycapital,thisarticleexamineshow different
home variables such as familyphysical,humanand social capitalaffectimmigrant
children'ssecond-language
acquisitionin the homes of four Chinese immigrantfamiliesin Canada. Specifically,the study
in second language
betweenfamilyphysicalcapitaland familyinvestment
analyzestherelationships
learning,betweenparentalhuman capital and levelsof parentalinvolvement,and betweenfamily
social capital and access to familialand communityresources.The analysisdemonstratesthat
parentaleducationalbackgrounds,theiroccupationalchoicesand chances,and theiradaptationand
integrationinto Canadian societyhad a significantimpact on the families'accumulation and
activationoffamilycapitalto supporttheirchildren'ssecond-languagelearning.
Introduction
Researchon second-language
acquisitionoverthepast 20 yearshas focusedmainly
on linguistic
and cognitive
schoolsites(Ellis,
aspectsofEnglishlearningintraditional
school
1994; Lazaraton,1995; Cummins,2000). Althoughresearchin traditional
has
on
it
has
created
settings yieldedsignificant
knowledge second-language
learning,
a misguidedpicturethatsecond-language
learningoccursonlywithintheboundaries
ofofficial
suchas English-as-a-second-language
classrooms.Recentresearch
settings
froma widevariety
ofdisciplines
that
and
is deeply
learning
suggests language literacy
embeddedin thesocialfabricofschoolsand homesand thatschoolsuccessis dependentupon a complexcombinationofhomeand schoolvariablesthatmayvaryfrom
childto child(Hull & Schultz,2002; Li, 2006). Therefore,
itis significant
to explore
thelearningenvironments
ofminority
studentsoutsideschoolin theirspecifichome
contexts.
*AssociateProfessor,
350 Erickson
DepartmentofTeacher Education,MichiganStateUniversity,
Hall, East Lansing,MI 48824, USA. Email: liguo@msu.edu
ISSN 0142-5692 (print)/ISSN1465-3346 (online)/07/030285-15
C 2007 Taylor& Francis
DOI: 10.1080/01425690701252028
286 G. Li
studieshave suggestedthatthehomeenvironment
has a direct
Manyquantitative
in
on
children'sacademic achievement school (Fuligni, 1997;
impact immigrant
& Guetschow,1998; Parcel & Dufur,2001). However,veryfewstudies
Gettinger
haveexploredin depthhow different
homevariablesinteract
to influenceimmigrant
children'ssecond-languagelearning,and in whatwaysthesevariablesdifferentiate
of those childrenwho are more successfulin second-language
the environments
from
those
who are less so.
acquisition
hereaimsto addressthisgap byexploringin
The ethnographic
studysummarized
the
of
home
environments
four
Chinese
familiesin Canada. The
depth
immigrant
and
home
describes
different
home
study
literacyenvironments, how different
variablesshapequalitatively
ofEnglish-asdifferent
languageacquisitionexperiences
More
the
how these
children.
importantly, studyinvestigates
a-second-language
homevariablesintersect,
and how theintersection
mighthave shapedthechildren's
successor failureto learna secondlanguage.
Theoretical framework
The theoreticalorientation
thisstudyis the social theoryof familycapital
framing
as a dynamicentity
thatthefamily
(Coleman,1988, 1990, 1991). Colemanmaintains
transforms
various
forms
of
from
the
actively
capital
parent generationinto
educationalattainmentin the children'sgeneration.In Coleman's theory,family
includesthreedistinctformsof capital-physicalor financialcapital,
environment
and shouldbe dealt with
humancapitaland social capital-whichare interrelated
interdependently.
Physicalcapital refersto the materialresourcesthat can be
measuredby familyincome and wealth; that is, theirsocioeconomicstanding.
thatis embodiedin
Human capitalis theindividual'slevelofeducationalattainment
Social
skillsand capabilitiesto act in certainsocial structures.
a person'sknowledge,
thatareaccesand inthecommunity
to thesocialresourcesinthefamily
capitalrefers
thatexistin the family
sible to the family;it is the networkof social relationships
social capital) or betweenthe familyand the community(between(within-family
1998). Together,the threeformsof
familysocial capital) (Hao & Bonstead-Bruns,
social
human
and
familycapital-physical,
capital-reflectthe quality of the
children'shomeenvironment.
factorin shapingstudents'academic
First,familyphysicalcapitalis a significant
a
socioeconomic
from
Children
higher
standingare oftensocialized
performance.
intohigh-brow
culturalactivitiesat home,whichincluderegularvisitsto theaters,
concerts,museumsand libraries,and/orinterestin literatureand art (Bourdieu,
1977; Bourdieu & Passerson, 1977). Through these culturalactivities,parentsestablish 'the intellectualclimate fortheirchildren's educational aspirations,motivations
to achieve, and hence, performancein schools' (Wong, 1998, p. 5) and thereforewill
more probably ensure theirschool success. Agreeingwith these conclusions, Coleman cautions that differencesin physical capital are not determinantsof the quality
of children'sfamilyenvironment.It does not determinewhat the familiescan do with
literacybecause even familiesfroma lower socioeconomic status can provide quality
and second-language
Home environment
acquisition 287
fortheirchildren(Taylor& Dorseylanguageand literacylearningenvironments
Gaines, 1988; Compton-Lilly,
2003).
Parentalhuman capital,especiallythatof mothers,is an importantfactorthat
affectsa home languageand literacyenvironment
(Taylor,1995; Parcel & Dufur,
fortheir
mayhavehighaspirations
2001). Parentswithlittleeducationalbackground
children'slanguageand literacyachievements
just as parentsof highereducation
theirinvolvement
in languageand
levels.However,theireducationlevelmayrestrict
withtheirchildrenat home (Purcell-Gates,1995; Rogers,
literacylearningactivities
havedifferent
educationalbackgrounds
beliefs,
2003; Li, 2004). Parentsofdifferent
in
in
and
interact
different
child
use different
wayswith
rearing,
teachingstrategies
inparent-child
theirchildren(McGillicuddy-DeLisi,
1982). For example,theydiffer
to
with
verbalinteraction,
the
child;
books;strucearlyexperience
includingreading
television(TV) watchingand expectedbedtimes;
turedlifestyles
withrulesregarding
to read (Guthrie&
parents'reading;access to readingmaterials;and opportunities
Parcel
&
Dufur,2001).
Greaney,1991;
The conceptofsocialcapitalis also a significant
indicatorofqualityfamily
environment.Coleman suggeststhattherelationships
and interactions
betweenadultsand
childrenand theirsocial networksare valuableresourcesto children'slearningat
in children'slearningat home
home. Social capitalsuch as parents'participation
ofotherformsoffamily
'facilitates
and enhancestheconversion
capitalintochildren's
humancapital'(Wong,1998,p. 4). Colemanpostulatesthatrelationships
outsidethe
and interactions
withteachers,commufamily(such as thefamily'ssocialnetworks
are
also
For
members
and
other
families,
significant. manyimmigrant
nity
parents)
these social networksmay be importantresourcesto understandschoolingand
to facilitate
theirchildren'slearningin thehostcountry(Li,
developcopingstrategies
Portes
&
2006;
MacLeod, 1996).
into children'seducational
However,not all familycapitalcan be transformed
as
attainment.
Onlywhenparentsuse theirphysicaland humancapitaleffectively
resourcesdoes itbecomesignificant
to theirchildren'seducationalattainment
(Colein
theactivation
offamily
man, 1988; Field etal., 2000). Furthermore,
capitaldiffers
different
contextsas itdependson thevalueattachedto theformsofcapitalin
family
a particularsetting,the family'sprocess and skillsto translatetheircapital into
educationalresources,
and thelegitimacy
theinstitutions
accordtheseformsoffamily
capital(Lareau & Horvat,1999).
In thisstudy,I analyzehow different
formsof familycapitalplayedout in four
Chineseimmigrant
and
how
homeenvironments
families,
theyhelpedshapedifferent
and theirchildren'sopportunities
to acquire second languageand literacy.As the
will
the
three
formsoffamilycapitalare intricately
linkedand
findings demonstrate,
overlapping,and at times it is difficultto disentanglethem.
Methodology
This ethnographicstudy involved four Chinese familiesin two differentneighborhoods in a universitytown in Western Canada. The four families included two
288 G. Li
academic families(the Li1 familyand the Zhang family)withthe fathersbeing
and two entrepreneurial
families(The Ye
graduatestudentsin thelocal university,
familyand the Liu family)who operatedrestaurantbusinessesin an inner-city
neighborhood.
For an eight-month
period,September1998-April1999,I visitedthefourfamilies
intheirhomesand/orrestaurants.
and each
Myvisitsaveragedoncea weekperfamily
visitlastedtwoto threehours.I conductedparticipant
observations
ofthefamiliesin
different
theresearchlabosettingssuch as thehome,parks,thefamilyrestaurants,
ofoccasionssuch
ratories,
publiclibrariesand shoppingcenters,and duringa variety
as familydinners,holidaycelebrations,
and
reunions.
Since I am a
familyoutings
I couldparticipate
researcher,
bilingualChinese/English
fullyin thefamilyactivities.
Our co-ethnicbackgroundalso allowedme to befriendthe familiesand establisha
the influenceof my presenceon the families'
good rapportwiththem;therefore,
interactions
was minimizedand theymostlycarriedon theireveryday
lifeas usual.
these
I
took
field
notes
and
attention
to the
observations,
During
paid special
families'languageenvironments,
theparents'relationships
and interactions
withtheir
and relationships
withpeople in thecommuchildren,and thefamilies'interactions
nities.I also notedtheirculturalactivitiesand access to resourcesassociatedwith
second-languageand literacyacquisition.Duringthe data collectionperiod,I also
conductedsemi-structured
and informal
interviews
withtheparents.Throughthese
interviews
I gainedinformation
abouttheireducationalbackgrounds
and earlyimmigrationexperiences,theirlanguageand literacybeliefs,and theirperspectiveson
cross-cultural
living.Due to the limitedscope of thisstudy,I did not conductany
researchin theschoolsites,and collecteddata onlyin themilieuofthefourfamilies.
I used generictheorizingprocesses(Goetz & LeCompte, 1984) and thematic
an interpretive
analysisprocedures(Bogdan& Biklen,1992) to construct
description
and representation
ofthedifferent
home environments
and theireffects
on thechildren'ssecond-language
suchas codingand analytical
acquisition.I utilizedstrategies
to identify
themesacrossthe fourfamilies.These themeswerefurther
categorizing
on thebasis ofthetheoretical
interests
thisresearch.
interpreted
under-girding
The fourfamilies and theirchildren
In theLi family,
bothparentshad bachelor'sdegreesin science,and wereengineers
in China.The father,
Li-yong,cameto studyfora master'sdegreeat thelocaluniverin
and
was
son,Yang,
joinedbyhiswife,Nie-dong,and theirfive-year-old
sity 1997,
in 1998. The Li family
livedon thefather's
Halfa year
initially
graduateassistantship.
later,in late 1998, Nie-dong was employed as a part-timelaboratoryassistantin her
husband's department.At the time of the study,Yang was a grade one student and
was beginningto learn English in a nearbypublic elementaryschool whose majority
population were white,middle-class children.
In the Zhang family,fatherZhang-bo, who was an associate professorin a Chinese
university,came to studyas a post-doctoralfellowat the local universityin 1996, and
was joined by his wifeWang-ling,a librarian,and theirfive-year-olddaughter,Yue,
Homeenvironment
andsecond-language
acquisition289
in 1997. AfterZhang-bofinishedhis post-doctoral
trainingin 1998, and could not
finda job, he enrolledin an undergraduate
programin computerscience.Afterstaying home forfivemonths,Wang-lingfounda sewingfactoryjob and earnedthe
Canadian minimumwage in orderto supportthefamily
whileherhusbandstudied.
Yue was a gradetwo studentin thesame schoolas Yang and was alreadyfluentin
levelin all subjectareas.
spokenEnglishand was meetingtheexpectedperformance
oftheirextendedfamily
The Ye family
to
Canada
with
the
immigrated
sponsorship
Tim Ye was a salesmanwitha highschooleducation,and the
in 1995. The father,
motherSue was a professionalsoccer playerwitha juniorhigheducation.They
workedat severalChineserestaurants
as kitchenhelpersfora coupleofyearsbefore
businessin a lowersocioeconomicneighborhood.
theyoperatedtheirownrestaurant
The restaurant
was also theirhome.Theirthreechildrenwerebornin Canada. Amy,
who was almostthree,was alreadyfluentin spokenEnglish,and wouldsoon go to
preschool;Lucywas two;and Andywas fourmonthsold.
The Liu family
had been in Canada thelongest.The father,
Peter,whohad onlya
four
in
in
education
had
been
for
17
Canada
China,
grade
years,and the mother,
Kathy,who had a grade 12 educationin China,had been in Canada for21 years.
in Chinabeforetheyimmigrated
Bothofthemwerefactory
workers
to Canada. Similarto theYe family,
bothofthemworkedmanyyearsin different
manuallaborjobs
such as factory
beforetheyopened their
workers,kitchenhelpersand dishwashers
The Liu family's
ownrestaurant
businessin thesameneighborhood
as theYe family.
housewas locateda fewblocksawayfromtherestaurant.
The family
was sharingthe
housewitha sisterand hertwochildren,
and theirparents.Theyhad fourchildrenan eight-year-old
son Daniel,whowas ingradeone,and threedaughters,
14-year-old
Gina. Amongthesefourchildren,Erinand
Erin, 15-year-old
Fay, and 16-year-old
Gina werefluentin Englishand were doingokayin school. Fay and Daniel were
withEnglishand werein specialneedsprograms.Fay was able to converse
struggling
in English,butDaniel was unableto conversein Englishor Chinese.All thechildren
attendednearbyinner-city
schoolswhosemajority
community
populationwas under
privileged
Aboriginal
people.
Findings
and investment
insecond-language
Physicalcapital,homeenvironment
learning
thatphysicalcapitalis notthecrucialfactor
My studyconcurswithColeman'stheory
thatinfluences
whatthefamiliescan do withliteracy;
it is thefamilies'choice
rather,
ofinvestment
oftheirphysicalcapitalthatmatters.
The findings
suggestthatphysical
capitalplayedout in the fourfamiliesin different
ways.Althoughnone of thefour
in theirchildren'slearning
pairsofparentswerefluentin English,theirinvestment
different
environments
at home.
prescribedfundamentally
second-language
At thetimeof the study,the Zhangfamilywas struggling
The whole
financially.
familylived on Wang-ling'sminimumwage fromher sewingfactoryjob. Their
furniture
camefromgaragesales,leftovers
fromfriends
and garbagedumpedbyother
290 G. Li
Theirmostvaluablepossessionsweretheircomputer,
people in theneighborhood.
and
TV.
in a baseHowever,theydecidedto renta two-bedroom
piano
apartment
mentso thattheirdaughtercouldhavea betterenvironment
to studyand to practice
thepiano.Althoughtheycouldnotafford
newbooksin English,theywentto garage
sales to buy Englishstorybooks
and reference
books such as the Canadian Picture
to provide
Dictionaryfortheirdaughter.Theyalso madefulluse ofthepubliclibrary
materials
and
children's
for
videos
their
For
her
Englishreading
daughter.
drawings,
theyused recycledpaper. Despite theirtightbudget,theysenttheirdaughterto a
half-hour
piano lessoneveryweek.
The Li family
was in a betterfinancial
had Li-yong'sgraduateassissituation-they
assistant.They choseto live
tantshipand Nie-dong'swage as a part-time
laboratory
in a cheap apartmentwithonly a bedroomand a small kitchen.They had two
and a kitchentable.Their
mattresses
on theflooras theirbeds, a deskforstudying,
mostvaluablepossessionsincludeda TV, VCR, an electrickeyboardforYang to
practicemusic,and twotallbookshelveswithall kindsofbooks. They made use of
theirlimitedspace and turnedit intoa 'classroom.'On theirwalls,thereweremaps
fortheirson's interestin geography,
alphabetposters,Yang's drawingsand other
materials.
Like
the
the
learning
Zhangs, Lis also made fulluse ofthepubliclibrary
and borrowedchildren'sbooks,and audio and video materialsforYang so thathe
couldlearnEnglish.Buttheyalso setaside a smallbudgetforYang to buynewinforin science,they
mationalbooksfromschoolcatalogues.To cultivateYang's interest
also wentto different
book fairsto buyused books,magazinesand journalssuch as
Owl. They also visitedlocal bookstoresto buyworkbooksin English-language
arts
and mathematics
forYang to practiceat home. Besidesthesematerials,
theirapartmentwas also fullofotherkindsofprintmaterialsincludingChinesetextbooks,
the
textbooks
and
notebooks
from
their
Bible
studies,
materials,
parents'
university
and Yang's drawings.This printrichenvironment
Englishand Chinesenewspapers,
withreadingand writing
forYang to interact
(Lesman
providedampleopportunities
& Jong,1998).
familieswerebetteroffthanthetwoacademic
Financiallythetwoentrepreneurial
the chilIn theYe family,
choicesof investments.
families,but theymade different
drenwereexposedto a richoralEnglishenvironment
but theparentsdid notmake
inproviding
different
fortheirchildren'sreading
anyspecialinvestment
opportunities
orwriting
restaurant
practices.The Ye childrenspentmostoftheirtimein thefamily
whiletheparentsTim and Sue cookedand servedthecustomers.
Amyusuallyplayed
withtheirAboriginalcustomers
who spokevernacular
English(Englishas a Dialect);
Lucywas putin a cardboardbox and playedbyherself;and Andystayedin a car seat
all thetime.The Ye childrendid nothave anychildren'sbooks,pencils,crayonsor
otherchildren'sreadingor writingmaterialsthatwere considered necessaryresources
for children to develop emergent literacy (Teale, 1986). Differentfrom the two
academic families,their only exposure to printwas throughthe goods sold at the
restaurantsuch as printon menu boards, Coke cans and cigarettepackets. Since Tim
and Sue were busy withtheirwork,theyneverhad time to take theirchildrento the
libraryor outside to play.
andsecond-language
Homeenvironment
acquisition291
The Liu family
livedin a spacioushomeand had thebestfinancialsituationamong
thefourfamilies.In theirhome,therewerefiveTVs and VCRs; and in theirrestauwas characrant,thereweretwoTVs and VCRs. However,theirhomeenvironment
terizedby a lack of printin eitherChinese or Englishdue to theirchoice of
in termsofbuyingbooks,buttheychose
Peterand Kathywereunsparing
investment.
to buy classics ratherthan children'sbooks. The Liu childrenhad only a few
children'sbooks such as Archie'sComic Books,whichwereneatlystackedin their
bedroom.A fewyearsago, theyspentabout Canadian$10,000 (Kathyworkedas a
dishwasher
to earnthemoney)and boughta wholesetoftheworld'sgreatclassicsof
and thinkers
such
100 titlesthatincludedthemostsophisticated
readingsbywriters
as Aristotle,
Socrates,Shakespeareand Einstein.Since none of the childrencould
readthem,theywerestillintheirplasticwrappersinboxespiledin theirstorageroom
in the restaurant.
Besides purchasingthese classics,Kathyand Peteralso bought
in Englishso thatthechildrencouldwatchthemafterschool.
children's
videos
many
Sincethechildrendid notwatchanyregularTV programs,
foryearstheirTVs could
notreceiveTV programsand theydid notgetthemfixed.Similarto theYe parents,
the Liu parentsnevervisitedthe local publiclibrariesor anybookstoreswiththeir
children.In sum, the Liu familyinvesteda lot of theirphysicalcapital in their
children'sreading(worldclassics)and oral (video) materials,but theirinvestment
was not favorablein providingexposureto and engagementwithage-appropriate
materialsand forfostering
withand knowledgeof writtenor interactive
familiarity
orallanguage(Teale, 1986).
and second-language
Humancapital,parentalinvolvement
learning
forthechildren'seducationand offered
Althoughall parentshad highexpectations
moral supportfortheirchildren'slearning,theirhuman capital,especiallytheir
in bothChina and Canada, significantly
individuallevelsof educationalattainment
influencedtheirabilityand possibilityto be activelyinvolvedin theirchildren's
second-language
learningat home.
In theacademicfamilies,
theparentsallhad at leastbachelor'sdegreesfromChina.
The two fathershad experiencedhighereducationin Canada. Their educational
theirabilityto read,writeand speakEnglish,werereflected
experiences,
particularly
in their(especiallythat of the mothers')intenseinvolvement
in theirchildren's
English-language
learningat home. Influencedby theirschoolingexperiencesin
directinstrucChina,theysupportedtheirchildren'sEnglishlearning
mainlythrough
and
and
moral
tion,parentsupervision monitoring,
parentalmodeling
support.In the
two academicfamiliesdirectinstruction
includedusingchildren'sbooks as textsto
learnEnglishspelling,vocabulary,grammarand sentences.The mothersacted as
teacherswhodictatedEnglishtexts,assignedand supervised
the
theirchildinreciting
forexample,Wang-ling
texts,and correctedthe child'swork.In the Zhang family,
used children'sstoriessuch as HenryBabysitsand The Farmer'sWifeas textsfor
sinceYang was a beginninglearner,Li-yongand
teachingEnglish.In theLi family,
made
wordlists
fromchildren'sstorybooksforYang to learn
Nie-dong
bilingual
292 G. Li
Englishwords.They also made flashcardswithnew Englishwords,and had Yang
to practicespellingand handwriting.
hand-copythesentencesfromstorybooks
They
also let the childrenread and recitethe storieson theirown. Sometimestheytook
turnsto readthealternate
linesofa storyto makereadingmorefunoruse audiotapes
fromthelibrary
to guidetheirchildrenin reading.
The academic parentsalso influencedtheirchildren'slearningthroughhigh
aspirationsand strongmoralsupport.Yang's parentsencouragedhimto studyhard
and setgoalsforhimself
so thathe couldgo to HarvardMedicalSchoolwhenhe grew
Yue
wanted
to
becomea teacherand herparentsmotivated
herto do well
up.
Zhang
in school:'ifyou don'tstudyhard,you can'tbecomea betterteacher.'
In thetwoentrepreneurial
none oftheparentshad morethana grade12
families,
educationin China, and none of themhad any sortof schoolingexperiencesin
Canada. In the Liu family,the fatherhad onlya grade foureducationwhilethe
motherhad a grade12 educationin China. In theYe family,
thefatherhad a grade
12 educationwhilethemotherhad a gradenineeducationin China.Sincetheirpriormanual
ityhad been on economicsurvivaland theyhad been workingas low-paying
had
not
had
the
to
to
school
to
learn
laborers,they
luxury formally
go
English.The
Ye parentscouldspeaksomefunctional
business,butthey
Englishfortheirrestaurant
could not read or writeEnglish.The Liu parentscould speak onlya fewgreeting
wordsand phrasessuchas 'Hi,' 'howareyou' and 'good'; and couldnotreadorwrite
in Englisheither.Their limitededucationalexperiences,especiallytheirlimited
therolestheycould playin theirchildren'sEnglishliteracy
Englishability,affected
the
learning.Although parentsweresupportiveof theirchildren'seducation,they
wereunableto initiatereadingand writing
in Englishat home. Because theycould
not read Englishlettersfromtheirchildren'sschool,theydid not understandtheir
children'sschoolperformance
or school activitiesor attendparent-teacher
conferences.Most ofthetime,a bilingualcustomerwho befriended
thefamilywas called
upon whentheirchildrenwerein troublein school.
bothparentsworkedlonghourssevendaysa week,
Moreover,inthesetwofamilies,
and did not have timeto spendwiththeirchildren.In theLiu family,
the children
wereoftenleftunsupervised,
most
of
their
time
videos
at home.
watching
spending
In theYe family,
the childrenwerein theparents'sightin the restaurant,
but they
or interacting
withthecustomers.Both
spentmostofthetimeplayingbythemselves
familiesplaced highhopes in schoolsto providetheirchildrenwitha qualityeducation.The Ye family,
forexample,was trying
to finda schoolforAmywherea French
immersionprogramwas offeredso thatshe could learnboth Englishand French
(Canada's officiallanguages).For the Liu parents,althoughtheycould not speak
English, they realized that the schools did not give English homework to their
children, especially Daniel and Fay, who had the most problems with learning
English. They relied on my help to arrange a meeting with Fay's teacher and
demanded English be added to theirdaughter's life-skilllearningprogramin which
English literacywas not emphasized.
In sum, the academic parentswithhigh levels of educational attainmentwere able
to provide quality support for and involvementwith their children throughdirect
andsecond-language
Homeenvironment
acquisition293
of improvedacademicperformance,
or generalacademicguidance,
reinforcement
school
verbal
or interacfor
encouragement
performance,
settinghighexpectations
tionsregarding
theentrepreneurial
learningEnglish(Keithetal., 1986). In contrast,
were
unable
to
activate
their
human
to
facilitate
their
children'slearnparents
capital
ing because of theirlimitedEnglishabilityand theirdemandingjob circumstances
in parentalinvolvement
(Coleman, 1990; Lareau & Horvat,1999). The differences
in thefourfamiliessuggestparentalhumancapitalis an important
factorin shaping
children'shomelearningexperiences.
Socialcapital,socialintegration
and accesstosecondlanguage
Coleman (1988) pointsout thatifparentalhumancapitalis not complemented
by
to thechild'seducational
social capitalembodiedin familyrelations,it is irrelevant
in
The children'shomeliteracy
environments
and theirparents'involvement
growth.
in therelationtheirlanguagelearningsuggestedthatthefourfamiliesalso differed
betweenadultsand childrenand theirfamilysocialnetworks.
shipsand interactions
or
not
implicationsfortheir
Possessing
possessingtheseresourceshad significant
access to Englishliteracy.
In thetwoacademicfamilies,
social capitalwas embodiednot onlyin theparents'
sustainedinvolvement
in theirchildren'sEnglishlearningdescribedin theprevious
as
section,but also in a varietyof sharedfamilyliteracyactivities.These activities,
partoftheirdailyliving,oftenincludedmanyteachablemomentsthatbothchildren
and parentsappearedto enjoy.For example,bothfamiliessharedwiththeirchildren
in practicalreadingat home includingreadingflyersand junkmail,and tooktheir
childrenwiththemforgrocery
shoppingto provideexposureto printlanguageand to
theparentsmade an effort
to watchTV shows
promotefamilyunity.Furthermore,
such as six o'clock news programs,
AllyMcBeal or videos in Chineseand English
with
their
children.
Whenwatching
TV, bothfamilieskepttheclose caption
together
on so thatthe childrencould see thewordsspoken.Sometimes,theyalso involved
theirchildrenin sharedwritingactivitiessuch as writinglettersto grandparents
in
China. In bothfamilies,verbalinteractions
at home wereencouraged.The parents
set a specialtimeeveryday
to talkwiththeirchildrenabouttheirschoolexperiences.
In theLi family,
forexample,theyseta 'mother-son
talk'timeeveryschoolnightfor
enhancedthe
Yang to talkaboutwhathe did at schooleveryday.These talksgreatly
Li parents'understanding
of theirson's school experiencesand his progressin
wereat thetop
thechildren'sschoolingand well-being
English.In thesetwofamilies,
ofthefamilies'agenda.Similarto manyChineseparentsreportedin research(Chao,
1996; Jiang,1997), theireveryday lifeschedulesrevolvedaroundtheirchildren's
schedulesand theywerewillingto do whatever
ittookto helptheirchildrensucceed
in learning.In theZhangfamily,
forexample,Wang-lingtooka lower-wagefactory
waitressjob,becausethefactory
job,insteadofa higher-wage
job offered
regularwork
hoursand allowedherto spendmoretimewithherdaughter.
Besidestheseactiveparent-child
thetwoacademicfamiliesalso made
interactions,
an effort
tobuilda socialnetwork
intheircommunities,
theEnglish-speaking
especially
294 G. Li
wheretheycould learnmoreEnglishlanguageand culture.Although
communities
bothfamiliesfoundit was hardto minglewiththelocal community,
theymade an
to getto knowmorenon-Chinese-speaking
For
effort
the
fathers,
theyhad an
people.
fromtheuniversity
academiccommunity
whoweremostly
non-Chinese.The mothers,
who wereveryisolatedin theirwork,made a choiceto studyEnglishon weekends
witha Jehovah'sWitnesslady,and attendedtheJehovah'sWitnesscongressdespite
theirreligiousdifferences.
They oftentooktheirchildrenwiththemto theseBible
children.Yue Zhang,for
studiesso thattheycouldplaywithotherEnglish-speaking
found
a
she
liked
from
the
Bible
example,
playmate
studygroupandwas keenon going
to themeetingson weekends.The families'choiceto studytheBiblehad openedup
moreopportunities
forthemto speakand use English.Anothersocialnetwork
forthe
theirchildren'sweeklypiano lessons.Yue
academicfamilieswas establishedthrough
teacher,and,
Zhanghad beentakingpianolessonsfora yearwithan English-speaking
these
and
children.
she
met
other
Later,
lessons,
through
English-speaking bilingual
withthe
Yang also startedtakinglessonsfromthisteacher.The families'affiliation
also providedthemwithaccess to an English-language
environment
and
university
such
as
to
western
festival
seasons
use
Christmas,
they
English.During
opportunities
Yue learnedhow to sing
attendedChristmaspartiessponsoredby the university.
and SilentNightfromthese
Christmassongssuch as RudolphtheRedNosedReindeer
them
with
interactive
resourcesthrough
In
these
activities
provided
parties. short,
whichthesecondlanguageand culturewereacquired(Rohl, 1994).
In the two entrepreneurial
families,because the parentscould not spend time
to generatesocial capitalthroughparent-child
withthe children,the opportunity
theparents
interaction
to facilitate
learningwas greatlyreduced.In the Liu family,
After
saw
children
in
to
school.
the
the
before
went
school,the
morning
they
only
TV
on different setsin differvideosseparately
childrenoftenwatchedtheirfavorite
was minimized.In theYe
entrooms,therefore
theirinteractions
amongthemselves
at all timesin their
their
children
Tim
were
with
and
Sue
present
family,although
in
to
with
them
did
not
have
time
restaurant,
any deliberateliteracy
engage
they
activities.
in which
withthe communities
The two familiesalso had different
relationships
was
theleast
in
for
almost
20
and
Canada
The
Liu
had
been
resided.
years
family
they
knownfor
intothelocal community.
Becausetheylivedin a neighborhood
integrated
crimeand robbery,the Liu childrenwereneverallowedto play outsidewithother
children,and theywereraisednotto trustoutsidepeople. The familystayedwithin
theirkinshipnetworkand socializedonlywiththeirextendedfamily.The children
werenot allowedto have anyfriendsfromtheschools.The Liu familyalso choseto
caterto Chinesecustomersfortheirbusiness.As a result,theydid not have much
contact with English-speakingcustomers. The only non-Chinese friendthey made
among theircustomerswas a Portuguesewoman who grewup in Hong Kong and was
able to speak Chinese. She later acted as the family'sliaison with their children's
schools. Because of the Liu family'slack of contact withthe outside community,the
possibilities to accumulate social capital that could aid their children's secondlanguage learningwere thereforeseverelylimited.
andsecond-language
Homeenvironment
acquisition295
Similarto theLiu children,theYe childrenhad notbeen orientedto community
resourcessuch as libraries,
parksor museums.However,thefamilyhad muchmore
as theychose to caterfornon-Chinese
access to the English-speaking
environment
all day and the Ye parents
customers.Many customershungout at the restaurant
with
Amy,interacted
developedgood rapportwiththem.The Ye family,
particularly
and wereforcedto learnand use functional
thesecustomerseveryday,
English;and
them.
For
the customersweresupportiveand willingto teach
example,one of the
customerstaughtTim how to read classifiedadvertsin thelocal newspaperto find
and negotiation
wereinvaluable
thingshe wantedto buy.Theirconstantinteraction
resourcesfortheYe family's
learning.
English-language
thefamilies'socialinteractions
and relaThus, thesocialcapitalgeneratedthrough
with
the
communities
was
linked
withthe
within
the
families
and/or
directly
tionships
children'saccess to second-language
learning.This social capitalwas anotherfactor
that mightcontributeto the success of Yue Zhang's, Yang Li's and Amy Ye's
and theunderdevelopment
of the Liu children,particularly
languagedevelopment,
Daniel whomighthavea learningdisability
and need moresupportat home.
Discussion
in shaping
This studysuggeststhatdifferent
formsof familycapitalare significant
Alltheparentsinthefour
different
homeenvironments
forsecond-language
learning.
familiesplaced a highvalue on theirchildren'seducationalsuccess in learninga
secondlanguage.Althoughtheyweresimilarin theireducationalaspirations
fortheir
thechildren'ssecond-language
children,thewaysin whichtheyfostered
learningat
homeweredifferent.
Fromthefourfamilies'homepracticesI described,itis obvious
thattheaccumulationoffamilyphysical/financial
capital(materialresources)is not
thedeterminant
ofthequalityofa family'slearningenvironment
(Coleman, 1988);
howthefamily
utilizesitsexisting
rather,
family
capitaland inwhatwaysitis invested
in theirchildren'slearningplaya centralrolein constructing
a positivelearningenvironment.For thetwoacademicfamilies,
well-off,
althoughtheywerenotfinancially
were
able
to
make
choices
and
in
educated
invest
a
of
material
resources
they
variety
thatwerebeneficial
to theirchildren'slearning.For example,theymadeuse ofpublic
resourcessuchas libraries
to providereadingand writing
materialsfortheirchildren.
And theywereselectivein purchasing
booksthatwerenotonlyage-appropriate,
but
ofinterest
to theirchildren.Theirchoicesprovidedopportunities
forchildrento have
constantcontactwithreadingand writing.
forexamFor theentrepreneurial
families,
the
Liu
much
more
in
made
of
a
financial
investment
ple,
family,althoughthey
was not
purchasingbooks such as the EncyclopediaBritannica,theirinvestment
effective
in providingresourcesfortheirchildren'slanguagelearningbecause these
bookswerenotusableor usefulfortheirchildren'simmediatelanguageneeds.Also,
besidesthesebooks,theLiu childrenhad verylittleexposureor contactwithEnglish
to
literacyoutsideof thehome. The Ye familydid not knowthatit was important
fortheirchildrento 'be doing'literacy.
These findings
provideopportunities
support
Coleman'stheorythatnotall investment
offamily
to children's
capitalwas beneficial
296 G. Li
that addresseschildren'sspecificdevelopmental
education.Only the investment
withreadingand writing)can be translatedinto
needs (such as activeengagement
successin learning.
The factthatthe academicfamilieswereable to makemoreeducatedchoicesin
thantheentrepreneurial
theirinvestment
parentssuggeststhatparents'humancapirole. Research
tal (i.e. theireducationalattainments)
mayhave playeda significant
indicatesthatparentswithhighereducationallevelsare more aware of theirchildren'sacademicdevelopment(McGillicuddy-DeLisi,1982; Parcel& Dufur,2001).
As I have described,the academicparentswho had much highereducationlevel
frombothChina and Canada wereable to read,writeand speakEnglish,and they
in
werealso activelyinvolvedin theirchildren'slearning.Their activeinvolvement
theirchildren'slearningmayhave providedinsightintowhattheirchildrenneeded
familieswho were unable to be
to improvetheirlearning.The entrepreneurial
were
unable
to gainthisinsight.Therein
involved
their
children's
learning
actively
not
inductive
to theirchildren's
that
were
made
choices
of
investment
fore,they
learningneeds.
My studysuggeststhatparentalhumancapitalis centralforthefamiliesto transfer
otherformsoffamily
capitalintotheirchildren'slanguagelearning.It is noteconomic
factorsthatshaped
class,but the educationaland occupational(job circumstances)
in their
in schooling.The differences
forand involvement
theparents'expectations
and
in parentinvolvement,
educationand occupationstatusresultedin differences
and
the
their
to
assist
had
at
their
the
resources
that
children,
disposal
parents
shaped
the
four
famiThat
to
those
resources.
from
their
access
lifechancesthatresulted
is,
and investment
intheculturalresourcestheypossessedand theactivation
liesdiffered
of the resourcesinto culturalcapitalthatwas usefulfortheirchildren'slanguage
theparentspossessed'cultural
learning(Lareau,2000). In thetwoacademicfamilies,
capital'acquiredthroughthe Chineseeducationsystem,supportedwithCanadian
it
ofgraduatestudents,and wereable to translate
educationand a network
university
intoresourcesfortheirchildren'slanguagelearning.In theentrepreneurial
families,
theparentshad limitedexposureto formaleducationinbothChinaand Canada, and
werenotfamiliar
withtheculturalcapitaloftheeducationsystemin bothcountries.
in English
on theschoolto educatetheirchildren,
relied
particularly
Therefore,
they
or speakers.
as readers,writers
language,withwhichtheyhad littlefamiliarity
Parentaleducationalstatuswas also linkedto thesocialand culturalresourcesthat
theireducationalstatusyielded (Lareau, 2000). First,as I have described,the
academicparentswho had highereducationlevelsaccumulatedand activatedmore
and withinofwithin-family
socialcapitalthrough
engagingtheirchildrenin a variety
communityinteractionsand relationships.Second, theireducationalstatus also
socialized theirchildreninto the academic world of literacy.The fathersin the two
academic familiespursued graduatedegreesin Canada, while the two entrepreneurial
familieslived in a world distantfromthe academic world. The childrenof academic
familieswere at the peripheryof academic work and observed its associations; Thus,
the childrenin the academic familieswere more familiarwith 'the cultureof literacy'
(i.e. books, homework and technology of the educational institutions) in both
and second-language
Home environment
acquisition 297
countries
thanthosechildren
fromentrepreneurial
families.
Purcell-Gates
(1995)
illustrates:
They alreadyknow,or acquire implicitlyas theydevelop,the varyingregistersofwritten
languagewiththe accompanying'ways of meaning'and 'ways of saying,'the vocabulary,
thesyntax,theintentionality.
This makeslearningthe'new' so mucheasier.(pp. 182-183)
On theotherhand,thechildrenin theentrepreneurial
families
wereon theperiphery
ofrestaurant
workand observeditsassociationsand demands.Theylivedin a family
culture
thatwasnotassociated
withprint
andacademicdiscourses;
therefore
learning
to readandwritewas nota naturalbuta foreign
conceptforthem.Purcell-Gates
thatwhenthesechildren
from
the
(1995) explains
go to school,theyarechallenged
beginning:
to learna code thatsome ofthemmaynot even have realizedexistedbefore... Withouta
greatdeal of supportand motivation,theirlevelofliteracyskillattainmentis bound to be
low comparedwiththatoftheirpeerswho are nativesofthemoreeducatedliterateworld.
(p. 183)
Conclusion
of thedifferent
formsof family
thateach family
had a
Analysis
capitalindicates
distinct
infamily
environment
investment
in
differences
second-language
including
levelsof parentalinvolvement,
and access to familialand community
learning,
resources.
The families
demonstrated
distinct
homeliteracy
becauseof
practices
in Chinaand Canada. Factorssuchas
theirrespective
sociocultural
experiences
thefamilies'educational
their
choicesand chances,the
biography, occupational
communities
and integration
intoCanadiansocitheyresidedin,theiradaptation
circumstances
influenced
how second-language
ety,and theirsituational
literacy
was acquiredat home.Thesefactors
intertwined
in thefamilies'
and interweaved
and living,and thusconstructed
but similarly
dailyliteracy
uniquelydifferent,
in the fourfamilies.In a sense,the children'ssecondcomplex,experiences
weretheresultofan intricate,
multifaceted
languagelearning
experiences
playingoutofalltheseexperiences.
Thesefindings
in understanding
children's
providesignificant
insight
immigrant
sociocultural
contexts
oflearning
and theirdiscursive
that
occur
outside
practices
in theirhomesand communities.
schoolclassrooms
The conceptoffamily
capital
andpolicy-makers
their
attention
tothewaysinwhich
mayhelpeducators
byturning
children
aresocializedintolearning
outsideofschool.Suchan attention
can help
themmake educateddecisionson instructional
approachesthatbest fitstudents'
needs. As thisstudysuggests,some children'shome learningexperiencesmayhave
and extendedthoseoftheschool;and forothers,theliteracy
complemented
practices
ofthehomewerenotsucha good matchwiththoseoftheschool(Rhol, 1994). For
childrenwho did not have a good matchwithschool learning,educatorsneed to
forreadingand writing
in thesecondlanguagethatmaynotbe
provideopportunities
availableat home.
298 G. Li
The studyalso has significant
families.This study
implicationsforimmigrant
measures to ensure a more positive
suggeststhat parents can take different
at home. It is necessaryfor immigrantparentsto learn
learningenvironment
Englishlanguageand literacy,an abilitythatenablesthemto make good choices
forinvestment
in theirchildren'slearningneeds, participatein the social lifeof
the host society and have access to differentsocial resources, and, most
importantly,
get involvedin the academic and social lives of their children.
Parentsalso need to be directlyinvolvedin theirchildren'slearning,especially
spendingtime with them while workingon homework,supervisingtheir TV
viewingand exposingthemto different
literacyactivitiessuch as goingto libraries and museums.
In concludingthispaper,I wantto pointout thatdue to thelimitedscope ofthis
withschoolvariablesto
studyI did not addresshow the homevariablesinteracted
affectthe families'activationof familycapitalto supporttheirchildren'slanguage
learning.Furtherresearchon the linksbetweenfamilycapitaland school cultural
ofthechildren'secondcapitalwouldbe helpfulto providea criticalunderstanding
school
outside
settings.
languagelearning
Note
1. Allnamesarepseudonyms.
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