Doctoral Dissertation Research: Acquisition of Complex Chickasaw Linguistic Constructions in an Endangered Language Context

University Of Oklahoma Norman Campus, Norman OK

Investigators

Abstract

Learners of major world languages can acquire fluency in an additional language through formal instruction or informally through immersion in a speech community. Formal and informal learning reflect different levels and types of analytic and adaptive processes. Juliet Morgan under the direction of Racquel Yamada of the University of Oklahoma will investigate the learning processes involved in acquiring fluency in Chickasaw [cic], a Muskogean language spoken in Oklahoma by approximately 65 fluent first language speakers, all over the age of fifty. The project will explore learning processes in this unique case where formal instruction and informal exposure are highly constrained due to the low functional use of the language. Juliet Morgan will collect data from adult learners of Chickasaw involved in the Master-Apprentice language learning program. Developed specifically for teaching endangered languages, the Master-Apprentice teaching method pairs a fluent elder with a learner or group of learners who meet multiple times a week for the purpose of communicating exclusively in the endangered language. Using ethnographic and language documentation methodologies, Morgan will collect cross-sectional and longitudinal data from Chickasaw apprentices. Analyzing the input and output of these interactions, she will analyze the order of acquisition, developmental stages, and learner varieties. Morgan will focus on how the learners' use of morphosyntax (how they create words and sentences) and discourse (how they organize sentence into larger linguistic units) approximates the elder's variety. Additionally, the research will investigate how the elder fluent speakers perceive the speech of the L2 learner. Acquisition studies of indigenous languages are rare since fluent speakers and language teaching materials are often unavailable for language teaching and learning to occur. Opportunities to conduct studies of this sort are quickly declining, as the number of fluent native speakers dwindles faster than the number of emerging fluent learners. Juliet Morgan's research provides unparalleled access to information on learning with these unique set of variables. This research will have implications for the Chickasaw Nation language revitalization efforts by providing the means to assess what is most effective in the Master-Apprentice method.