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For Haiti: Ann Prepare Lavni

UC Davis Blum Center grantee, L. Carolina Tavarez has embarked upon a project whose main objective is to analyze the relationship between primary students’ multilingual skills and the local economy of Anse-à-Pitres, Haiti, where the Dominican-Haitian market La puerta de la confraternidad serves as the main source of income for many Haitian families.

Participants were primary students from the schools Communautaire du Bon Samaritain and Adventist Lysius Salomon, in Anse-à-Pitres. The project presents a holistic analysis by taking into account all the languages learners have in their repertoire: Creole, French, Spanish, English and pidgin. Each student completed a questionnaire measuring knowledge of English and Spanish followed by participation in a three-week intensive program, which aimed to enhance Spanish skills and teach basic English. Results reveal students perform better in Spanish than in English.

One reason may be that French is taught in schools and has similar word roots to Spanish, hence students were able to learn Spanish at a faster rate than English. Additionally, the Dominican-Haitian market is related to language choice because a regional pidgin language highly correlated to Spanish (a simplified language that develops as a means of communication between two or more groups that do not have a language in common and most often used in trade) is used predominantly in the marketplace. Another reason students excel in Spanish is because English terminology is more difficult to learn, therefore English language classes should be more in depth and of longer duration to increase retention. This study is valuable because it is crucial to recognize the importance of multilingual skills within the economy. Other studies show that students developing both Spanish and English language abilities in school will have greater job opportunities. Not only does learning these two languages help students economically, it also helps foster cognitive development and cultural awareness. See more:
http://iccweb.ucdavis.edu/lab/Research/LC_Tavarez.htm

Recently, the government approved land for the building of a library in the community. Carolina was interviewed in Spanish on Sacramento's Univision about this latest development:
http://univisionsacramento.univision.com/videos/video/2012-08-31/esfuerzos-para-llevar-esperanza-a

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