ABSTRACT
There have been three empirical studies examining the learning outcomes of instructed Spanish heritage language acquisition: Montrul and Bowles (2010), Potowski, Jegerski, and Morgan-Short (2009) and Torres (2013). This chapter focuses on the processes and products of heritage language acquisition and presents the use of descriptive and experimental techniques. It argues that the field of instructed second language acquisition (ISLA) should be used as an initial point of departure, since, although they involve different learner populations, at their cores both instructed heritage language acquisition (IHLA) and ISLA seek to determine how language instruction can best be structured to maximize learning. The chapter reviews what we know based on existing research, drawing tentative conclusions and identifying areas in need of future investigation. It is important to establish that there are four main types of classroom language acquisition research that can be conducted–descriptive, ethnographic, correlational, and experimental.
