THE TEACHING OF HÑÄHÑU AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

Abstract

This material presents an experience about teaching Hñähñu as a second language, in the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. On the basis of this experience, some needs to develop an indigenous-language- teaching program are set out. Language shift and abandonment have prompted different social sectors to perform diverse strategies in order to reverse shifting. This situation emphasizes the need for developing more appropriate second-language teaching strategies and approaches, both of them emerging issues in this country. For this reason, it is important and necessary to call on language teaching experiences. Second language teaching involves not only lexical and grammatical instruction, but also the teaching of the surrounding culture. The distinctive factor of this proposal is that it takes some principles of the communicative approach in its design. This approach, which is currently proposed in Europe, is characterized by the development of innovative language-teaching methodologies.