Elevating Student Voice: Pashto Speakers' Perspectives and Experiences in a High School Heritage Language Course 59 views

Within the Northeastern community of Harborside, a noteworthy increase in the number of Afghan refugees resettling in the area since 2021 created a shift in school population demographics. In response to this, Harborside Public Schools created a Pashto for Pashto Speakers course at West High School during the 2024-25 school year. As the new course neared the end of its second year, this qualitative case study sought to better understand students’ perspectives and experiences within the course and what advantages or disadvantages it may have created for their high school education in the U.S. Semi-structured interviews with student participants provided opportunities for eliciting and documenting student voice, with additional data sources supplementing student interviews. Findings indicated that students reported generally positive perceptions of the course, including its focus on Pashto literacy and creating a distinct time and space for peer connections during their school day. Students believed their Pashto skills improved through the class, albeit to varying degrees; additionally, their language use habits illustrated linguistically dexterous ways of navigating daily life. Students valued their bilingual skills for current and imagined future use, although there was confusion about how to convert this embodied cultural capital into the Seal of Biliteracy credential. Commendations and recommendations are presented for direct application to this course, informed by students’ responses and relevant literature. They may also benefit educators looking to initiate or strengthen their heritage language programming, especially a less commonly taught language, within the context of a high school course.

EDD (Doctor of Education)

Pashto speakers; heritage language course; student perspective; English/multilingual learners; newcomers; students with limited or interrupted formal education; Seal of Biliteracy

English

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2026-07-14