Types of educational language policies - Introduction to Multilingual and Multicultural Education

Summary

This video from the Higher School of Economics, Moscow, discusses various types of educational language policies. It covers a taxonomy developed by Clause, categorizing policies such as promotion-oriented, expediency-oriented, tolerance-oriented, restriction-oriented, repression-oriented, and null policies. The speaker explains how these policies impact the use of minority languages, focusing on government resources, civil rights, and communication needs. The video also touches on the role of educators and officials in interpreting and implementing policies effectively. Future videos will explore language rights, particularly in education.

Takeaways

• 📚 Language policies are not always official but can be implicit or covert, influencing practices without formal designation.
• 🗣️ Promotion-oriented policies use government resources to spread a favored language, often in schools and governmental functions.
• 🌐 Expediency-oriented policies aim to accommodate minority languages for practical reasons, facilitating communication between minorities and the state.
• 🎓 Bilingual or mother-tongue education can serve as a transitional phase under expediency-oriented policies, supporting minority students in early grades.
• 🤝 Tolerance-oriented policies allow minority languages to be used and maintained with no support from the state, often through private or community funding.
• 🚫 Restriction-oriented policies limit the use of minority languages, making social, economic, and educational benefits contingent on using the dominant language.
• ❌ Repression-oriented policies aim to eliminate minority languages, leading to deculturation and, in extreme cases, linguistic genocide.
• ⚠️ Eurasian policies represent a harsh form of repression, often attempting to erase minority languages as if they never existed.
• ❓ Null policies refer to the absence of any language policy where one might be necessary to ensure linguistic access for minority populations.
• 👩‍🏫 The role of educators and officials in interpreting and implementing language policies is crucial, as these policies can often be misinterpreted or poorly executed.

Q & A

What is the primary focus of the video?

The video discusses different types of educational language policies and outlines their specificities, emphasizing a taxonomy developed by Clause to categorize official language policies.

What are promotion-oriented policies?

Promotion-oriented policies involve the explicit use of government resources to promote the official use or spread of a favored language, such as printing laws or conducting government business in the national language, or promoting a language through education.

How do expediency-oriented policies differ from promotion-oriented policies?

Expediency-oriented policies recognize minority languages and aim to facilitate communication between language minorities and the government. Unlike promotion policies, they are not intended to promote the minority language but to accommodate it for communication purposes.

Can you give an example of expediency-oriented policies in action?

In the United States, expediency-oriented policies are used to ensure civil rights, such as access to education and political participation, by facilitating communication in minority languages. An example would be bilingual education to transition to the majority language.

What are tolerance-oriented policies?

Tolerance-oriented policies allow minority language communities to maintain and use their languages without state control or support. These communities often rely on private or community-based funding for language maintenance and promotion efforts.

What impact do restriction-oriented policies have on language use?

Restriction-oriented policies limit the use of minority languages, often in public domains like education and the workplace. Opportunities for social, political, and economic participation are tied to the knowledge and use of the dominant language, which can negatively affect literacy in the minority language.

What are repression-oriented policies?

Repression-oriented policies involve overt efforts to eliminate minority languages, often accompanied by cultural erasure or deculturation. Examples include African slaves in the U.S. being banned from using their native languages and Native Americans being forced to speak only English in boarding schools.

What does the term 'null policies' refer to in the context of language policy?

Null policies refer to the complete absence of policies, especially in situations where equitable treatment is necessary to ensure linguistic access for minority populations in areas like education, social services, and economic participation.

How can educational policies be analyzed according to the video?

Educational policies can be analyzed based on their intended outcomes, focusing on the motivations behind their formulation. The interpretation and implementation of these policies by educators and officials are also crucial to their success.

What role do educational officials and teachers play in language policy implementation?

Educational officials and teachers serve as interpreters and implementers of language policies. Their role is vital because policies are subject to interpretation, and their effective implementation relies on these educators' understanding and actions.