This article responds to recent calls to investigate the role of agents and the connections between layers of agency in the development and implementation of language policy and planning (LPP). Using a corpus linguistic and discursive approach to language policy, we identify interventions made in plenary sessions by Secretary-Generals and Member…

The processes of formulation of language policies have not been researched thoroughly. This paper aims to explore the relationship between ideas, power and agency in language policy-making and specifically with reference to the formulation of language-in-education policy for multilingualism in Ireland. Through an argumentative approach to language…

The ideological role of English, beyond its instrumental value, is reported to be immense. British colonial rule deployed English as an ideological tool which facilitated colonial subjugation and religious conversion. Connections between English and evangelism have widened in the postcolonial and globalising world, leading to labelling English as…

Britain has funded English language teaching (ELT) initiatives in developing countries for decades, despite changes in government and a series of substantial overhauls in the administration of development aid. This article reveals the relevance of ideational factors in explaining how ELT remained a key part of Britain's aid policy during a period…

In the twenty-first century, internationalisation of higher education (HE) has multiple dimensions--contents of curriculum, mobility of students and faculty, technology and programmes, which are all more or less related to English-medium instruction (EMI) policies. Like many other non-English-speaking countries, China's EMI policies are crucial…

This case study investigates how a cohort of Myanmar ethnic minority students' language ideologies shape their Putonghua learning and educational trajectories at government schools and Chinese supplementary schools in the borderland next to China. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews and from the participants' autobiographies…

In mainland China, most ethnic minority students today face the challenge of learning three languages in schools, namely, their home language (L1), Mandarin Chinese (L2) and a foreign language, usually English (L3). Research into trilingual education for minority groups has been most active since the turn of the twenty-first century. This paper…

Describes the language situation in Nepal in social and historical perspective, as well as by looking at language planning and policy implemented by the national government over the last 50 years. Discusses local languages, multilingualism, and lingua franc. (Author/VWL)

This paper begins with the latest debate on the medium of instruction in Hong Kong and reviews the issue from historical and social perspectives. It is argued that due attention should be paid to the social implications of the language policy in making a policy for the medium of instruction. (Contains 32 references.) (JL)

Traces the spread of English in Turkey in its social and historical context and then examines the current sociolinguistic profile of English in this English-as-a-Foreign-Language context by analyzing its functions, range, and depth, through an overview of its role in national education and the job market. (Author/JL)

Presents a detailed study of the language planning situation in Taiwan. After a general account of the socio-historical context in which the planning activities have taken place, a brief review of what happened in terms of language planning in Mainland China under the Nationalist government between 1911 and 1945 is presented. (Author/VWL)