This article seeks to understand the challenges of literacy acquisition under the Thematic Curriculum reform in Uganda, which introduced Mother Tongue instruction in lower primary. We compare teachers' perspectives from two central districts using Luganda and two peripheral districts using Ateso, drawing on a multi-layered approach to understand…

Singapore is a multiracial nation with a majority ethnic Chinese population. Since its independence in 1965, it has adopted an 'English-knowing' bilingual policy to achieve economic, social, and political objectives. For the past two decades, there has been a rapid increase in the percentage of ethnic Chinese Primary One students coming from…

Following a period of close to a century when the Irish language was placed at the margins of the education system under British rule, there was a radical change in curriculum provision following political independence in Ireland in the 1920s. The importance of the Irish language in defining sovereignty, national identity, and nationhood in the…

This paper explores the agentive role of school leaders in interpreting and implementing macro language education policies at preschool level in the Maldives. The Preschool Management Act of 2012 initiated a change in the medium of instruction from English to Dhivehi, recognising the importance of developing children's literacy skills in the…

Histories of colonization conjointly with the current economic global climate have enabled English to become a dominant global language. The desire for citizens to attain English language proficiency on a nation-wide level is a common pursuit in developing countries, including the island nations of the South Pacific where English competency is…

The inclusive bilingual-education programme suggestions and insights presented here are derived from grassroots input on the Flathead Reservation. This study focuses on the emic point of view. Views from the inside are valuable because they provide authoritative interpretations of local conditions. The author conducted 101 interviews with 89…

In response to problems encountered in teaching Spanish to native speakers who had learned Spanish as their first (oral) language but because of their schooling were literate only in English, a study was conducted to explore issues related to development of native-language literacy skills after acquisition of second-language literacy. Two adult…

The fifteen articles in this volume are generally concerned with the role of vernacular language in bilingual education on an international scale. They examine specific nations and how bilingualism affects their social milieu. The following articles are included: (1) "Bilingualism and the Vernacular," by Shana Poplack; (2) "The…

Guatemala is overhauling its justice system to be more congruent with its indigenous reality. A Rafael Landivar University program trains indigenous legal translators not only in legal and linguistic aspects, but also in strengthening indigenous identity and student commitment to the community. Challenges and future plans are described. A former…

Six papers presented at a conference on early childhood first and second language acquisition sponsored by the California state legislature's Child Development Programs Advisory Committee include: "Bilingual Development and the Education of Bilingual Children During Early Childhood" (Eugene E. Garcia); "An English-Only Preschool Program" (William…

Examines how rural-urban, nonconformist-Anglican dichotomies characterized Welsh educational history. Discusses how nineteenth-century industrialization and social status encouraged Anglicization of Welsh schools and society. Analyzes subsequent developments that reawakened national consciousness, and demands for Welsh language instruction, now…

Examines the meanings of power in relation to questions about leadership, language, curriculum, school knowledge, and program development in a community-controlled Navajo school; describes in first-person-singular detail how power was used as a prescriptive notion to create English and Navajo literacy programs that specify conditions for student…

Bilingual education in American Samoa is hampered by several factors: lack of native language materials, inconsistent support for materials and program development, the prominence of English in the modern culture, and teacher discomfort with teaching in Samoan. In the process of developing curriculum and materials, the existing materials were…

This collection of papers is divided into three parts. Part 1, "Changing Patterns: Curricular Implications," includes "Basic Assumptions Revisited: Today's French and Spanish Students at a Large Metropolitan University" (Gail Guntermann, Suzanne Hendrickson, and Carmen de Urioste) and "Le Francais et Mort, Vive le…

This curriculum sourcebook is designed as a guide for educators of limited-English-speaking adults in literacy education programs. It consists of accounts of actual learning and teaching experiences using a participatory approach to instruction and curriculum development, written by teachers in community-based adult education. An introductory…