This article explores Yugoslav education policy in Vojvodina (Serbia), one of the most multilingual regions of the country, which was implemented in the period between the 1960s and 1980s through the school subject the 'Language of social environment' (LSE). Based on archival and field research, this case study is devoted to the school subject…

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…

In January 1982, the Republic of Seychelles became the first country to make its Creole, Seselwa, an official medium of instruction in its multilingual education system. Overall, this innovative language policy has positively affected student levels of personal motivation and academic success. Nevertheless, the nation's continued use of…

This article explores policy and practice in relation to support for speakers of community languages in Northern Ireland primary schools against the backdrop of the broader UK context, with reference also to the Republic of Ireland and wider European and international experiences. After an initial discussion of the educational, social and…

Increasing societal and linguistic diversity poses significant challenges to formative categories of language policies. We make this point via an examination of Singapore's management of its most linguistically diverse ethnic group, the Indians. While heterogeneity has always been Singapore's defining feature, the nature and scale of recent…

In the midst of increasing global economic competition, higher education (HE) institutions in many non-English-speaking societies have expanded the extent of internationalization through the recruitment of international faculty members to their campuses and the adoption of educational policies such as English-medium instruction (EMI). Despite…

Although the teaching of English as a foreign language in primary schools has emerged as one of the major language-in-education policy decisions, students' perspectives on primary English have received very little research attention. Drawing on data from a larger study, this paper depicts primary school students' lived experiences in the English…

This paper considers the impact of geopolitical factors, and in particular the collapse of Communism and EU accession, on language education policy and practice in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). CEE is understood here as referring to the former soviet-controlled, eastern bloc counties of Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, East Germany, Hungary,…

This paper examines the micro planning activities that schools engage in to address learners' needs to make education work in rural primary schools of Botswana. The national language plan prescribes the use of English and Setswana only as languages of instruction at the primary school level. However, this plan is not practical in some regions…

This qualitative study offers critical insight into how language policy interacts with daily classroom decisions at a large and highly diverse urban community college in the United States. Specifically, it examines the challenges that faculty teaching developmental writing courses for English language learners experience when determining what…

This article argues for the value of heritage language programs and the micro-level language policies that support them, focusing on a case study of a program in the USA to make this argument. We also argue for the importance of recognizing students' heritage languages, cultures, and individual goals and identities in mainstream school programs.…

In response to growing linguistic diversity, many U.S. universities have implemented language policies that include procedures for English learner (EL) identification. Institutional labels such as "English learner" and "limited English proficiency" are regularly used to identify students who may need English language support;…

The introduction of languages, especially English, into the primary curriculum around the world has been one of the major language-in-education policy developments in recent years. In countries where English has been compulsory for a number of years, the question arises as to what extent the numerous and well-documented challenges faced by the…

In recent years, Asian countries including South Korea have been trying to redefine the role of English in response to globalisation. The impact of this on English language teaching and on Korean society more generally has been well documented; however, the impact of this change on individual teachers and their teaching calls for further…

After the demise of apartheid in South Africa in 1994, 11 languages (English, Afrikaans and 9 indigenous African languages) were given official status. In the higher education landscape, English remains the dominant language of scholarship. At the University of KwaZulu-Natal, English is the main medium of instruction but the institution's language…