This paper analyses the controversial discourses around the significance of the Arabic language in Eritrea. It challenges the arguments of the government and some scholars, who claim that the Arabic language is alien to Eritrean society. They argue that it was introduced as an official language under British rule and is only spoken by the Rashaida…

Nation states increasingly assign the responsibility for meeting the global competitiveness agenda to the universities themselves [Cirius, 2009, "Mobilitetsstatistik for de videregaaende uddannelser 2007/08" [Mobility statistics for higher education 2007/08]]. In Denmark, universities that have introduced English as an instrument to…

Citizenship is not a neutral word; it evokes numerous interpretations and connotations in various policies, discourse, and practices. Its significance is motivated by current narratives of rights and responsibilities of a citizenry, (illegal) immigration, and English-only ideologies. The basis for this investigation is the perception that the U.S.…

This paper explores the role English and isiZulu play in the identity construction of a group of black South African university students from disadvantaged backgrounds enrolled in a bridge programme at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. I will discuss how, in post-apartheid South Africa, language practices continue to foster inequality, despite a…

Taking ecological language planning and policy as its conceptual orientation and interpretive policy analysis as its methodological framework, and following an embedded single-case study design, this study explores the role of English, as compared with the role of Chinese, in China's educational language planning and policy for higher education.…

The focus of this paper is on the effects of the use of the home language (i.e. isiZulu) on teachers' and learners' understanding and use of core concepts in mathematics and science at the senior phase, in contexts where the language of instruction is English. It reports on a national, collaborative, multilingual research project which attempts to…

Explores the issue of the emergence of English as a global language and how this is affecting educational policies and practices. Considers this question in relation to the Greater China region looking specifically at Mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Data are from multiple sources, including questionnaires, interviews, and documentary…

China resumed its sovereignty over Hong Kong in 1997. Since then drastic changes in this former British colony have occurred. One of these changes is a shift in language policy, from bilingualism (Cantonese and English) to trilingualism (Cantonese, English and Putonghua). The present study is aimed at investigating tertiary students' use of…

An interview with Umberto Eco, novelist and linguist, addresses issues in international communication of the future, and particularly the role of Esperanto in a rapidly changing, culturally diverse world society. Topics discussed include translation, native language and multilingualism, and politics of language. (MSE)

This paper represents an initial attempt at assessing the role of English as a legal language in the Western Visayan province of Aklan in the Philippines. In particular, the study sought to determine the extent to which English is used as a legal language in Aklan as well as in what ways, and the extent to which the law itself may be considered an…

An interview with Alan Decaux of the Academie Francaise focuses on his campaign for each European to know two languages in addition to the mother tongue, using early foreign language education to attain this goal. (MSE)

One of the powerful ideologies that govern English language learning and teaching in the Sultanate of Oman is the "colonialist/culturalist" ideology and the various paradigms embodied within it. This ideology is present in the various statements made by the different agents involved in ELT in Oman, in particular "The Philosophy and…

Excerpts of the interview with Umberto Eco, a prominent semiotician, by two specialists in Esperanto focused on the role of translation, which paradoxically appears to be essential for the existence of a universal language such as Esperanto. Topics addressed include the perceived conflict between the existence of a "perfect," universal…

Presents an overview of current language policy and planning in Macao, as well as the language situation, especially in relation to language in education. The situation of four principal types of language-medium schools is also reviewed, with a view to assessing how efficiently these schools are achieving their proclaimed goals, and what problems…