The Irish educational system in the period following Irish independence was heavily influenced by the Rev. Timothy J. Corcoran. Rejecting any sort of child-influenced curriculum, he called for a rigid classics-based education based on Catholic dogma with maximum emphasis on memorization and repetition rather than on inquiry. (IS)

Holds that our society simultaneously values bilingual individuals and deprecates groups whose first language is not English. Suggests that voluntary, two way, equal time, maintenance bilingual education programs can do much to enhance the country's economic and political potential. (Author/GC)

Discusses the problems of language policy and planning in terms of past history. Two principles most basic to language policy orientation are: (1) principle of personality (the state accommodates itself to the individual's language preference), and (2) principle of territoriality (the individual accommodates to the language of the state). (JMF)

Examines language policy in the Baltic states since they regained their independence from the Soviet Union. The article argues that each Baltic state has substantially realized its language policy aims and that the favorable response to language requirements at the group and individual level signals the extraordinary reversal of a colonial…

Languages reflect and reinforce cultural values, giving insights into their speakers' world view and relationships to the natural environment. Indigenous languages help us to respect local knowledge and extend our sense of community to the larger world. However, despite bilingual education in schools, all Native American languages are endangered;…

Examples from upper primary classrooms in Scotland and Jamaica demonstrate the subtle ways in which teachers support or restrict the classroom use of community languages (Scots and Patwa) through their broad or narrow implementation of language policy. The metaphor of fractals, derived from complexity theory, can form a sensitive and appropriate…

The hispanicization of Mayan immigrants in Los Angeles is explored, focusing on the patterns of usage of Mayan, Spanish, and English among men, women, and children, and the trend toward Spanish-English bilingualism. (Author/MSE)

Contrasts two perceptions of bilingualism in German-speaking minorities in a Danish and a Belgian community. Considerable attention is given to the tension which exists between the maintenance of the minority's cultural identity and the realization of individual lifestyles and goals. (Author/CB)

Drawing on the results of sociolinguistic research in three ethnically different communities in Wellington, New Zealand, this paper explores and illustrates the process of language shift and language revival. Members of the Greek, Tongan, and Chinese communities were interviewed; and data were collected on their language proficiency, patterns of…

Describes recent developments in heritage language education in British Columbia, Canada, discussing issues a heritage language advisory committee encountered in creating such policy, defining heritage language and the clientele for heritage language education, reviewing appropriate curricula, encouraging program development, and arranging…

Sociolinguistic patterns, including internal structuring and clinical norms and values, of Chinese communities in Britain are examined. The complexity of the composition of the Chinese population there are reported, and findings from a pilot study of language choice are discussed in the context of wide sociolinguistic issues Chinese people in…

This debate presents two viewpoints on mother tongue maintenance: (1) that all individuals have a fundamental right to education in their native tongue, and that multilingual societies should actively promote multilingualism for all individuals; and (2) that the multitude of languages and rapid economic development in many countries calls for…

Speech material gathered from Dutch-English bilinguals in Australia questioned in 1971 and 1987 was analyzed, showing no evidence of attrition in Dutch. It is concluded that first-language attrition does not necessarily occur in an immigrant setting and that immigrants who maintain their language in the first years of their stay will likely remain…

Discusses possibility of losing 90% of the existing 6,000 modern languages and importance of preserving languages and cultures. Government policies, including those of the United States, have contributed to this loss by imposing state languages to peoples and forbidding and punishing the use of native languages. Of the 207 native languages of…

In this interview, Professor Harald Gaski, a Sami from Arctic Norway, notes similarities and differences in Sami and American-Indian cultures related to forced boarding schools for assimilation purposes, traditional education, religion, "yoiking" (singing) and music, connection to nature, and tribal schools. He advocates the…