Addresses the question of mother-tongue education of children, especially in francophone countries of Africa. It seeks to contribute to the debate on the integration of local languages into educational systems in multilingual settings by stressing the opposing cultural messages carried by official and indigenous languages. (Author/JL)

Previous accounts of "europhone" status (anglophone, francophone, etc.) have inadequately addressed spoken-written differences as well as different post-colonial developments taken by Southeast Asia, South Asia, North Africa, and East Africa vis-a-vis those of West, Central, and Southern Africa. This article investigates the extent to…

Examines the position of the mother tongue in the proposed additive bilingual programs in South Africa. Sociolinguistic, cultural, and political factors are examined, language use and attitudes of South Africans to language and education are discussed, and the practical possibilities for the implementation of mother-tongue medium of instruction…

Compares pre- and post-1997 attitudes to the learning of English in Hong Kong. The study is based on surveys conducted in 1980, 1992, 1995, and 1998, and also on newspaper reports. Data confirm the strong instrumental, career-related motives of the learners, which have been previously reported not only for Chinese learners, but for Asian learners…

Causal modeling was used to examine how primary students' language ability interacted with pace and redundancy of instructional language during an expository science lesson to explain students' attention and learning. Language ability and pace, mediated by students' attention to the lesson, accounted for variance in learning outcomes. Higher…

Investigates the effects of formal instruction on second language acquisition, or more specifically whether explicit instruction results in specific features being acquired. A structure can be said to be acquired if the learner is able to use ii in spontaneous utterances, without having to stop and consciously apply the appropriate rules.…

Two studies examined Spanish and English phonological awareness, Verbal IQ, oral language proficiency, single-word reading of Spanish-speaking English as-a-second language first graders who received all their school instruction in English. Implications of this research are discussed, especially the importance of early reading intervention and…

In response to two earlier articles on the role of English language teaching (ELT) and English-medium instruction in India, the authors draw on their experiences in South Africa to outline a role for ELT teachers in maintaining and promoting multilingualism. This role includes participation in policy debates, professional activism, and the…

Observed Israeli students taking notes in a first language while listening to lectures in English-as-a-foreign-language given by the law faculty. Questions addressed include these: (1) Why did the students translate the lecture into Hebrew while taking their notes?; (2) What did they gain and lose by doing this?; (3) How good was their…

California's Proposition 227 (1998) has affected the education of many English language learners (ELLs). However, the extent of Proposition 227's influence on special education planning and practice is unclear. ELLs who have moderate to severe disabilities face major communication obstacles. The present qualitative study looked specifically at the…

The national language Bangla (Bengali), which is spoken by 98% of the people, is foundational to the nation of Bangladesh as a nation. Language played a crucial role in the struggle for independence from Pakistan which was finally successful in 1971. The medium of instruction in state-provided basic education is Bangla. Nevertheless, as in the…

In face-to-face teaching, the educator is able to directly mediate learning and gauge the level of the learners' English proficiency. Teleteaching makes this virtually impossible, as learners are invisible and thus immediate intervention in learning or estimations of proficiency are much more difficult to achieve. TELETUKS Schools 1--a community…

Reports on a ethnographic study that investigated how immigrant high school students used Cantonese and English to achieve academic and social success in a Canadian high school where English was the language of instruction. Argues that immigrant students found meaningful ways to acquire the cultural capital of the dominant society. (CAJ)

Assesses the impact of foreign graduate teaching associates (GTA) on undergraduate economics instruction where the majority language is English. Includes the variables of nationality, language, and political background. Finds, when the foreign GTAs are properly screened and trained in spoken English and teaching skills, they are at least as…

In this paper I argue that language policies for education have effects on pupils' educational possibilities. With the case of the Karagwe district in Tanzania the research suggests that the policy of "Swahili only" in primary school education favours the small minority of the children that live in a context where Swahili is used. This…