The crucial role of vocabulary knowledge in reading comprehension has been well recognized in first language (L1) situations and this has appeared to be true of second language (L2) settings as well. However, in relation to a sociocultural context such as Singapore, where English is designated as an L1 in the school curriculum but the majority of…

In 1980, Walter L. Williams suggested that experience with U.S. Indian policy had influence on the debates over Philippine annexation. This was the first direct connection made between experience with American Indians and Filipino policy, however it only focuses on annexation debates and does not explore education at all. A more recent work by…

Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) has been promoted by the European Union as a means to achieve multilingualism. While in Germany and other European countries the trend to use the L2 as a medium of instruction is increasing, in Hong Kong, however, we see a converse development. Many schools switched from English as a medium of…

This article examines the experiences of three Indigenous communities with language immersion models in preschool through 12th grades to revitalize and preserve their native languages through ethnographic research design and methods. The history and implementation of language instruction in three Indigenous communities are summarized. The analysis…

This article examines some of the problems concerning the language of instruction in higher education within Europe and relates them to the African context. The author argues that there is reason to be worried about the spread of the use of English as a language of instruction in higher education, to the detriment of the smaller European languages…

Since 2005, the National Indian Education Study (NIES) has provided educators, policymakers, and the public with information about the background and academic performance of fourth- and eighth-grade American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) students in the United States. This report, the second in a two-part series based on the 2009 NIES survey,…

In this study enrolment numbers and levels, as well as language-in-education, were viewed from a linear, comparative perspective. In the era prior to 1994, black and white learners not only attended separate schools but the segregated schools had different policies regarding medium of instruction. Resistance to the language policy regarding black…

"American Languages: Indians, Ethnology, and the Empire for Liberty" is a study of knowledge and power, as it relates to Indian affairs, in the early republic. It details the interactions, exchanges, and networks through which linguistic and racial ideas were produced and it examines the effect of those ideas on Indian administration. First…

Malaysia is currently reforming its education system in line with the government's Vision 2020. Key areas such as science and mathematics education are high on the agenda. However, as considerable world knowledge is written in English, Malaysian preservice teachers are being educated to teach these areas using English as the Medium of Instruction…

This article explores how a linguistically diverse, subject English class can become a multilingual contact zone in which naturalised linguistic identities are made visible and interrogated. The research is situated in a highly diverse, educational context--Wits School of Education in Johannesburg, South Africa. This is framed by a society in…

Focusing on code-switching from conversation analysis and sociolinguistic perspectives, this paper examines interactions between 10-12-year-old language learners of immigrant origin and locally born students as they are engaging in verbal pair work. All are students attending language classes in state primary schools in Barcelona in which Catalan…

In this article, I explore language practices in Nigerian primary school classrooms against the backdrop of the policy of mother tongue education. Findings from the study show that there is a classroom bilingual practice that is rather unstructured in terms of curricular application and levels. The study shows that rather than implementing the…

The article examines changes in language testing textbooks in English since Lado (1961) and proposes that two trends may be discerned. The first shows how the growing professionalism of the field has required an expansion in teaching materials to meet the need for new training programmes. What the expansion also shows is the desire, again a mark…

This paper aims to critically examine the trends, issues and challenges in policy and practice of English language education in Pakistan. This is done first by historically reviewing the English language education policies since Pakistan's independence in 1947, looking particularly at policy objectives, implementation strategies and outcomes, and…

Science achievement and self-concept are articulated in this study to examine a model of reciprocal relationship during a crosscultural transition. Trend data have been gathered to assess changes of the perceived English importance before and after Hong Kong's sovereignty handover from Britain to China. The data analyses were conducted four times…