Lesson 3

LANGUAGE-IN-EDUCATION POLICIES: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES

Name: Ludivina G. Lajot BSED-English 1st Year Date: August 14, 2022

LEARNING GOALS

At the end of the lesson, you should be able to:

a) analyze an actual case of introducing an LEP to understand the requisite transformation

in education and the challenges associated with it;
b) evaluate the veracity of the reported challenges in LEP, language instruction, and
multilingualism; and
c) research and propose viable solution to the challenges.

LEARNING ACTIVITIES

I. ACTIVE

As a first task, let us test your understanding of our previous lessons on language policies

and LEPs. Answer the following questions briefly and concisely. (8 pts)

1. What is/are the major goal/s of a language policy?

Answer: The major goals of a language policy is to have a common stand on the learning and
teaching of language and the language of instruction. Language is fundamental to learning,
thinking, learning and communicating, and it permeates the entire curriculum.

2. How would you describe the relationship between language policy and LEP?

Answer: LEP as a conceptual framework is a multifaceted approach to language and education

policy. It allows researchers across the disciplines as well as thinkers concerned with education,
society, politics, or even the environment to realize the connections between once seemingly
disparate elements.

3. Who makes the language policy?

Answer: Language Policy is what a government does either officially through legislation, court
decisions or policy to determine how languages are used, cultivate language skills needed to
meet national priorities or to establish the rights of individuals or groups to use and maintain
languages.

4. Give at least one issue or challenge of LEPs.

Answer: One of the example challenge of LEPs is the implementation of Mother Tongue -
Based Multilingual Education Program in Basic Education.
 II. ANALYZE

At this point, you should have learned that language-in-education policies are primarily

concerned with arriving at decisions on the following:

 Naming the official or national language/s that represent/s the national or dominant
group, identity, or ideology;
 Recognizing the status of English as the ‘’word’s lingua franca in commerce, academia,
and technology’’ (Shohamy, 2003, p. 280) and learning English as a foreign language or
additional language in schools; and
 Acknowledging and encouraging the study and use of regional, indigenous,
nondominant languages in schools, especially in early grades.

In this task, you will examine closely how these decisions are made. Below is a condensed
version of the case of Israel and its language-in-education policy.

The Case of Israel

 Israel is a linguistically diverse country consisted of Jewish, Arabs, and immigrants

 from Russia and Ethiopia to name a few.
 Hebrew is the language for everyday communication by the dominant group, the Israelis.
 Arabs use a variety of spoken Arabic at home; they adhere to the Modern Standard
Arabic (MSA) for writing.
 Immigrants like Russians and Ethiopians use their home language.
 Hebrew and Arabic are considered as official languages.

The first LEP was only documented in 1996. Prior to this, no policy governs Jewish schools.
Various languages were used as a language of instruction for Hebrew and Arabic were bused
as the medium of instruction (MOI). English was taught as a foreign language. For Jewish
school, most of the time, Arabic was taught as a second language, and such is also the case for
Arab schools.

In 1996, the LEP of Israel was finalized; the LEP claims to adopt a multilingual principle- that
different languages are used for different purposes. The document explicitly states the following:

For Jewish schools, Hebrew is the official language of instruction. English is introduced in
Grade 4 onward. Arabic and French will be considered as additional languages and will be
taught for a period of three years, starting Grade 7.

For Arab schools, Arabic is the language of instruction and Hebrew will be taught in Grade 3
onward and English starting in Grade 4. Additional languages are encouraged to be taught.
 For immigrants, they are encouraged to maintain their home languages through special
classes; the national curriculum does not mention anything about the age, duration, and
content, among others, of the teaching of the home languages of the immigrants.

Answer the following guide questions and prepare for a class discussion: (10 pts)

1. Using the case of Israel, what do you think are the advantages and disadvantages
of having a formal and official language-in-education policy?

Answer: Upon using the case of Israel the advantages of having a formal and official language-
in-education policy is there language is arrange properly in terms of using it in home and on the
other hand in school. While the advantages is if the citizen or the migrant have no skill upon
coping their language in education policy will become confuse of the situation.

2. How nondominant languages in Israel valued are based on its language policy and
LEP? What is the role of nondominant languages in education in Israel?

Answer:

3. How does the LEP promote or hinder multilingual education?

Answer:

4. One of the primarily issues of having a language-in-education policy is the lack input
from school administrators, teachers, students, and parents given that it adopts a top-
down approach. Given the case of Israel, what do you think are the challenges that
teachers, students, and parents faced prior to and after formalization of the LEP?

Answer:

5. What are your thoughts about the ‘’one language, one nation’’ mindset of language policy?
How does it affect multilingual education?

Answer:

III. ABSTRACT

The language-in-education policies specifically that of Southeast Asian countries, were,

by principle, designed to promote multilingualism in all layers and levels of society. Clayton
(2006) posited that LEPs of SE Asian countries have two general themes: LEPs are attempts of
governments ‘’to forge post-colonial or contemporary identities at the national level’ (p.430), and
LEPs create spaces for learning English as a foreign language.

Though the attempts to accommodate the nondominant languages are evident, it is

undeniable that nations, including SE Asian countries, continue to face challenges in the
implementation of a pluralistic, more inclusive LEP. Kosonen and Young (2010) presented some
problems of SE Asian countries vis-à-vis multilingual education.

For each identified challenge, identify whether you agree or disagree with the statement.
Then, write your arguments that will support your stand. Prepare to share your answer with the
class. (16 pts)
 1. Multilingual education is expensive.

Answer: Agree –I agree that multilingual education is expensive especially in another country
because they tend to enroll in the academy after the class of their formal school in order for
them to learn another language and to become multilingual individual.

2. The use of multiple languages in education can divide a nation.

Answer: Disagree-for me upon using multiple languages in education cannot divide a nation
because what if we only prefer to learn or acquire the multiple language we want to study?

3. Most SE nations are still in the process of nation-building (after colonization); thus, it is
important that national language is identified and preferred.

Answer:

4. The use of multiple media of instruction confuses students.

Answer:

5. The use of nondominant languages delays the learning of the dominant languages.

Answer:

6. No orthographies for non-dominant languages,

Answer;

7. So many languages being used in by teachers and students.

Answer;

8. The LEP may be clearly written, but it is different given the lack of support.

Answer:
Reference:

Ylagan, J. (2021). Language programs and policies in multilingual societies module. Eulogio
Amang Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology. Retrieved from
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/eulogio-amang-rodriguez-institute-of science-and-
technology/living-in-the-it-era/book-of-language-programs-and-policies-in-multilingual-
societies-autosaved-autosaved/21836633