Multilingual education trends in Southeast Asia: Space for non-dominant languages in education?

• In Event: Multilingual Education Across Global Contexts

Proposal

Increased access of marginalized populations to education in Asia has occurred over the past few decades. However, inappropriate language-in-education policies and practices in highly multilingual Asian countries are still hindering the achievement of international development goals. This is particularly true for the speakers of non-dominant languages (NDLs). Education systems in many Southeast Asian nations neglect non-dominant languages in favor of the dominant languages – national as well as international. Since many speakers of NDLs have insufficient comprehension and knowledge of the languages of instruction – usually the official and national languages – they experience inequaties in access to education as well as the quality of education delivered to them. Multilingual education (MLE) based on the learners’ first languages (L1) is seen as an essential strategy to provide quality education for all. For the past twenty-thirty years, one of world’s strongest movements towards multilingual education has arisen in Southeast Asia, and arguments for the inclusion of L1-based MLE are increasing. Simultaneously, some political factions in several countries are calling for an increased use of English as the language of instruction.

This paper attempts to outline the current Southeast Asian trends in MLE, particularly the role of NDLs in national education systems. The paper focuses especially on the trends in countries where positive developments towards education in non-dominant languages can be observed. Nations such Cambodia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Thailand are the strongest cases in Southeast Asia. These countries provide more latitude than before (and more than other countries in the region) to non-dominant languages in education – also as languages of instruction and languages of literacy in programs of multilingual education. The paper discusses: 1) the developments of language-in-education policies in these four countries, 2) the implementation of the policies, 3) the challenges in putting words into action, i.e. making rhetoric a reality, and 4) the opposition to multilingual education and increasing use of NDLs in education. These issues are also discussed in other countries with some education in NDLs, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

The paper draws mainly from desk research conducted for a forthcoming book chapter: “Non-dominant languages in education in Southeast Asia” to be published in “The Cambridge Handbook of Multilingual Education” edited by P. Romanowski and M. L. Perez Cañado.

Additional data will be collected in October 2023 in the 7th International Conference on Language and Education “Multilingual education for transformative education systems and resilient futures” to be held in Bangkok. Some 300-400 education practitioners, researchers, and policymakers are expected to attend the conference. All papers and presentations of the conference dealing with MLE in the eleven Southeast Asian countries are used as representatives of the current trends. The notes by conference rapporteurs on all conference sessions discussing MLE in Southeast Asia are also included as data source. Total of some 40-50 presentations and papers are expected to fit the criteria above. These data from the conference are complemented by the author’s on-going research on Asian language-in-education policies and practices. These data sources include research reports, published articles, and documents on policies and practices as well as informal interviews of practitioners and policymakers, particularly during the abovementioned conference. The data will be analyzed using the principles of grounded theory methodology.

Author

• Kimmo Kosonen, Payap University