Using research to navigate language of instruction policies in multilingual settings: Two case studies

• In Event: Harnessing the transformational power of literacy: Using research to build more effective literacy interventions in school feeding programs

Proposal

Despite evidence that children learn best when taught in a language they speak, close to 37% of students in low- and middle-income countries receive instruction in languages they do not understand (World Bank, 2021). Language of instruction (LOI) policies that consider a student’s mother tongue language have been linked to improvements in student attendance and retention, foundational skills to facilitate learning additional languages, and learning outcomes across subjects.

A key limitation to the development of effective LOI policies is the lack of objectively measured data on languages that children speak and how well they speak them. American Institutes for Research (AIR) aims to address this evidence gap through language mapping studies designed to understand how language is being used and to promote the use of language data to inform LOI policy discussions.

AIR will present the methodology and findings from language mapping studies embedded into McGovern-Dole Food for Education (FFE) programs in Benin and Lesotho. The studies utilize semantic fluency data to assess how many languages each student speaks and the extent to which they speak each language. AIR researchers will share how this data can be used to make recommendations around LOI in multilingual environments.

Using the McGovern-Dole FFE projects in Benin and Lesotho as case studies, AIR staff will highlight how findings from the language mapping studies and surveys on teachers’ attitudes toward LOI policies were utilized in adapting literacy activities for each country. Project staff will share innovative examples of how mother tongue resources are being incorporated in Benin, where there is one official language of instruction, and Lesotho, where there are two languages of instruction.

Authors

• Jill Pritts, American Institutes for Research

• Pooja Nakamura, American Institutes for Research

• Michaela Gulemetova, AIR

• Uttara Balakrishnan, American Institutes for Research

• John Austin Downes, American Institutes for Research

• Anasthasie Liberiste-Osirus, AIR