A Systematic Review of So-Called “Elite” Bilingual Schooling Across the Globe

• In Event: Advancing International and Comparative Bi-/Multilingual Education Research: Global Visions for an Interconnected World

Abstract

Flores et al. (2021) emphasize the differences between bilingual education for linguistically minoritized communities and so-called “elite” majority communities. For the former, bilingual education is crucial for preserving linguistic and cultural capital amid systemic oppression and threats of erasure. In contrast, de Mejía (2002) clarifies that “elite” bilingual education functions as a privileged choice for families of higher socio-economic communities who wish for their children to develop bilingualism in high-status languages. This presentation reviews scholarship on “elite” bilingual K-12 education and answers the research questions: (1) How does elite bilingual education function across different global contexts? And (2) how do elite bilingual schools operate as sites of social reproduction? Grounded in the concept of language as cultural capital (Bourdieu, 1977), where languages are valued differently depending on the linguistic market, elite bilingual education serves as a means for select families to reproduce social and economic capital through access to high-status linguistic capital. The review employed a three-phase data collection and screening process, involving a hand search of key resources, a systematic search of five academic databases, and an iterative screening process, resulting in 49 entries on elite bilingual K-12 schooling across 35 global contexts. 29 languages were listed as languages of instruction in the schools included in this review, with English included in all but one of the global contexts. The presentation showcases Colombia, Argentina, and Brazil as illustrative settings, highlighting how national policies, immigration patterns, shifting student demographics, and the proliferation of English have influenced the development of elite bilingual schools across other contexts. Qualitative analysis revealed that these bilingual schools functioned as sites of social reproduction in a number of ways. Parents reported enrolling children in these programs to access high-status linguistic and cultural capital, often prioritizing language exposure over language acquisition. Additionally, schools frequently used the term "bilingual education" to market themselves as elite, even when they did not offer comprehensive bilingual instruction. While English was the most common language of instruction, some schools incorporated languages like Mandarin to cater to these languages’ perceived rising global status. In many schools, teachers of high-status languages were valued over local bilingual teachers for their "nativeness," despite being less experienced and qualified. Ultimately, these bilingual schools helped children of select families access high-status linguistic and cultural capital, often with the express purpose of eventually converting this symbolic capital into social and economic capital, thus maintaining and reproducing these families’ elite status across generations. This review contributes to understanding the role bilingual education plays in Bourdieu’s suggested interrelationship between language, social class, and the political economy. Barakos and Selleck (2019) argue that elite bilingual schools provide a particularly ripe setting for investigating how language operates as a means of social reproduction, however, studies of elite bilingual K-12 contexts remain sparse. As scholars such as Delavan et al. (2024) raise concerns about the gentrification of bilingual programs in the US, this review offers a critical perspective on how bilingual education has continued to operate as a site for social reproduction for elite communities worldwide.

Author

• Benjamin M. James, University of Delaware