Nurturing Bilingual Learners: Challenges and Concerns in Singapore

Autor/inn/en	Curdt-Christiansen, Xiao Lan; Sun, Baoqi
Titel	Nurturing Bilingual Learners: Challenges and Concerns in Singapore
Quelle	In: International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 19 (2016) 6, S.689-705 (17 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1367-0050
DOI	10.1080/13670050.2016.1181606
Schlagwörter	Bilingualism; English (Second Language); Second Language Learning; Educational Policy; Preschool Education; Foreign Countries; Language of Instruction; Native Language; Language Planning; Government Publications; Public Policy; Language Skill Attrition; Comparative Analysis; Teacher Education Programs; Bilingual Education; Curriculum Evaluation; Language Usage; Language Maintenance; Discourse Analysis; Singapore + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Bilingualismus; English as second language; English; Second Language; Englisch als Zweitsprache; Zweitsprachenerwerb; Politics of education; Bildungspolitik; Pre-school education; Vorschulerziehung; Ausland; Teaching language; Unterrichtssprache; Sprachwechsel; Öffentliche Ordnung; Sprachverfall; Bilingual teaching; Bilingualer Unterricht; Curriculum; Evaluation; Curriculumevaluation; Lehrplan; Rahmenplan; Evaluierung; Sprachgebrauch; Sprachpflege; Diskursanalyse; Singapur
Abstract	Singapore's bilingual policy legitimises English not only as the language of governmental administration and interethnic communication, but also as the medium of instruction in all schools on all levels and across all subjects except mother tongues (MTs). As a result of these politics of language recognition, a visible shift has occurred in all ethnic groups away from MTs towards English. To rectify the language shift situation, the government has emphasised that developing bilingualism and raising bilingual children should begin in preschools. In this paper, we examine two top-down official documents: "Review of Mother Tongue Languages Report," issued in 2011, and "Nurturing Early Learners Framework for Mother Tongue Languages," developed in 2013. Attempting to identify some of the complex factors that influence language shift, we present an intertextual analysis of the "Report" and the curriculum "Framework." In doing so, we compare the consistencies and locate the implicit inconsistencies in the policy position on bilingual education in preschools. We conclude the article by outlining the implications for changing the current bilingual educational models and providing teacher training programmes that maximise the learning opportunities of young bilingual learners. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01