Towards a social and epistemic justice approach for exploring the injustices of English as a Medium of Instruction in basic education

Abstract

There are millions of children attending English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) government schools for their basic education. The vast majority of these are in countries across the Global South. In these contexts, EMI policy decisions are rarely based on educational arguments while global learning discussions exist with limited engagement with the challenges of EMI. This is despite a significant evidence base that highlights the widespread impact that EMI has both on educational quality and inequalities. A recent British Council position paper suggests that EMI research tends to be descriptive, perceptions-based and lacking in theoretical underpinning. This paper responds to this critique by bringing together critical theories of social and epistemic justice to develop a series of questions that could be used to interrogate the multiple ways that EMI impacts children's basic education in the Global South.

Disrupting language of instruction policy at a classroom level: oracy examples from South Africa and Zambia

“…Whilst this practitioner had learned about the benefits of story telling, using props and home language through the PD programme, her lens of experience had resulted in a lesson constructed of a series of teacher‐led activities rather than a meaningful language‐rich experience for the children. What this example does highlight is the role of PD in improving practice when practitioners view or interpret it through their own potentially narrow experience and/or prior knowledge (Milligan, 2020). As previously discussed, for LCE to be effective, it requires a paradigm shift that leads to a different way of understanding the teaching and learning process (Tadesse et al, 2021).…”

“…One of the seven key principles is the use of authentic dialogue, grounded in communicative oracy tools such as open questioning and discussion, both of which require a shared oral fluency possessed by both teachers and learners. Furthermore, Milligan (2020) argues that insufficient attention has been paid to the role that the language of the classroom may play in “acting as a barrier to subject knowledge” (p. 2).…”

A research agenda for English-medium instruction

“…Existing research suggests that certain groups of learners are significantly disadvantaged by this (those who live in the poorest countries/regions/communities/families, for example) but I think we should be doing more to understand how EMI contributes to, and deepens, existing inequalities (cf. Milligan, 2020). As researchers, I think, we need to not only understand these issues but also advocate for changes in language of instruction policies to better support those most disadvantaged.…”

Examining the effects of social networking sites on the students

“…La representa el nivel de educación del padre y la madre. Los hallazgos indicaron que los miembros de la familia de los estudiantes femeninos y masculinos tienen un título de secundaria en aproximadamente un 55% [14].…”