Multi-Layered Language Policy and Translanguaging Space a Mother Tongue Classroom in Primary School in Sweden

Abstract

This article is aimed to demonstrate how language policy at the local school level may create space for translanguaging. Focus is on a Mother Tongue (MT) classroom for Somali in a primary school in Sweden by way of an analysis of layers of language policy, with focus on spatial aspects. The empirical material consists of policy documents, interviews and observations documented through field notes and photographs from an MT Somali classroom with grade six students. Through the use of a framework of language policy as layered and linguistic landscaping with a focus on aspects of time, place and social factors, the analysis shows how the mother tongue classroom may constitute a demarcated room, while simultaneously interacting with other spaces both inside and outside school. The understanding of policy as layered made power relations visible in terms of language that moves between layers. It also made visible how school discourses shift between micro/macro, management/practice and inside/outside in the creation of space dominated by Somali and Swedish. It became apparent that an environment that supports the use of Somali inside the MT classroom may increase the likelihood of the pupils using Somali outside the classroom.

Mångfaldens möten: Interkulturalitet, utbildning och lärande

“…Forskning inom området bekräftar bilden av att resurserna är otillräckliga och att organiseringen av studiehandledning på modersmål ofta inte är så genomtänkt som den skulle behöva vara (Avery, 2017;Reath Warren, 2016;Wedin & Wessman, 2017).…”

The Elephant in the Room: Is a Nationwide English Language Policy Needed in EFL Contexts? A Study on English Departments in Saudi Arabian Universities

“…At the center of the onion would be the individuals who put the policy into practice, such as teachers and students. This model, which is widely accepted in the field (Saarinen & Ihalainen, 2018;Wedin, Rosé n, & Straszer, 2021) (see also Ricento & Hornberger, 1996), is useful for our understanding of the different forms and processes of various language policies in different settings, especially in cases where the language policies are not documented, for example, the policy investigated in this study.…”

“…As Hult (2012) posited, studies on micro-level language policies and how such policies are impacted by macro-level policies are the -new wave‖ of language planning and policy research. Hornberger and Johnson's (2007) multiple-layers model is also useful when accounting for language policy processes; namely creation, implementation, interpretation, appropriation, and instantiation (Jhonson, 2013;Wedin, Rosé n, & Straszer, 2021). The need for distinguishing between these various processes stems from the fact that a top-down language policy is not always put into practice in the way it was intended.…”