Kenneth E Cruickshank

Mother tongue and bilingual minority education in China

Abstract Mother tongue education in separate schools has been in the norm for several of Chinas large minorities since 1949. In recent years, however, the shift in minority parental demand, media focus on low educational outcomes of mother tongue education combined with government concerns about separatism have led to the development of mixed schools for Chinese and minority students. In Chinas Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) the government plans to merge all minority mother tongue schools with Chinese schools by the end of 2008.This paper explores the reasons for this policy change and examines whether the mixed schools will address the unsatisfactory educational outcomes for minority students. It draws on data of case studies of two schools in XUAR, a rural minority primary school and an urban mixed minority/Chinese school. The study found mixed schooling does not address the disparity in educational outcomes. Minority ethnic children in both schools have insufficient access to adequate education in their mother tongue, in the national language as well as in the third language, English. It questions whether either school provides genuine bilingual education but provides an example of how bilingual education in one of the schools can address issues of educational outcomes.

Meeting English Language Needs in Teacher Education: a flexible support model for non-English speaking background students

The English language needs of students in teacher education programmes have become an issue of concern. There has been an increase in the numbers of local and international students, the range of their backgrounds and the diversity of their language needs. This paper explores the question of what constitutes effective English language support for students, focusing on the development of provision for a group of 110 overseas-trained teachers undertaking teacher education at the University of Sydney between 1999 and 2002. Data are drawn from focus group interviews, semi-structured interviews with students and staff and student learning journals. The paper proposes an integrated and flexible model of English language support involving content-based units, tutoring/mentoring programmes and self-directed study. Such a model may be useful for English language support for different groups of English as a second language (ESL) students in other contexts at tertiary and secondary levels.

Increasing international and domestic student interaction through group work: a case study from the humanities

This article explores the use of group work strategies to increase student interaction and learning. Despite the growing linguistic and cultural diversity in tertiary institutions, there is strong evidence of minimal interaction between ‘domestic’ and ‘international’ students in classrooms and in wider university contexts. This study investigates the implementation of teaching and learning strategies in an undergraduate class comprising domestic and international students from Education and Arts. The strategies relate to in-class group work, tutorial groups and assessment design. The findings indicate greater class interaction, higher satisfaction ratings and better learning outcomes as a result of the strategies. The article argues for three key features underpinning the pedagogy: where international students can work from a position of power equality in class, where both groups of students can enact the role of ‘experts’ and where support in language and learning how to learn is embedded in assessment and outcomes.

Local and global – conflicting perspectives? The place of overseas practicum in preservice teacher education

International practicum is disappearing from teacher education programs with the increasing pressures for ‘local experience’. International practicum is seen as too different from local contexts to develop preservice teachers to meet professional standards. This study explores the teaching development of a group of 24 preservice teachers from a regional university on a placement in Beijing and examines the ways they make explicit connections between their learning on overseas practicum and their teaching in Australia. The findings indicate that it is precisely the difference in teaching contexts that enables professional development in key areas of professional standards. The study challenges perceptions of overseas practicum as ‘cultural tourism’ and also the presumption of conflict between preparing teachers for both global and local contexts.

Access to Majority Language and Educational Outcomes: South Asian Background Students in Postcolonial Hong Kong.

This study examines the extent to which South Asian students in Hong Kong are gaining fluency in Chinese and the impact of this on their educational outcomes in the postcolonial context of an official shift to a trilingual (Cantonese, English, and Putonghua) and biliterate (Chinese and English) society. It focuses on the teaching and learning of Chinese in secondary schools “designated” for minority background students. Data are drawn from student language proficiency testing and teacher interviews. The study found low proficiency in Chinese due, in part, to teaching methodologies based on approaches to learning Chinese as a first language. There was evidence of inadequate teacher preparation, inappropriate curriculum, structural issues, and a cycle of low student motivation and performance. The study concludes that educational outcomes for these students will not improve without a seismic shift in policy thinking and improvement of educational provision for minority students.

Languages discourses in Australian middle-class schools: parent and student perspectives

ABSTRACT Much of the literature on social class and language study in schools argues that for middle-class parents and their children, languages are chosen for their capacity to offer forms of distinction that provide an edge in the global labour market. In this paper, we draw on data collected from interviews with parents and children in middle-class schools in Australia to demonstrate how a complex amalgam of elite, cultural identity and/or trade language discourses came into play to explain the choice (or not) to study a language and the choice of specific languages. For many of the parents languages provided a limited form of ‘civic multiculturalism’, as a means of better understanding and respecting the ‘other’. We argue that the value attributed to high status languages via this discourse, means their continued presence in schools hoping to attract middle-class parents, but their relative absence in schools with largely working-class populations, where more ‘practical’ concerns dominate.

Language and identity across modes of communication

This edited collection examines how people use a range of different modalities to negotiate, influence, and/or project their own or other peoples identities. It brings together linguistic scholars concerned with issues of identity through a study of language use in various types of written texts, conversation, performance, and interviews.This edited collection examines how people use a range of different modalities to negotiate, influence, and/or project their own or other peoples identities. It brings together linguistic scholars concerned with issues of identity through a study of language use in various types of written texts, conversation, performance, and interviews.

The struggle for legitimacy: language provision in two ‘residual’ comprehensive high schools in Australia

ABSTRACT Despite the contemporary policy rhetoric of global citizenry and the importance of languages and intercultural capabilities, language learning in Australian schools struggles for recognition and support. The curriculum marginalisation of languages, however, is uneven, affecting some school sectors more than others. In this article, we examine the provision of languages in two government comprehensive high schools, both low socio-economic status, located in urban areas in New South Wales, Australia’s largest state. They are termed ‘residual’ high schools because they cater for the students remaining in the local schools while others attend either private or selective government high schools. We provide a qualitative picture of language provision in these two schools from the perspectives of key stakeholders – school principals, teachers, students and parents. We also draw on observational data of language classes. The aim is to provide, within a largely social class framework, an understanding of the state of language provision in these schools. We argue that currently students in these schools are experiencing unequal access to the linguistic and cultural capital associated with language learning relative to students in more privileged communities and schools.