Multilingual Education

With my job market paper I started what I consider now my research agenda regarding education in multi-lingual and multi-ethnic settings. I believe this is an extremely important topic that hasn’t received enough scholarly attention. I will start by briefly illustrating the experience of Mexico to then broaden the view to a more global perspective.

The Mexican Experience

Mexico's journey with bilingual education for its indigenous populations is a fascinating case study. From the early 20th century's focus on Spanish-only instruction to today's more inclusive approach, the country has made significant strides in recognizing and valuing its linguistic diversity. Key milestones include:

1. The creation of the National Indigenous Institute in 1948
2. The official adoption of bilingual education by 1963
3. The establishment of the General Department of Indigenous Education in 1978
4. The General Law of Indigenous Education in 1993
5. The creation of the General Directorate of Indigenous, Intercultural and Bilingual Education in 2001

These changes reflect a shift from a “Spanish-only” assimilation model to a different approach: the “intercultural bilingual education”. Effectively, the current policy establishes separate schools for indigenous children - that they can choose freely, or prefer the general schools - where they are supposed to learn first in their native indigenous language and then transition gradually to Spanish. While this policy shift may be motivated by inclusivity efforts and good intentions to broaden access, severe implementation challenges persist, including teacher shortages, resource constraints, and the complexity of developing materials for numerous indigenous languages.

Global Perspectives

Mexico’s experience is not unique. Many countries in the world - especially developing countries and those that experienced colonization - grapple with similar challenges in providing education to populations with different languages and ethnicities. Some examples:

1. Latin America:
   1. Peru introduced Intercultural Bilingual Education in 1972, focusing on preserving Quechua and other indigenous languages
   2. Bolivia’s 1994 Education Reform Law mandated intercultural and bilingual education for all Bolivians, not just indigenous populations
   3. Ecuador’s Bilingual Intercultural System of Education allows indigenous people to learn in their language while promoting Spanish for intercultural communication.
2. Africa:
   1. Ethiopia emphasizes local languages in primary education before transitioning to official languages like Amharic and English.
   2. In Nigeria, the Language Policy of 2022 mandated the use of Mother Tongue or Language of the Immediate Community (LIC) until primary school; a combination of English and mother tongue is encouraged in secondary school.
   3. South Africa's language policy permits the use of local languages as the language of instruction, but also allows parents to choose English instead.
3. Asia:
   1. India's recent National Education Policy 2020 represents a significant reform, promoting mother-tongue education in early years and multilingualism throughout the system. The policy suggests that the medium of instruction should be the home language, mother tongue, or regional language up to at least Grade 5, ideally extending through Grade 8 and beyond - a change from a previous focus on Hindi and English. More recent updates, such as the Draft National Curriculum Framework (NCF) 2023, reinforce this approach by integrating multilingual education into curricula, though practical implementation remains a work in progress.
   2. Vietnam's 2019 Education Law recognizes ethnic minority languages in schools, marking a shift from previous assimilation-oriented policies and promoting a transitional model towards Vietnamese in later grades.
   3. The Philippines implemented a mother-tongue-based multilingual education approach through its Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013.
4. Other Countries:
   1. The United States has implemented various bilingual education models, particularly for Spanish-speaking students, since the Bilingual Education Act of 1968.
   2. New Zealand’s Te Kōhanga Reo program aims to revitalize Māori language.
5. Many others!

Challenges

Despite diverse approaches, many countries face similar challenges in implementing multilingual education:

1. Shortage of qualified bilingual teachers
2. Lack of appropriate education materials in indigenous languages
3. Resource allocation issues for vulnerable ethnic minorities
4. Balancing language preservation with economic considerations regarding the labor market
5. Complexity of developing curricula for numerous local languages

If you're interested in studying any related effects of these policies or would like to discuss this topic further, please don't hesitate to reach out to me at odarova - at - sas.upenn.edu. I believe there are many aspects to consider: labor market consequences, social networks, parental involvement, discrimination, bullying, peer effects, segregation, community building, public goods provision etc. etc. Happy writing!