Language education policy
in a globalised world:
Is language education a global issue?
Tarja Nikula, Taina Saarinen, Sari Pöyhönen
Centre for Applied Language Studies (CALS)
University of Jyväskylä, Finland
tarja.nikula@campus.jyu.fi
taina.saarinen@campus.jyu.fi
sari.poyhonen@campus.jyu.fi
Language education policies
in a globalised world?
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(Language) education policy traditionally a
national concern, but ‘globalization’ appears
increasingly as a motivation for developing
language education policies
The connections between ‘globalization’ and
national language education policies remain,
however, largely unexplored and
unproblematized.
Aim of this paper:


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To discuss meanings of ‘globalization’ in language
education policy
To discuss the roles of ‘local’, ‘national’ and ‘global in
language education policy
To explore research possibilities in the area of language
education policy and globalization
Implications of ‘globalization’ for language
education policy

Globalization from below vs. above

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From below: which actions have an effect on
national policies? A multitude of micro
practices!
From above: if there is global planning, who’s
doing the planning? A multitude of macro
actors! (Baldauf 2008)
Economic vs. cultural globalization

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Economic g.: linguistic ideology of economy: a
common language reduces the costs of
multilingualism
Cultural g.: need for a lingua franca, making
other cultures transparent
Multitude of actors involved
GLOBAL
United Nations, European Union, Council of Europe, World Bank,
OECD, World Trade Organization, APEC …
NATIONAL
Parliament, Ministry of Education, other ministries, Examination
boards, State provincial offices, Local and Regional Authorities,
Trade unions, Media, Publishing companies…
LOCAL
Municipalities, Educational institutes, NGOs, Work places…
INDIVIDUAL
Teachers, Parents, Pupils, Employers…
National reactions to “global”

Case Norway (Languages open doors 2007)
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Languages skills as self-evident asset or resource in a
globalized world
Foreign languages (primarily English?) a tool for understanding
other cultures
=> ideologies of economy primarily
Case Finland: (Koulutuspoliittinen selonteko 2006)
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“Demands set by international division of labour and
competitive environment in an open world economy”
Adaptation to this changing environment on one hand,
strengthening the individuals’ cultural identity in a diverse
environment on the other
G. in education: G. as an actor which causes changes and the
(educational) system has to adapt in order to facilitate the
economy
Tensions between global, national and local

Case CLIL in Finland

Globalization as a motivating force for CLIL from two
directions
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Great deal of ambivalence in relation to CLIL

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from above: strong political support for CLIL in the EU
from below: parental aspirations, CLIL as ‘a key to
internationalization’
CLIL promoting multilingualism vs. CLIL posing a threat to
national languages
The mixture of global and local concerns affects
language education policies

the role of CLIL not consolidated in the educational scene
Individual perspectives on global, national
and local

Case Finland: immigrants and language education

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Globalisation as a factor in individual language education
policy questions
Societal concerns and personal reasons

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Explicit policies and implicit practises and beliefs
Parents’ different views on mother tongue teaching,
Finnish as a second language teaching and Finnish as a
mother tongue teaching
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Integration (assimilation) into Finnish society vs. multicultural and
multilingual identity
Contradicting interests? Responsibilities of the society and
individuals?
Tensions in global – national – local individual
Policy tensions
Value tensions
Actor tensions
Is language education a global
issue?
YES
… BUT …
national
 local
 individual

tensions shape it!
CONCLUDING QUESTIONS
How global can national policymaking be?
 How are local and individual concerns taken
into account?
 How is it possible to deal with contradicting
views of society, community and individuals
(who actually are the society and
community)?
 Who is looking after the decision makers (on
any level)?
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References
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Baldauf, R. Jr. 2008. Beyond the Micro and Macro to the
Global: Who does it? Paper Presented at Sociolinguistics
Symposium 17, LPP&M Workshop, Amsterdam, 5 April
2008.
Burbules, N. & C. A. Torres (eds.) 2000. Globalization
and education. Critical perspectives. London: Routledge.
Koulutuspoliittinen selonteko 2006. Valtioneuvoston
koulutuspoliittinen selonteko eduskunnalle.
Opetusministeriö.
Languages open doors 2007. A Strategy for Promoting
Foreign Languages in Primary and Secondary Education,
and Training 2005-2009. Norwegian Ministry of
Education and Research.
Spolsky, B. 2004. Language Policy. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press. (Key topics in
sociolinguistics)