| Author: | Luis, Simao Elias |
| Title: | Multilingual language policies and classroom practices in postcolonial Mozambique : exploring classroom discourses and teacher attitudes towards bilingualism using a mixed-methods approach |
| Advisors: | Ladegaard, Hans (ENGL) |
| Degree: | Ph.D. |
| Year: | 2021 |
| Subject: | Education, Bilingual -- Mozambique Language policy -- Mozambique Multilingualism -- Social aspects Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations |
| Department: | Department of English and Communication |
| Pages: | xiv, 154 pages : color illustrations |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | Mozambique is a multilingual and multicultural nation in Southern Africa with a population of over twenty-eight million people and between twenty and forty-three indigenous languages. International languages, including French, Spanish, Chinese, among others are also spoken as foreign languages by foreigners and a significant number of Mozambicans. Due to the country's colonial past, Portuguese remains the dominant language in formal settings, Government administration and schools. This mixed-methods study draws on theoretical frameworks applied to language attitudes, interactional sociolinguistics and translanguaging (1) to investigate teacher attitudes towards Portuguese, indigenous languages, bilingualism/bilingual education and code-switching (CS) in central Mozambique, (2) to examine the impact of socio-biographical variables (e.g. gender, age, multilingualism in schools and linguistic diversity during childhood) on language attitudes, and (3) to assess the manifestation of language attitudes in classroom discourses. The data were concurrently collected through an attitude questionnaire (n=201), semi-structured interviews (n=16) and audio-recordings (8 hours from two teachers), and analysed using SPSS and NVivo. The findings demonstrate that teachers hold more positive attitudes towards Portuguese than indigenous languages, suggesting the possibility of raising awareness of the historical, cultural and educational values of Mozambican indigenous languages in schools in order to promote their use as the medium of instruction (MoI). Another finding is that the teachers hold favourable attitudes towards CS, bilingualism and bilingual education. The teachers, who work in multilingual schools and grew up in linguistically diverse environments, demonstrate their linguistic repertoires in everyday unwritten rules of communication that involve CS depending on situational and environmental factors. These multilingual teachers reported using CS with friends, relatives, colleagues, strangers and students in the classroom as (1) an instructional and communication strategy, (2) a contextualisation cue highlighting multilingual identities, and (3) a tool to reproduce or transform broader societal norms such as language education policies. Notably, the classroom data highlights the use of Portuguese/L2 as a pedagogical and communication strategy in Citewe/L1 lessons to accommodate to students and teachers with limited proficiency in the L1. The present interdisciplinary study draws on concepts from applied linguistics (e.g. language learning), education (e.g. education policies) and social psychology (e.g. attitudes) and contributes to a broader understanding of mixed-methods research and the potential impact of culture, language and identity on language policies and classroom discourses. These findings have several implications, including the possibility of adopting more flexible language education policies, encourage multilingualism in schools, and find innovative ways of using CS as a communication and pedagogical strategy that goes beyond the traditional concept of switching between two distinct languages. Future studies in Mozambique could draw on more longitudinal data and involve teachers as researchers to systematically examine their classroom discourses in order to improve pedagogical practices. |
| Rights: | All rights reserved |
| Access: | open access |
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