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Multilingualism in the English-Speaking World: Pedigree of Nations

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ISBN: 978-0-470-75572-3

January 2008

Wiley-Blackwell

272 pages

Description

Multilingualism in the English-Speaking World is the winner of the BAAL Book Prize 2005.

Multilingualism in the English-Speaking World: Pedigree of Nations explores the consequences of English as a global language and multilingualism as a social phenomenon. Written accessibly, it explores the extent of diversity in 'inner circle' English speaking countries (the UK, the USA, Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand) and examines language in the home, school, and the wider community.

  • Considers the perspectives of English as a global language as well as multilingualism as a social phenomenon.
  • Written in an accessible style that draws on contemporary real life examples.
  • Examines the everyday realities of people living in 'inner circle' English-speaking countries, such as the UK, USA, Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
  • Discusses the theoretical issues that underpin current debates, drawing on research literature on societal multilingualism, language maintenance and shift, language policy, language and power, and language and identity.
About the Author
Viv Edwards is Professor of Language and Education at the University of Reading. She is editor of the international journal Language and Education, and her publications include The World in a Classroom: Language in Education in Britain and Canada (with Angela Redfern, 1992), The Other Languages: A Guide to Multilingual Classrooms (1996), and The Power of Babel: Teaching and Learning in Multilingual Classrooms (1998).
Features

  • Considers the perspectives of English as a global language as well as multilingualism as a social phenomenon.
  • Written in an accessible style that draws on contemporary real life examples.
  • Examines the everyday realities of people living in 'inner circle' English-speaking countries, such as the UK, USA, Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
  • Discusses the theoretical issues that underpin current debates, drawing on research literature on societal multilingualism, language maintenance and shift, language policy, language and power, and language and identity.
  • Multilingualism in the English-Speaking World is the winner of the BAAL Book Prize 2005.