Forging Multilingual Spaces

This book proposes an integrated approach to the study of bilingual education in minority and majority settings. Contributions from scholars in different countries in Europe and the Americas show how to bridge the gap between elite bilingualism and the bilingualism of minority communities and work towards multilingual spaces.

Christine Hélot is a professor of English and teacher educator at the University of Strasbourg in France. She holds a PhD in Applied Linguistics from Trinity College (Dublin). She has published several books and numerous articles both in French and English on bilingualism and bilingual education, language education policies, language awareness and intercultural education.de Mejía Anne-Marie :

Anne-Marie de Mejía works in the Centre for Research and Development in Education at Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia. She has a Ph. D in Linguistics in the area of Bilingual Education. Her research interests include bilingual classroom interaction, process of teacher empowerment and bilingual teacher development.

Christine Hélot is a professor of English and a teacher educator at the University of Strasbourg in France (Institut Universitaire de Formation des Maîtres d’Alsace). She is the coordinator of a research programme on plurilingualism, intercultural education, and language learning.

Anne-Marie de Mejía works in the Centre for Research and Development in Education at Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia. She has a Ph. D in Linguistics in the area of Bilingual Education. Her research interests include bilingual classroom interaction, process of teacher empowerment and bilingual teacher development.

The book offers a global perspective of the impact of overt and covert language education policies on the use and perceptions of majority and minority languages in society as well as on the implementation of bilingual programs in the classroom. This volume constitutes a useful resource for policymakers genuinely invested in the promotion of minority languages in their countries, as well as for researchers and students of teacher preparation programs interested in gaining a better, more global, understanding of the complexities of second and foreign language teaching and the (negative) repercussions that certain linguistic policies have on the maintenance and spread of minority languages and ~n the daily lives of their speakers.

Hugo Baetens Beardsmore, The Royal Academy for Overseas Sciences:

This collection, is well-designed, highly readable, and provides many insights useful beyond the case examples from the two continents covered.