Multilingualism, Education and Change

by Jean-Jacques Weber

This is a book about language and education in one of the smallest European Union member-states, Luxembourg. It presents the results of an ethnographic study of code-switching and language ideologies among transnational, luso-descendant youngsters attending a number of youth centres in Luxembourg city. It offers a comprehensive description of the processes of construction and negotiation of new, emergent identities and ethnicities.The author considers the implications of these results for language-in-education policy, including the EU policy of multilingualism. He criticizes mother-tongue education and advocates instead the use of «literacy bridges». Clearly argued and widely applicable, this book is essential reading for students and researchers interested in multilingualism, migration and education.

188 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 3, 2008