How dominant languages can unintentionally perpetuate colonial mindsets in education
In short: A paper in Diaspora Indigenous and Minority Education argues that even progressive language teaching methods can reinforce colonial legacies. The author contends that 'colonialingualism' occurs when English language education prioritizes official or colonial languages, often treating them as economic resources while sidelining the cultural importance of Indigenous and endangered languages.
The paper suggests that this practice is detrimental to the identities of multilingual learners and the survival of minoritized knowledge systems. By analyzing heritage language pedagogy in Canada, the author argues that achieving true linguistic equity requires an epistemic 'unlearning' of dominant Western worldviews.
This is a theoretical paper exploring the limits of plurilingual approaches in the classroom.
Why it matters: True linguistic equity in education may require unlearning dominant Western ways of knowing.
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