(Ebook) From Transnational Language Policy Transfer to Local Appropriation: The Case of the National Bilingual Program in Medellin by Jaime Usma ISBN 9781939755

(Ebook) From Transnational Language Policy Transfer to Local Appropriation: The Case of the National Bilingual Program in Medellin by Jaime Usma ISBN 9781939755

Embracing a critical and sociocultural perspective for the study of policy,this vertical case study investigates foreign language education policiesbeing adopted by the national government in Colombia, and how they arereinterpreted and appropriated by local official and public schoolteachers in the city of Medellín. Based on a systematic analysis of policydocuments, semi-structured interviews, participant observations andfield notes, the author elaborates on how English is being emphasized assynonym of education quality and competitiveness in the country, howthese language and education reforms are being adopted for the wholecountry, in which manner these models of reform are connected totransnational policymaking, what role is being played by differenteducational actors and organizations at the macro and micro level, andhow, according to the multiple contextual factors that interplay in thecontinuous reinterpretation and final enactment of policy, teachersreinterpret these discourses and agendas by adopting a nurturing or anacademic approach in their final appropriation of the initial policy texts.Additionally, this study highlights the unpredictable nature ofpolicymaking processes, even when transnational organizations such asthe British Council act as policy lenders and guarantors of success andcredibility, and policy mandates are accompanied by standards, tests,frameworks, and timelines that do not necessarily respond to the localneeds and expectations of local educational actors and communities.Finally, the author illustrates the multiple difficulties experienced bydifferent schools communities across the city of Medellín, and how abreach between public and private institutions is created and fed as aconsequence of the uneven conditions in which English as a foreignlanguage is taught in Colombia and Medellín, which ends up creating agap between the official discourse of innovation, competitiveness,education and bilingualism, and actual reality. In this manner, the studyalerts about the multiple challenges faced by countries such as Colombiaand cities like Medellín adopting imported discourse around educationquality, competitiveness and bilingualism, and how these policydiscourses may become simple slogans as educational communities lackthe required conditions to successfully achieve the expected goals.