Encyclopedia
Please note this is a comparison between Version 1 by Wenting Hu and Version 2 by Lindsay Dong.
As preconditions and consequences of the globalization of higher education, multilingualism has reconfigured language ecology, language policy and planning, and multilingual management in the contemporary world.
- multilingual ecology
- language policy
- language planning
- language management
1. Introduction
Political, economic, and social forces of globalization have thrust sino-foreign cooperative education institutions (SCEIs) into a more competitive global knowledge economy as a valuable industry in higher education [1][2][1,2]. In light of this, SCEIs typically carry a rich linguistic diversity to promote their international profiles and encourage international cooperation. Consequently, SCEIs are more susceptible to multilingual environments of language hybridity and pragmatic complexity in administrative, communicative, and educational contexts. Increased emphasis on multilingual policies and practices exemplifies the inevitability of the multilingual ecology in SCEIs, which are characterized by the interaction of multiple languages within the linguistic environment of higher education [3][4][5][3,4,5]. The ecological concept of multilingualism enables language policy and planning to integrate elements that appear distinct [6] (e.g., language competition, multilingual integration, language users’ attitudes, and the status of English and languages other than English). Research on these topics has gained significant attention in recent years. However, it is challenging to identify the issue of current language ecology as the solution to a specific multilingual problem. Meanwhile, it remains unclear how these multilingual elements interact in multilingual ecology SCEIs of higher education, what the rationale and approach are for language planning and language management in SCEIs, and how multilingualism may influence the overall usage of attitudes toward languages in administrative and pedagogical contexts.
2. Multilingual Ecology, Language Planning, and Language Management
Multilingual ecology, language planning, and language management have been interpreted differently, despite a wide agreement on the importance of multilingualism of immersion language in the globalization of higher education. For instance, Ref. [7] claims that English was a predominantly written and spoken lingua franca. Ref. [8] also states that most SCEIs in China have increasingly given a predilection for English as the medium of instruction (EMI) from the perspective of globalization in higher education. However, within the context of SCEIs’ linguistic diversity, complexities of language ecology have been discussed around perspectives on multiregional and multilingual ideologies [9]. Ecological thinking of multilingualism offers a new approach to analyzing the interactions between language and environment [10].
2.1. Multilingual Ecology of Higher Education in SCEIs
The distinctive multilingual ecology of SCEIs in higher education is distinguished by its linguistic hybridity, a broad range of discourse content, complex inter-disciplinarity, frequent language interaction, variable language communication, and challenging linguistic issues [11][12][11,12]. The definition of ecology was explained as “living organisms” from a sociological standpoint [13]. The ecosystem metaphor was originally used in linguistics by Voegelin et al. in 1967, drawing a dividing line between the concepts of intralanguage ecology and interlanguage ecology [14]. The concept of language ecology was further elaborated in a multilingual setting as a complex dynamic system underpinning complexity theory and post-modern sociolinguistics [15][16][15,16]. A diverse linguistic landscape that takes into consideration language policy, planning, decision making, and other contextual factors is presented by multilingual interaction from an ecological perspective. It also provides a layer of sociolinguistic foregrounding on these factors as opposed to merely a language discourse or message. It can be assumed that the multilingual ecological perspective provides a fresh way to examine participant behavior and attitudes, multilingual integration, language implementation processes, and multilingual usages.
Recent studies of multilingual ecology in higher education, however, have progressively shifted their emphasis to new research criteria [17][18][17,18]. Research on multilingual ecology in higher education contexts prioritized a maximum diversity of languages by describing language application scenarios through a systems framework of multilingualism in detail. It can be found that research interests have been moved to the fields of educational globalization, teachers’ bilingual and multilingual proficiency, assessment of scale reliability, meta-linguistic practice, multilingual competition, and language hegemony resistance in the last decade. In recent years, research objectives in the context of transnational higher education communities have favored the topic of “multilingual competitiveness” [19]. The results indicate an intricate expansion of English as the medium of instruction in the majority of transnational higher education institutions [20][21][20,21]. Scenario-based multilingual competition becomes more complicated in many different languages. Research methods also switch progressively from theoretical research to empirical research, including qualitative, quantitative, and mixed research approaches. In conclusion, the previous studies in this domain provide a foundational basis for further exploration of multilingual ecology.
Regarding the language competition issues, there have recently been a number of specific multilingual discussions based on language ecological perspective reporting on transnational higher education institutions in China. Language competition, which can be defined as the scramble for resources of language use, application, and control dominance in multilingual settings, naturally occurs in cooperative educational institutions [22]. It is particularly shaped by language ideologies, which multilingual users may articulate as a justification or explanation for their preferred language [23]. Multilingual competition in SCEIs shows a new trend of change: from traditional multilingual groups (mainly English and Chinese) to multilingualism: various varieties of English (e.g., British and American English), Chinese (e.g., Mandarin and other dialects), as well as Japanese, French, Spanish and other languages [24].
From an ecological perspective, language competition can be subdivided into various conditions: the same language (within-language competition) and the other language (between-language competition), or both languages at the same time (simultaneous competition). For instance, Ref. [25] claims that competition across languages contributes to the growth and decline of language. It provides additional support for the “ecology-society computational model” for describing various aspects of language competition (e.g., language extinction, coexistence, and co-development). Ref. [26] introduces the theory and proposes practical strategies for addressing the challenges posed by heterogeneous surroundings in multilingual classrooms. The research results demonstrate how language competition occurred at the micro level in the classroom, and they strengthen the effectiveness of language competition for teachers and students’ linguistic abilities in a multilingual environment. Recent research has centered on different disciplines of multilingualism in higher education contexts, making explicit claims about the super-diversity of language implementation and language competition in higher education contexts. It can be assumed that contemporary multilingualism in SCEIs may present additional challenges and opportunities for language policy and planning in higher education contexts.
2.2. Language Policy and Planning in a Multilingual Context
The study of language policy and planning (LPP) in a multilingual context of higher education has attracted scholars’ interest following the development of language ecology and language management theories. Language policy can be defined as the implementation and patterns of language use in a specific educational agency with varying communicative and pedagogical settings [27][28][27,28]. Ref. [29] initially concentrates on language planning as it relates to the regulation of language behaviors, the standardization of instructional language usage, and the resolution of language conflicts. Specifically, the substantial increase in multilingualism in universities was a result of changes in the language environment and the implementation of LPP [30][31][32][33][30,31,32,33]. According to Liddicoat (2016), the administration of LPP in universities remains the least developed aspect of language work [34]. He noticed that English is still used alongside the national language(s) as a way of enhancing international visibility. These findings have made significant contributions of both theoretical and practical nature to an understanding of LPP within the language-in-education discipline. Their contributions have shed light on the complexities of multilingual management in numerous linguistic and cultural contexts. In the last two decades, the study settings have generally shifted from explicit language planning for the integration of disciplines has generally given way to implicit language policy for a single field.
LPP has been described as a multilayered process that borrows economic and sociological terms from the policy field. Numerous conceptualizations of LPP in higher education have been proposed, but the metaphor of an onion cited by Ref. [35] has garnered the most consensus. They depict the multiple layers of language policy as an onion, emphasizing the power of teachers, managers, administrators, and students at the center of the onion. Some studies further characterize the multiple layers of language policy at the micro, meso, and macro levels of higher education, including the processes of creation, interpretation, and appropriation [36][37][36,37]. In addition, Ref. [38] focuses on relationships between language, power, and inequality in the concept of critical language policy among language, individuals, agency, and society. Some studies sought to explore how language policies act as mechanisms of power that impact the educational communicative discourse and opportunities of linguistic minorities [39][40][41][39,40,41]. It can be presumed that language policy and planning research has provided essential theoretical support for the field, emphasizing the power of language policy and the effects of policy effects on teaching and administration in SCEIs.
2.3. Language Management of Multilingual Ecology
Language management becomes an important concept in studies of language ecology (e.g., language use, manageable costs, and conflict of multilingualism in international settings) [42][43][42,43]. The process of language management shows the integration at the social, institutional, and individual levels through a “bottom-up” approach, as opposed to a “top-down” management strategy implemented at the national level. Cooperation between the government and society has superseded the previous approach of “top-down” management of government language policy [44][45][44,45]. Language management in multilingual situations refers to a structured approach aimed at facilitating education, instruction, and institutions. The objective of language management in higher education is to actively intervene in the standardization of language practices within instructional and administrative contexts.
Recently, some academicians have focused on the issues of multilingual challenges on an international scale. Researchers pay more attention to the management of equality, extensive consultation, and joint contribution in analyzing multilingual management of higher education [46]. This offers a broader view for examining the challenges associated with language management across several levels of context, with a particular focus on complex language management concerns and conflicts arising from multilingualism within the international education system. In addition, it emphasizes the collaborative participation of diverse languages in the management process of cooperative institutions in higher education. Meanwhile, the global view offers “institutional” solutions for various globalization-related problems [47]. Ref [48] introduces a methodology framework for the management of language, formulation of language policies and plans, and provision of language services, with a specific emphasis on addressing explicit language concerns and implementing methods. The integration of social institutions, groups, and individuals from other cultures has progressively become a major aspect of the global paradigm. There is a potential for improving the ability of stakeholders to deal with cross-language difficulties in the context of cultural and linguistic exchanges [49][50][49,50]. Consequently, there appears to be a growing inclination towards including the concept of “global view” within the realm of language policy and planning research in the educational management of SCEIs. It is considered a new perspective for the higher education industry in enhancing multilingual competence, facilitating international communication, adapting decision-making processes, and fostering instrumental advancement.
