Multilingual Education Newsletter

• Global: "A world without words? - Celebrating International Mother Language Day" by UNESCOPRESS
• Cambodia: "Cambodia recognised as role model in Asia-Pacific region for mother tongue-based bilingual education" by KHAN Sophirom on Agence Kampuchea Presse Phnom Penh
• China: "Languages matter for learning and harmonious development" by UNESCO Beijing on China Daily
• Cook Islands: "Revival of Maori Language Commission in the Cook Islands" by UNESCO Apia 
• India: "Languages are vehicles of understanding, tolerance" by UNESCO New Delhi on The Asian Age
• Iran: "Let us treasure and value each person's mother language" by UNESCO Tehran on Islamic Republic News Agency and UNIC Iran 
• Iran: "Treasuring each person's mother language" on Iran Daily
• Nepal: "Nisha's right" by UNESCO Kathmandu on the Kathmandu Post
• Pakistan: "Watching the tongues slip into extinction: UNESCO documents around 28 endangered languages" by UNESCO Islamabad on The Express Tribun
• Thailand: "The importance of a mother tongue" by Kirk Person and Sena Lee on the Bangkok Post

MLE in the News

· Digital tools 'to save languages' - BBC; 18 February 2012

· Linguistic imperialism alive and kicking - The Guardian; 13 March 2012

· The return of the mother tongue - Philippine Daily Inquirer; 15 March 2012

· A boost for mother-tongue learning - Mail & Guardian Online; 16 March 2012

· Why bilinguals are smarter - The New York Times; 17 March 2012

· Timor-Leste: When do mother tongues divide? - IRIN Asia; 26 March 2012

· Majority of Turks support education in mother tongue - Today's Zaman; 26 March 2012

· Understanding mother tongue - The Hindu; 27 March 2012

· Mother tongue most effective to the children: Jora - Scoop News; 27 March 2012

· Mother tongues: Education in mother-tongue stressed - The Express Tribune; 29 March 2012

· British Council holds policy dialogue on language in education - The News; 29 March 2012

Resources

· Equity and Quality in Education - Supporting Disadvantaged Students and Schools by OECD · Special Issue: Quality Multilingual and Multicultural Education for Lifelong Learning, International Review of Education. Volume 57, Number 5-6 · Language and Superdiversity by Jan Blommaert and Ben Rampton · Languages in a Global World: Learning for Better Cultural Understanding by OECD · Multicultural Diversity and Special Needs Education by European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education

© UNESCO

· Multilingual Education in Nepal: Hearsay and Reality? A report by UNESCO

· Towards a Language Rich Europe: Multilingual Essays on Language Policies and Practices by British Council

· Why Language Matters for the Millennium Development Goals by UNESCO

· Workshop on Bilingual Education: Creating Learner Friendly Environment for All by MoEYS, ICC, UNESCO and JFIT

Past & Upcoming Events

2012  · Asia Multilingual Education Working Group Meeting, Thailand; 30 January 2012  · 2nd Philippine Conference-Workshop on Mother Tongue-based Multilingual Education EFA and MTBMLE 2015 and Beyond, Philippines; 16 - 18 February 2012  · International Mother Language Day, Worldwide; 21 February 2012   · MLE Advocacy Conference in Chiangrai, Thailand; 23 - 25 February 2012  · Workshop on bridging between languages in mother tongue-based multilingual education programs, Thailand; 19 - 30 March 2012

© UNESCO

· Asia Multilingual Education Working Group Meeting, Thailand; 26 March 2012  · Sustaining a Global Society: Languages of the Wider World, The UK; 29 - 30 March 2012

Theme: What is a good early childhood?

 · EFA Global Action Week Photo/Drawing Contest, Worldwide; until 15 April 2012

 · 2nd International Conference on Law, Language and Discourse: Multiculturalism, Multimodality and Multidimensionality, China; 20 - 22 April 2012

 · Asia Multilingual Education Working Group Meeting, Thailand; 28 May 2012

 · 9th International Conference: Language, Development and Identity, Indonesia; 26 - 28 June 2012

 · CESA 2012-Education at the dawn of the new decade: When the Quality and Sustainability Movements Converge, Thailand; 8 - 11 July 2012

 · Language Rights, Inclusion and the Prevention of Ethnic Conflicts, Thailand; 13 - 17 December 2012

MLE Mapping Survey!

Currently, MLE WG is conducting a MLE Mapping Exercise in the Asia-Pacific region to document key issues, actors and activities shaping the context for ethnolinguistic communities. Please fill out the linked MLE Mapping questionnaire and return to MLE WG Secretariat. >>Download MLE Mapping Exercise Questionnaire