World Englishes, secularisation, and de-secularisation

Examining English language textbooks in a Muslim society from the perspective of language as situated practice

Dados Bibliográficos

ID11182012
AutoresM Obaidul Hamid (0000-0003-3205-6124, The University of Queensland, autor correspondente)
Ano2024
Volume45
Fascículo3
Páginas739-757
Data de publicação2024-03-15
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessNão
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoJournal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0143-4632 • E-ISSN: 1747-7557
EditoraInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/01434632.2022.2159419
OpenAlexW4313397018
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas8
Referências citadas54

The ideological role of English, beyond its instrumental value, is reported to be immense. British colonial rule deployed English as an ideological tool which facilitated colonial subjugation and religious conversion. Connections between English and evangelism have widened in the postcolonial and globalising world, leading to labelling English as a missionary language. Acknowledging the association of English with Christianity, scholars have called for examining relationships between English and other religions such as Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam. The relationship of English with Islam is especially complex. While its global spread has encouraged Muslims to utilise it as an Islamic language, English has also been used by the post-9/11 West for moderating Islam. How have Muslim-majority societies responded to English in this complex ideological and geopolitical terrain? How do they manage English teaching in their secular and religious streams of education? This article examines how education policymakers in Bangladesh have dealt with the imperatives of secularisation for mainstream education and de-secularisation for religious education by localising English along the line of world Englishes. Taking the perspective of language as situated practice, I illustrate how the same English language textbooks are used for different ideological goals, with educational, social, and political implications

Evangelism · Ideology · Islam · Pedagogy · Political science · Politics · Religious education · Secularization · Social science · Sociology · Theology · Education and Islamic Studies · Law · Multicultural Education and Local Wisdom · Multilingual Education and Policy · Philosophy · Religious studies