The challenge of bilingualism in a multilingual society

The Bolivian Case

Bibliographic Data

ID12634159
AuthorsLive Drange Danbolt (NLA University College, corresponding author)
Year2011
Volume11
Issue3
Pages1-15
Publication date2011-11-10
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Intercultural Communication (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1404-1634 • E-ISSN: 1404-1634
PublisherInternational Collaboration for Research and Publications (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.36923/jicc.v11i3.533
OpenAlexW4386203146
LanguageEN
References cited17

Bolivia is a multilingual society recognising as many as 36 different ethnic groups with more or less different languages. The attitude towards bilingualism is based on experiences acquired over centuries through a history characterized by a minority ruling the majority. As in the other Latin American countries the ruling elite of Spanish descent has systematically neglected the culture and languages of the indigenous peoples. The Educational Reform of 1994 represented a significant shift in language and education policy, promoting bilingual primary education in areas dominated by indigenous people and replacing French with an indigenous language in secondary school. The Constitution of 2009 establishes Bolivia as a multilingual state and requires that all public employees talk at least two of the country’s official languages. It was followed by a new Education Act that promotes the process of decolonization of the education and makes it more multicultural aiming to strengthen the country’s different cultures and languages. The article examines the discussion on and attitudes towards bilingualism and evaluates the impact of the official policy aiming at changing the situation for bilinguals

Bilingual education · Elite · Ethnic group · Indigenous · Indigenous language · Language policy · Latin Americans · Linguistics · Medium of instruction · Multiculturalism · Multilingual Education · Multilingualism · Neuroscience of multilingualism · Pedagogy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · State (computer science · Law · Multilingual Education and Policy · Second Language Learning and Teaching · Spanish Linguistics and Language Studies

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Open DOIOpen Access