Objectives

Economic globalisation and the growth of world-wide communication systems, together with the increase in migratory flows, mean that the future of language education must be seen from a multilingual perspective, which is radically different from that which has traditionally been adopted. Today at the beginning of the XXI century, there are no linguistically uniform societies - if indeed there ever have been - that can remain monolingual. On the contrary, communities in most countries are increasingly comprised of individuals that speak different languages, and who have to learn a set of languages that are not always those that they themselves or their families master.

The general outlook is even more complex in the case of communities that speak a historical language that is not the recognised language of the state. These languages require specific educational policies to ensure that they continue to be spoken and that their use is strengthened. Furthermore, within the context of the establishment of the European Union, the right mechanisms must be found to guarantee a greater understanding of the languages spoken there, and thereby improve the internal cohesion of its member countries.

What is evident is that this new situation cannot be understood by adopting the perspective afforded by the conventional methodology of mother tongue (or first language) and second or foreign languages. Rather, what is required is the development of innovative educational projects which incorporate and draw on the positive aspects of linguistic diversity in both formal and informal education.

Within this general framework, [eduling] seeks to provide a telematic space for the dissemination of research, debate and the exchange of opinions, for teachers at all levels of education, research workers, administrators in education and other experts, concerned with the educational implications of multilingualism. [eduling] is a journal which includes original articles written by specialists; and it is also a forum, which enables its readers to submit new contributions, replies and comments in response to the articles published.

Subject matter

[eduling] invites manuscripts that discuss matters of social or educational interest, as decided by the Academic Committee, but particularly welcomes articles on the following subjects:

• models of bilingual and multilingual education
• teaching of minority languages
• language immersion programs
• the role of schools in processes of language standardisation
• teaching foreign languages in bilingual settings
• programs for the mutual understanding of related languages
• programs for the language training of minority immigrant groups
• factors involved in multilingual learning
• teaching of reading and writing in multilingual settings
• research methods in multilingual educational settings

Call for participation

The complex matters which [eduling] seeks to examine can only be tackled by the exchange of ideas between professionals working in different contexts and settings. The Editorial Board invites two types of participation:

personal contributions in relation to the subjects published in the various issues of the journal, and
the proposal of topics for future issues.

Participation of this kind is essential to the continuity and academic rigour of this initiative - an initiative that only makes sense if it can become useful for those responsible for the transformations that multilingualism will make necessary in the educational systems of all countries around the world.