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Background: This paper is based on a partial study within a research project about English education at The Language Introduction Program (LIP) in Sweden. LIP is a transit program for newly arrived immigrants at upper secondary school level, designed to secure a fast transit to further education or the job market (Swedish National Agency of Education, 2013). In Swedish society, English plays an important role in accessing higher education and the job market (Swedish National Agency of Education, 2022) and English is often ascribed status of a second language in Sweden (Gheitasi et al., 2022). Also, a mutual language competence in Swedish and English is often considered a norm in the English language classroom. However, the heterogeneity of LIP students’ prior knowledge of English unable this kind of assumption, and teachers at LIP must prepare for a classroom context where a joint knowledge of Swedish and English is not a reality. The professional assignment of English teachers at LIP differs from the rest of the teachers involved in the program since the English teachers are not involved in teaching Swedish (Cunningham, 2023). As a result, relevant in-service training for LIP English teachers’ is often neglected, something that might affect student progression long-term.

Theoretical framework and methodology: Foucauldian (2002) perspectives are used to analyse power structures and Othering (Bhabha, 2004; Said, 2016), exploring language ideology (Kroskrity, 2000), and access to equal education within a multilingual context. The chosen method is linguistic ethnography with observations and interviews at two schools: Slope Hill High School and Meadow Hill High School (fictive names) for the duration of one school year. Observations in classrooms, at meetings, and of school environment were conducted. In addition, semi-structured interviews with students, teachers, principals, and other members of faculty were performed.  

Results: The results show that English is regarded a difficult subject by many LIP students and that the importance of English in Swedish society is seldom discussed with them, positioning English in the margins of the organisation. The extensive focus is on the national language of Swedish at LIP contribute to making English invisible to the organisation and its students. Furthermore, English teachers at LIP are given limited ability to co-operate and assist each other with assessment, planning, and evaluation of education. Moreover, LIP and its students were often positioned as different from the rest of the school resulting in lack of educational support for students and teachers. In this process, English became a gatekeeper and a factor of exclusion. 

Relevance to ASLA 2024: In a digital school context, lack of proficiency of English might leave students even further marginalized due to English proficiency being an important feature on for example the Internet. Inadequate proficiency in English could eventually lead to inequality in education, thus in a longer perspective of inequality in society.

References: 

Bhabha, H. K. (2004). The location of culture (1. ed. in Routledge Classics with a new preface by the author ed.). London: Routledge.

Cunningham, U. (2023). Språk och lärande i engelska. In Å. Wedin (Ed.), Språk, lärande och undervisning: om nyanlända ungdomar på Språkintroduktion (pp. 175-194). Lund: Studentlitteratur.

Foucault, M. (2002). The essential works of Foucault, 1954-1984. : Vol. 3, Power. (Edit. Faubion, J. D.) London: Penguin.

Gheitasi, P., Lindgren, E., & Enever, J. (2022). The dynamics of foreign language values in Sweden: a social history. CEPS journal, 12(1), 125-146. doi:10.26529/cepsj.758

Kroskrity, P. V. (2000). Regimes of language: ideologies, polities and identities. Oxford: James Currey.

Said, E.  (2016). Orientalism (Nyutg. förord: Edda Manga ed.). (Edit Sjöström, H. O)  Stockholm: Ordfront.

Swedish Nationall Agency of Education. (2013). Introduktionsprogrammet Språkintroduktion. Skolverket

Swedish National Agency of Education (2022). Reviderad kursplan Engelska grundskolan. Skolverket