Examining the implementation of language education policies in mainstream primary schools

Recent studies in the field of language education policy (LEP) have emphasized the agency of educators in language policy implementation, which considerably influences the policy outcome. These studies, however, often focus on LEP measures for newcomers or ethnic minority students, and on the language used for instruction as the main LEP indicator. This study adopts an educational effectiveness framework in order to provide a more comprehensive view of the LEP measures that school teams deploy. By means of a multiple case study in six mainstream primary schools in Flanders (Belgium), it examines how language education policies are enacted in local school contexts. Focus group interviews were conducted with both teachers and school management teams. The results reveal conflicts between the official LEP and the interpretations of what LEP is and should be according to school team members, and between management team members and teachers within the same school. The rationale for the schools' enacted LEP, too, is built up from different argumentations that are not necessarily consistent with each other. The combination of these dynamics results in LEPs that either display none, one or - in one case only - both dimensions of what can be called an effective or strategic LEP. This study helps to understand how future policies can respond to local needs. By zooming in on local policy implementation, we were able to identify the difficulties that school teams struggle most with when implementing their LEPs.