How Visible are Minority Languages? Crossed Perspectives from France and Aotearoa New Zealand

In this piece we offer a comparative perspective on the invisibility of minority languages in settings where a majority world language continues to dominate, and on the conditions to amplify in order to improve their visibility within schools. This topic speaks to democratic values, with potential implications for more socially equitable education systems, as well as improved social cohesion when diverse cultural identities are valued (Beacco et al. 2016, Moore & Castellotti 2008, Zarate et al. 2011). Our examples are drawn from France, where Arabic is the most widely spoken immigrant language amongst first and second generation migrants; and Aotearoa New Zealand, where the indigenous Māori language continues to fight its way off the endangered languages list. In both countries, historical legacies of linguistic domination remain particularly visible in schools. France’s diverse regional and migrant languages take a back seat to French as the language of education, while British colonisers from the mid-1800s imposed English language schooling with ongoing detrimental effects on educational outcomes for young Māori. In these contexts, how can minority languages regain visibility, and how may this benefit learners? We lightly explore some ways in which minority languages can stake a claim for space within a majority language –a type of resistance from the inside. We conclude that one way of strengthening this resistance to linguistic domination is through valuing minority languages and plurilingualism in teacher training.