Parents’ perceptions about the shifting language of primary and secondary school students in the Maldivian community
PDF

Keywords

English as a second language
Parental perceptions
Bilingualism in Maldives
Language maintenance

How to Cite

Parents’ perceptions about the shifting language of primary and secondary school students in the Maldivian community. (2025). The Maldives National Journal of Research, 13(1), 07-23. https://doi.org/10.62338/5bgf9j65

Abstract

English has become widely used as a second language in the Maldivian community, leading to a noticeable language shift. This qualitative research focuses on exploring this language shift. A descriptive phenomenological methodology was employed to collect data, with a central aim of understanding the problem of language shift of primary and secondary school students through the perceptions of Maldivian parents. The study also sought to identify the main factors driving this shift and the role parents play in the process. Using purposive (criterion) sampling, 10 participants were selected, and semi-structured face-to-face interviews were conducted. The collected data was analysed using thematic analysis, which revealed four major themes contributing to language shift: 1) the promotion of English over Dhivehi, 2) globalization and the rise of English as a global language, 3) the role of the parents, and 4) language attitudes and beliefs. The results indicate that while most parents expressed concern about the language shift, their unstated beliefs were interfering with the development of language practices necessary for language maintenance. A minority were attempting to halt language shift within the family domain and an older individual was forced to recognize the value of English language, despite contrary beliefs. The results indicate that while most parents express concern about the language shift, their beliefs were interfering with the development of language practices necessary for language maintenance. A minority of parents are actively attempting to prevent the language shift within the family domain, and an older individual was compelled to acknowledge the value of the English language, despite holding contrary views.

PDF

References

Aldoukhi, H., Hamzah, N. H., & Shangeetha, R. K. (2024). Language maintenance and shift among the Syrian community in Malaysia. Springer Nature Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-9643-8

Awopetu, A. V. (2016). Impact of mother tongue on children’s learning abilities in early childhood classroom. Procedia: Social and Behavioral Sciences, 233(2016), 58-63. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2016.10.131

Boxer, D. (2002). Applying sociolinguistics: Domains and face-to-face interaction. John Benjamins Publishing.

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology: Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77-101. http://dx.doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa

Bromham, L., Dinnage, R., Skirgard, H., Ritchie, A., Cardillo, M., Meakins, F., Greenhill, S., & Hua, X. (2022). Global predictors of language endangerment and the future of linguistic diversity, 6, 163-173.

Clarke, V., & Braun, V. (2016). Thematic analysis. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 12(3), 297-298. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2016.1262613

Creswell, J. W. (1998). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five traditions. SAGE Publications.

Crystal, D. (2003). English as a global language (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.

Crystal, D. (2012). English as a global language (Canto classic edition) (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.

Dauenhauer NM, Dauenhauer R. Technical, emotional, and ideological issues in reversing language shift: examples from Southeast Alaska. In: Grenoble LA, Whaley LJ, eds. Endangered Languages: Language Loss and Community Response. Cambridge University Press; 1998:57-98.

Fahmee, F., & Mei-Fung, Y. (2016). Language choice in online written communication among Maldivian professionals. The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies, 22(2), 49-66. DOI: 10.17576/3L-2016-2202-04

Fishman, J. A. (1965). Who speaks what language to whom and when? La Linguistique, 1(2), 67-88.

Fishman, J. A. (1991). Reversing language shift: Theoretical and empirical foundations of assistance to threatened languages. Multilingual Matters.

Friedmann, N., & Rusou, D. (2015). Critical period for first language: The crucial role of language input during the first year of life. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 35, 27-34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.conb.2015.06.003

Garcia, O., Schiffman, H. F., & Zakharia, Z. (2006). Fishmanian Sociolinguistics (1949 to the Present) In O. Garcia (Ed.), Language loyalty, continuity and change: Joshua A. Fishman’s contributions to international sociolinguistics (pp. 3-68). Multilingual Matters.

Garrett, P., Coupland, N., & Williams, A. (2003). Investigating language attitudes: Social meanings of dialect, ethnicity and performance. University of Wales Press

Garrett, P. (2010). Attitudes to language: Key topics in sociolinguistics. Cambridge University Press.

Ginting, S. A. (2018). Language attitude of sellers in traditional market toward Karonese language. English Language Teaching, 11(7), 125-130. http://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v11n7p125

Gnanadesikan, A. E. (2016). Dhivehi: The language of the Maldives. De Gruyter Mouton.

Gorter, D., & Cenoz, J. (2016). Language education policy and multilingual assessment. Language and Education, 31(3), 231-248. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500782.2016.1261892

Gvelesiani, I. (2012). Globalization and the world languages. Education Sciences & Psychology, 20(1), 69-73.

Hatoss, A. (2013). Displacement, language maintenance and identity: Sudanese refugees in Australia. John Benjamins Publishing Company.

Hjarvard, S. (2004). The globalization of language: How the media contribute to the spread of English and the emergence of medialects, Nordicom Review, 25(1-2), 75-97.

Hong, Y. C., & Ganapathy, M. (2017). To investigate ESL students’ instrumental and integrative motivation towards English language learning in a Chinese school in Penang: Case study. English Language Teaching, 10(9), 17-35. http://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v10n9p17

Hopman, E. W. M., & MacDonald, M. C. (2018). Production practice during language learning improves comprehension. SAGE Journals, 29(6). https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797618754486

Islanders Education. [@islanderseducation]. (2022, September 11). Is Dhivehi becoming a second language? Listen to Dr. Joanne Jalkanen speak a few words on her on-going study on sociolinguistic practice in the Maldives [Instagram video]. Retrieved from https://www.instagram.com/tv/CiW-bwbp7ZV/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Kedzierski, M. (2016). English as a medium of instruction in East Asia’s higher education sector: a critical realist Cultural Political Economy analysis of underlying logics. Comparative Education, 52(3), 375-391. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03050068.2016.1185269

King, K. A., Schilling, N., Fogle, L. W., Lou, J. J., & Soukup, B. (2008). Sustaining linguistic diversity: Endangered and minority languages and language varieties. Georgetown University Press.

King, N., & Horrocks, C. (2010). Interview in qualitative research. SAGE Publications.

Lane P. The Role of the Past in Language Revitalization. In: Pavlenko A, ed. Multilingualism

and History. Cambridge University Press; 2023:239-254.

Li, C., & Wei, L. (2022). Language attitudes: Construct, measurement, and associations with language achievements. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1-26. DOI: 10.1080/01434632.2022.2137516

Marx, S. (2008). Rich data. In L. M. Given (Ed.). The SAGE encyclopedia of qualitative research methods (pp. 795-794). SAGE Publications.

Maumoon, Y. (2002). A general overview of the Dhivehi Language. Novelty Printers and Publishers.

McKechnie, L. E. F. (2008). Reactivity. In L. M. Given (Ed.). The SAGE encyclopedia of qualitative research methods (pp. 729-730). SAGE Publications.

Meierkord, C. (2018). English in paradise: The Maldives. English Today, 34 (1), 2-11. doi:10.1017/S0266078417000475

Mohamed, N. (2020). First language loss and negative attitudes towards Dhivehi among young Maldivians: Is the English-first educational policy to blame? Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages International Association, 54(3), 743-772. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.591

Montes-Alcala, C. (2000). Attitudes towards oral and written codeswitching in Spanish-English bilingual youths. Research on Spanish in the United States: Linguistic Issues and Challenges, 218-227.

Munhall, P. L. (2008). Perception. In L. M. Given (Ed.). The SAGE encyclopedia of qualitative research methods (pp. 606-607). SAGE Publications.

Nascimento, L. S., & Steinbruch, F. L. (2019). The interviews were transcribed but how? Reflections on management research. RAUSP Management Journal, 54(4), 413-429. DOI 10.1108/RAUSP-05-2019-0092

National Institute of Education. (2015). The national curriculum framework (National Curriculum). Male, Maldives: National Institute of Education.

Ostler, N. (2008, August). Is it Globalization that Endangers Languages? [Paper presentation]. United Nations Educational Scientific Cultural Organization/United Nations University (UESCO/UNU) International Conference 2008, Geneva, Switzerland.

Palys, T. (2008). Purposive sampling. In L. M. Given (Ed.). The SAGE encyclopedia of qualitative research methods (pp. 697-698). SAGE Publications.

Pauwels, A. (2016). Language maintenance and shift. Cambridge University Press.

Philipson, R. (2009). Linguistic imperialism continued. Routledge.

Roulston, K. J. (2008). Probes and probing. In L. M. Given (Ed.). The SAGE encyclopedia of qualitative research methods (pp. 681-683). SAGE Publications.

Sallabank, J., & Austin, P. K. (2011). The Cambridge handbook of endangered languages. Cambridge University Press

Sallabank, J. (2013). Attitudes to endangered languages. Cambridge University Press.

Sheng, L., Lu, Y., & Gollan, T. H (2013). Assessing language dominance in Mandarin-English bilinguals: Convergence and divergence between subjective and objective measures. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 17(2), 364-383. doi:10.1017/S1366728913000424

Skutnabb-Kangas, T. (2013). Linguistic genocide in education or worldwide diversity and human rights? Routledge.

Spolsky, B. (2004). Language policy: Key topics in sociolinguistics. Cambridge University Press.

Wherry, J. H. (2004, September/October). The influence of home on school success. Parents & Schools. Retrieved from https://www.naesp.org/sites/default/files/resources/2/Principal/2004/S-Op6.pdf

Zain, Z. M., Jasmani, F. N. N., Haris, N. H., & Nurudin, S. M. (2022). Gadgets and their impact on child development. Proceedings, 82(6), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2022082006

Zunich, M. (2012). Child behavior and parental attitudes. The Journal of Psychology, 62(1), 41-46. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223980.1966.10543023