Dear colleagues,

We were recently in touch with an Editor of a leading international publishing company, and she encouraged us to develop a volume proposal on policy on early language learning. The working title of our proposed volume is ‘Early language learning policies in the 21st century’.

The perceived value of languages in the rapidly changing political, social and economic landscapes of the 21st century has led to the increased provision of languages in the early school curriculum. One of the most notable features of early language learning policy is that a foreign or second language is taught as a school subject (Enever, Moon, & Raman, 2009; Garton, Copland & Burns, 2011) or as a medium of instruction (Hamid, Nguyen, & Baldauf, 2014). It has been nearly two decades since ‘the third wave’ of early language learning policies occurred in the late 1990s (Johnstone, 2009). However, this scholarship has placed emphasis mainly on English in particular regions such as Asia (see Spolsky & Moon, 2012), leaving us with little knowledge regarding the practice and outcomes of policies on other world languages, including French, German, Arabic, Mandarin and Spanish.

To date, there has been no volume that compiles studies on early foreign language policies from across the world including the regions of Africa, Europe, the Americas and the Pacific. Furthering the debates on early language policies worldwide is not only timely but also significant to understand policy expectations of languages in the new economy and the outcomes of policies. The volume is expected to enhance scholarship on early language learning and inform policymaking at the global level.

We have had contributors for a number of languages and countries, but we still welcome chapter proposals/abstracts (500 words) from scholars focusing on early second/foreign language learning policies on the following languages:
1. English in any country in South America (1 chapter proposal)
2. French in any country in the Caribbean or the Pacific (1 chapter proposal)
3. Arabic in any country worldwide except Bangladesh (1 chapter proposal)
4. Chinese/Mandarin in any country or region worldwide except the Oceania (1 chapter proposal)

Please note that although we expect contributors to situate their discussion within the local linguistic ecology, we do not accept proposals on first early language learning. For example, we do not accept proposals on Arabic when it is spoken as a first language in any country in the Middle East, but we welcome those on Arabic in countries where the language is spoken as a second or foreign language.

Research-based and review-based proposals are welcome; and so are sole and co-authored proposals. Please use the APA 6th Edition for your proposal format and references. There are no publishing fees associated with this publication.

Your proposal needs to employ Baldauf & Kaplan’s (2005) framework of language-in-education policy goals to analyse the policy context and make relevant recommendations in any of the following areas: 1) Access policy (e.g. starting age, length of instruction); 2) Community policy; 3) Resources policy; 4) Curriculum policy; 5) Methodology policy; 6) Materials policy; 7) Personnel policy (e.g. teacher recruitment, teacher education); 8) Evaluation policy.

Please submit your proposals to us (m.zein@uq.edu.au and m.hamid@uq.edu.au) by 30 September 2017. Notification of acceptance will be made on 15 October 2017. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you very much, and we look forward to receiving your proposals.

Kind regards,

Subhan Zein and M. Obaid Hamid
School of Education, The University of Queensland, Australia

Subhan Zein, PhD teaches at School of Education, the University of Queensland, Australia. His articles have appeared in Applied Linguistics Review, Professional Development in Education, Journal of Education for Teaching: International Research and Pedagogy, among others; while his co-edited volumes will be published by Routledge and Multilingual Matters. He is Editor-in-Chief of Language Education in Asia.

M. Obaid Hamid, PhD is a Senior Lecturer in TESOL Education at the University of Queensland, Australia. His research focuses on the policy and practice of TESOL education in developing societies. He is Co-editor of Language planning for medium of instruction in Asia (Routledge, 2014). He is on the editorial board of Current Issues in Language Planning, English Teaching Practice and Critique and Journal of Asia TEFL and on the Advisory Board of Language Education in Asia.

References
Baldauf, R. B. Jr., & Kaplan, R. B. (2005). Language-in-education policy and planning. In E. Hinkel (Ed.), Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning (pp. 1013-1034). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Enever, J., Moon, J., & Raman, U. (Eds.). (2009). Young learner English language policy and implementation: International perspectives. Reading: Garnet Education.
Garton, S., Copland, F., & Burns, A. (2011). Investigating global practices in Teaching English to Young Learners. ELT Research Papers 11-01. London: British Council.
Hamid, M. O., Nguyen, H. T. M., & Baldauf Jr, R. B. (Eds.), Language planning for medium of instruction in Asia. Abingdon, Oxon, United Kingdom: Routledge.
Johnstone, R. (2009). An early start: What are the key conditions for generalized success? In J. Enever, J. Moon, & U. Raman (Eds.), Young Learner English Language Policy and Implementation: International Perspectives (pp. 31-41). Reading, the UK: Garnet Education.
Spolsky, B. & Moon, Y-I. (2012). Primary school English language education in Asia: From policy to practice. New York, the USA: Routledge.