Revitalization of indigenous languages and cultures: critical review of preschool bilingual educational policies in Chile (2007-2016)

Abstract

Public education policies governing language revitalization and the teaching of indigenous languages have been in place for more than 20 years in Chile. In this journey, there has been considerable progress nationwide in the education of a generation of children in an intercultural socio-educational environment. However, there still exist challenges for ongoing progress towards specific goals, such as bilingualism in children. Bilingual education policies in Chile have focused mainly on 6-13-year-old children, relegating preschool education (0-6 years), one of the most relevant educational levels in the socio-linguistic revival process, to a secondary role. In this context, we examine top-down official policy documents regarding intercultural education in early childhood, developed between 2007 and 2016. Attempting to identify some of the main foci of the language policies that may influence the implementation in preschools, we present an intertextual and critical language policy analysis of these documents used in intercultural and bilingual preschools. In doing so, we compare the consistencies and locate the implicit inconsistencies in the policy positions on bilingual education in preschools. We conclude the article by outlining suggestions for languages policies and teacher education in Chile, and the possible implications for other countries.