Quadrilingual education in Singapore: Pedagogical innovation in language education (Book review)

Abstract

Quadrilingual education in Singapore edited by Rita Elaine Silver and Wendy D. Bokhorst-Heng offers a comprehensive overview of Singapore’s quadrilingual approach to language education. Four official languages are present in the Singaporean context: English, Chinese, Tamil and Malay. The main language of instruction is English and students are required to choose one of the three mother tongue languages (MTLs) to study. Even though the description of Singapore’s language-in-education policy as quadrilingual may appear misleading (since students study two languages not four), it is commonly accepted because the four languages are considered official and are equal constituents of Singapore’s language policy. Each chapter in this volume explores one or more of the four languages with a particular focus on classroom pedagogy. By exploring empirical studies from language classrooms around Singapore, this book provides a rich understanding of how Singapore’s language-in-education policy is shaped by its linguistic, educational, cultural, economic and political environment.