This volume focuses on a case where community organizing, academic research and governmental responsibility were successfully mobilized and synchronized to bring about change in educational policy and practice. The focus of this book is the methodology implemented and the results obtained over the course of a year-long action research project on language and education in St. Eustatius, one of the islands of the Dutch Caribbean, commissioned by the educational authorities in both St. Eustatius and the European Netherlands. On the island, the language of instruction is Dutch, however, outside of the classroom most students only speak English and an English-lexifier Creole. The research project was set up to address the negative impact on school success of this disparity. It included a community-based sociolinguistic study that actively involved all of the stakeholders in the education system on the island. This was complemented by a multi-pronged set of research strategies, includinga language attitude and use survey, a narrative proficiency test, in depth interviews, and a review of the relevant literature. The resulting report and recommendations were accepted by the government, which is now in the process of changing the language of instruction.

Meets the need for a text on the complex interfaces and dynamic interplay between theory and practice, policy and implementation, research and fieldwork, government and community Demonstrates how community based action research can be carried out with successful results both in terms of robust findings and effective community mobilization Provides insights into the political, linguistic and cultural dynamics of bilingual and multilingual communities in relation to educational policy Suggests effective ways to get beyond the sterile debates and frustrating impasses that plague postcolonial public policy initiatives Highlights the agency of community members in identifying, analyzing and solving problems related to education, public policy, and governance

Inhalt
Introduction.- Community Based Research in Postcolonial Communities.- Project Background: Language Policy and Language Endangerment in the Caribbean: The Language of Instruction in Statia 2012-2014.- Literature Review, Survey, Narrative Proficiency Test, Focus Group Sessions, Interviews and Classroom Observations.- The Recommendations: Reactions and Impementation.- Conclusions.- Literature.