The problem of ‘choice’ and the construction of the demand for English in Cambodia

Clayton, Stephen ORCID: 0000-0003-2823-1495 (2008) The problem of ‘choice’ and the construction of the demand for English in Cambodia. Language Policy, 7 (2). pp. 143-164.

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Abstract

This paper uses Cambodia as a case study to problematise the notion of choice in the spread of English. I explore specific historical contexts which were central to the construction of the demand for English and English language teaching (ELT) in Cambodia. The actions of a range of external agencies resulted in the close discursive articulation of English with Cambodia's 'reconstruction and development' which was constructed along broadly neo-liberal lines. Alternative models of development were not considered, thus language alternatives were similarly ignored. One language alternative, a programme of mass literacy, was largely ignored, leaving the majority of Cambodians functionally illiterate. I conclude by arguing that the use of 'choice' in language choice theories as a form of agency often masks the fact that choice is a marker of socio-economic and political privilege. © 2008 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	Published online: 7 May 2008. Issue: June, 2008. Title page added by Research Archive team.
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Cambodia, development and reconstruction, English, ELT, international aid, language choice, language policy, language spread theories
Subjects:	?? H1 ?? ?? JV ?? ?? HM ??
Divisions:	Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Law and Social Justice
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	24 Jan 2011 14:43
Last Modified:	16 Dec 2022 04:33
DOI:	10.1007/s10993-008-9084-9
Publisher's Statement :	© Springer Science +Business Media B.V. 2008. This article was first published in Clayton, Stephen (2008) The problem of ‘choice’ and the construction of the demand for English in Cambodia. Language Policy, 7 (2), pp. 143-164. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10993-008-9084-9 . The final publication is available at www.springerlink.com.
Related URLs:	Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/1045