Med ede , Alexei; G o lüschen, Anke
Supe di e se and mul ilingual, bu s ill languageless. How unconscious and
unin ended aciolinguis ic a i udes in school-based pa en ca és can
co-p omo e exclusion
Eu opean jou nal o Resea ch on he Educa ion and Lea ning o Adul s 16 (2025) 3, S. 339-353
Quellenangabe/ Re e ence:
Med ede , Alexei; G o lüschen, Anke: Supe di e se and mul ilingual, bu s ill languageless. How
unconscious and unin ended aciolinguis ic a i udes in school-based pa en ca és can co-p omo e
exclusion - In: Eu opean jou nal o Resea ch on he Educa ion and Lea ning o Adul s 16 (2025) 3, S.
339-353 - URN: u n:nbn:de:0111-pedocs-344446 - DOI: 10.25656/01:34444;
10.3384/ ela.2000-7426.5895
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Eu opean Jou nal o Resea ch on he Educa ion and Lea ning o Adul s, Vol. 16, No. 3, 2025,
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ISSN 2000-7426
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www. ela.ep.liu.se
Supe di e se and mul ilingual, bu s ill languageless: How
unconscious and unin ended aciolinguis ic a i udes in school-
based pa en ca és can co-p omo e exclusion
Alexei Med ede
Uni e si y o Hambu g / KWB e. V., Ge many ([email p o ec ed])
Anke G o lüschen
Uni e si y o Hambu g, Ge many ([email p o ec ed])
Abs ac
I is widely emphasized ha he e a e exis ing gaps be ween pa en s who unde s and
hemsel es as esiden s and pa en s who a e posi ioned as immig an s o e en
‘pe pe ual o eigne s’. This quali a i e s udy illus a es how unconscious and
unin ended aciolinguis ic a i udes posi ion some g oups o pa en s and keep hem
excluded despi e he p og amma ic idea o school-based pa en ca és, legi imized by
go e nmen al s a egies o be e inclusion. The heo ies o aciolinguicism and
monolingual habi us a e u he explo ed o unde s and in e wined mechanisms o
c ea ing g oups. The analysis was planned and ca ied ou using he G ounded Theo y
based on in e iews. As he main indings, i is a gued ha Ge man is unde s ood as he
language ha lea es pa en s wi h ano he i s language languageless wi h no o jus
limi ed communica ion skills. In ce ain school- ela ed con ex s, he monolingual
habi us o Ge man can be eplaced by ano he dominan language. The s udy also
showcases he phenomenon o (sel )o he ing ha can occu unin endedly in pa en
ca és.
Keywo ds:
school pa en ca és, aciolinguicism, monolingual habi us, mig an pa en s,
pe pe ual o eigne s
[340] Med ede & G o lüschen
In oduc ion
Mig an s become mo e di e se, e en supe di e se, i.e., he easons o mig a ion, legal
and social s a us o immig an s, hei languages, belie s, and eligions a y
subs an ially. A he same ime, socie ies wi h immig an in lux also (ha e) become
supe -di e se ega ding hese ac o s (Ve o ec, 2024). Na ional go e nmen s o he
ecei ing socie ies apply s a egies and ins umen s o manage his de elopmen . This is
especially ele an o educa ion, bo h o adul s and o child en. One o hese
ins umen s is called he school-based pa en ca é. The in en ion and p og am o pa en
ca és aim a in eg a ing di e se popula ions (Med ede , 2020). Pa en ca és a e a well-
es ablished pa o adul educa ion, educa ional au ho i ies usually und hem, and hey
o e in o mal opening hou s (Med ede , in p ess). In ou case, a public adul educa ion
aining ins i u ion egula ly o e s cou ses o pa en s o become ‘men o s’. These
men o s a e he pa en s who s a pa en ca és in hei child en's schools and un hem.
In he opening hou s, ained men o s ypically o e counselling on he educa ional
sys em and lea ning oppo uni ies o child en in he neighbou hood. The isi o s a e
less expe ienced pa en s, new o he school o neighbou hood, o hose sea ching o
become men o s hemsel es. Men o s in he ca és also o e lea ning oppo uni ies o
adul s, e.g., on cooking in e na ional cuisines. Some use es i e days o in e cul u al
ac i i ies, and o he s o e ips o places o in e es in he ci ies (Med ede , in p ess).
Many coun ies ha e simila amily lea ning1 p og ams and conside hem pa o he
Adul Basic Educa ion sys em (Desja dins, 2017).
Howe e , a well-o ganized p og am and good in en ions ega ding he
acknowledgemen o a supe di e se socie y do no always end up in no malizing his
u ban supe di e si y. Schola s poin o long-las ing gaps be ween g oups who
unde s and hemsel es as esiden s and g oups who a e posi ioned as immig an s. This
p ocess builds on collec i e acial knowledge (Te kessidis, 1998). Se e al ac o s play a
ole in his p ocess. Denying a legal s a us wi h o mal igh s ( o wo k and o e) keeps
immig an s a he ma gins o socie ies as well as ou o (adul ) educa ion (Heinemann,
2014). On he o he hand, educa ion ep oduces powe ela ions, e.g., by ep oducing
acism (Doğmuș e al., 2022) and a monolingual habi us (Gogolin, 1994). This o en
happens wi hou ull in en ion (El-Ma aalani, 2021). Racialisa ion and linguicism
(Heinemann & Di im, 2016) in e sec subs an ially in he educa ional sec o because,
since he es ablishmen o na ion-s a es, one dominan language has been conside ed
cons i u ional o a s a e (Gogolin, 1994). The es ablishmen o his language akes
place ia he educa ional sys em (Gogolin, 1994) and is ep oduced in in eg a ion
cou ses o adul s (Heinemann & Sa abi, 2020). O e all, linguis ic p ac ices as well as
acializa ion play a undamen al ole in keeping immig an s in a s a us o pe pe ual
o eigne s (Wu, 2023), e en hough go e nmen ac i i ies (like he es ablishmen o
school-based pa en ca és) y o in es in be e in eg a ion. The e o e, his a icle
ocuses on how aciolinguis ic a i udes can be exp essed, also wi h no in en ion. The
basis o he analysis is in e iews wi h pa en s, eache s, and social pedagogues who
un school-based pa en ca es, conduc ed in 2023 in Hambu g.
The pape s a s wi h a heo e ical lens ega ding linguis ic di e si y wi hin he
la ge amewo k o Bou dieu’s heo y o habi us. Building on his, a sho li e a u e
e iew e eals ha pa en ca és ep oduce powe ela ions in many ways. The esea ch
ques ion na ows he ocus o school-based pa en ca és. Fo he main s udy, a
quali a i e empi ical app oach wi h an open-ended me hodological app oach was
chosen, based on G ounded Theo y (Glase and S auss 2010), including coding
p ocedu es (S auss and Co bin 1996). 18 quali a i e in e iews o m he basis o an
Supe di e se and mul ilingual, bu s ill languageless [341]
induc i e g ounded heo y-based analysis. Some GTM-gene a ed codes ha did no
ma ch he ini ial esea ch ques ion, bu seemed ele an , ha e no ye been published.
The au ho s discussed hese codes and sea ched o heo y. Especially he aciolingius ic
heo y helped unde s and he ambigui y, sha pen he esea ch ques ion, and iden i y new
seman ic connec ions in he p io collec ed ma e ial. Findings a e p esen ed in h ee
main ca ego ies: Ge man as a me apho o human language, Al e na i e linguae ancae,
and Racolinguis ic dep o iling. The discussion sugges s ha mig an s a e kep pe pe ual
o eign because monolingualism domina es he discou se.
Theo e ical app oaches: F om monolingual habi us o linguicism and
aciolinguicism
Pionee ing heo ies on language and educa ion, especially Gogolin (1994) ha e buil on
Pie e Bou dieu’s app oach o explaining how Language con ibu es o he ep oduc ion
o powe (Bou dieu, 1991). Bou dieu shows how languages, as well as ypes o speech,
dis inguish be ween social classes, and how he o mali y o w i ing s abilizes hese
powe ela ions. In he mid-nine ies, in a e y ea ly phase o educa ional esea ch on
mig a ion in Ge many, Gogolin (1994) connec ed he concep o habi us o language
di e si y and immig a ion. Gogolin’s esea ch wi h school eache s shows ha eache s
do no know abou he na ion-building p ocess and unde s and Ge man as he only
ele an language wi hin and abo e educa ion. This p ocess o o ge ing he his o ical
de elopmen and he p ocess o playing ou powe ela ions wi hou e lec ed in en ions
o do so a e co e cha ac e is ics o wha Bou dieu calls habi us (Wi po h, 2004).
Gogolin hus summa izes he indings in he e m o a monolingual habi us o eache s
and in schools. Today, as he e m habi us has become common in educa ional esea ch,
he concep o a monolingual habi us is easy o unde s and and apply. Bu e- eading
Gogolin’s monog aph calls o mind ha mig a ion was seen as a mino i y issue in he
educa ional discussion, ma ginalized as some hing only necessa y du ing a empo a y
mig a ion c isis (Gogolin 1994), which would no need any a en ion a e he so-called
c isis in he 1990s anymo e. I is an un inished p ocess owa ds unde s anding Ge many
as an immig a ion coun y, o see mig a ion and linguis ic di e si y as an ongoing
p ocess, and o build subs an ial capaci ies o educa ional and in e disciplina y
mig a ion esea ch. Ne e heless, some seemingly long-discussed issues a e being
( e-)disco e ed by g oups pleading o a conse a i e o e en igh -wing socie al u n.
Linguis ic concep s, o en also buil on Bou dieu’s heo y, inspi e his esea ch in many
ways (Pille , 2016). A mo e ecen discou se now in e e es wi h he discussion o
linguis ic di e si y. The ea ly discou se on acial knowledge (Te kessidis, 1998),
pe sonal and s uc u al iolence, and acism (Hall, 2008) was modi ied and b oadened,
e.g., as unin en ional acism (El-Ma aalani, 2021).
Pos -colonial heo ies in e wine wi h linguis ic and educa ional heo ies in many
ways (Akbaba & Heinemann, 2023; Dusi & Addi-Raccah, 2025). These heo ies
inse ed he e m o he ing (Said, 1978) in o he educa ional discou se. Fo his a icle,
o he ing is unde s ood as a p ocess o cons uc ing an au och honous g oup as no mal
and ha o disc imina ing popula ions ha do no ma ch he c i e ia o no mali y as
o he s. The concep is also applied o popula ions wi hin coun ies (Jansson, 2017) as
well as o be ween-coun y o he ing p ocesses on a global scale (G o lüschen &
Buddebe g, 2020). Mo eo e , he o he ing p ocess also occu s as sel -o he ing
(Med ede , in p ess).
[342] Med ede & G o lüschen
Wi hin his discussion, ea ly no ions o linguicism (Heinemann & Di im, 2016) as
language-based acism we e econside ed (Akbaba, 2024). Linguicism disc imina es
agains languages by unde s anding some as mo e p es igious and o he s as less so. The
au ho s o his pape also unde s and he non-accep ance o g amma ically o
phone ically impe ec use o language in e e yday communica ion as disc imina ion.
Fu he mo e, esea ch shows ha eache s do no accep (play ul) mul ilingual mix u es
o dialec and in o mal egis e s wi hin a school ha hey unde s and monolingually.
Thus, language ecei es ull alida ion when i is used wi hou accen and dialec , and
any mis akes in g amma and spelling (Akbaba, 2024).
This ela es o in e na ional discou ses on aciolinguicism, ha esona e wi h
educa ional esea ch and poin o he acism ha lies wi hin linguicism: Flo es and Rosa
(2015, 2023) as well as Rosa and Flo es (2017, 2020) build on esea ch ega ding
educa ion, employmen , legal ep esen a ion, asylum, ci izenship, and mig a ion and
conclude based on hei e iew: ‘Linguis ic classi ica ions and p ocedu es can exclude
acialized popula ions om access o oppo uni ies and esou ces’ (Rosa & Flo es,
2017, p. 630)
The aciolinguis ic pe spec i e (Rosa & Flo es, 2020) is conside ed in his pape as
a p ecise ins umen o igu e ou how acisms play ou and how his ep oduces a s a us
as languageless o eigne s, e en when go e nmen p og ams come wi h he bes
in en ions. Rosa and Flo es’ app oach poin s o ambigui ies in s uc u es and p ac ices:
‘While on one le el his aming o he issue celeb a es mul icul u alism and
mul ilingualism, on ano he le el i is p emised on modi ying he beha io s o acialized
popula ions in ways ha obscu e how whi e sup emacy s uc u es hese popula ions’
expe iences and socie al posi ionali ies’ (Flo es & Rosa, 2015, p. 149 ).
As ou esea ch builds on in as uc u e ha acco ding o i s p og amming has been
es ablished o os e a be e ep esen a ion o all pa en s in schools h ough pa en
ca és, his app oach allows a deepe unde s anding and ques ioning ‘how s uc u es o
p i ilege and powe a e ep oduced o dis up ed h ough such p og amming’ (Rosa &
Flo es, 2017, p. 640).
One o he mechanisms ha keeps people in a mino i y posi ion is unde s ood as
asc ibing a o m o languagelessness (Rosa, 2019) ha disc imina es agains e e y
o he language han he monolingually dominan one as i ele an and as non-language.
Fo his a icle, we use he app oach o a monolingual habi us as he b oades and mos
in luen ial concep . We also use he ca ego ies o (sel )o he ing and aciolinguicism as a
ame o a deepe analysis o he language- ela ed ca ego ies de i ed om he main
s udy (Med ede , in p ess) ha deal wi h he ques ion how does he p ac ice o he
school pa en ca és add ess he an icipa ed supe di e si y o he a ge g oups and he
pe cei ed di e si y o he pa icipan s, and wha decisions does his en ail. The
addi ional in-dep h s udy can be p esen ed in and h ough he ollowing h ee main
ca ego ies: Ge man as a me apho o human language, Languages o ‘majo mino i ies’
as al e na i e linguae ancae, and Raciolinguis ic dep o iling.
Li e a u e e iew: Pa en ca és be ween empowe men and
ma ginaliza ion
Pa en ing is seen as pa o li elong and li ewide lea ning (Aa sand, 2014). Many adul
educa ion cen e s o e pa en o amily educa ion (Mallows, 2008). In adul educa ion,
‘ca és’ a e a me apho o lea ning oppo uni ies ha do no equi e o mal en olmen
( ega ding he cha ac e is ics o a ca é: Med ede , 2013). Adul lea ning and educa ion

Supe di e se and mul ilingual, bu s ill languageless [343]
hus can ake place in lea ning ca és, pa en ca és o school-based pa en ca és. The
hemes a y:
 Lea ning ca és may o e language lea ning oppo uni ies o es - ake s o o e
a a ie y o hemes wi hin adul basic educa ion (G o lüschen, 2025)
 Pa en ca és can ocus mo e on pa en ing, e.g., ega ding he changing oles o
pa en s (Fai clo h, 2023) o he shi o esponsibili y be ween s a e and he
indi idual (Oelke s, 2012) bu also add ess school- ela ed hemes (Hacks ein e
al., 2023)
 School-based pa en ca és aim a school-pa en co-ope a ion and o e
ec ea ional and social ac i i ies (Med ede , 2020)
Lea ning ca é se ings ha can also add ess pa en s a e no mally loca ed in and un by
non-school ins i u ions. In his way, school-based pa en ca és a e a e y speci ic
example o an adul -lea ning o ma placed in a school con ex . Some empi ical s udies
ha build on school-based pa en ca és a e p esen ed in his li e a u e e iew.
Pa en ca és p o ide oppo uni ies o alk and ask o ad ice, bu also o e cooking,
spo s, o sewing e en s (Hacks ein e al., 2023). The ca és se e as cen es o
in o ma ion, e.g., on ins i u ions o child en and you h in he a ea. The pa en s who
o ganize he ca es ha e a mul iplie and communica o unc ion in hei communi ies
and back in o he schools (Hacks ein e al., 2023; see also Med ede , 2020). Howe e ,
ca es epo ha ew pa en s egula ly pa icipa e (Hacks ein e al., 2023). I can be
assumed ha hey o m an in-g oup o mul iplie s who y o keep he ca é open o he
neighbou hood. Pa en s and pa en ca és a e also seen as a acili a ing s uc u e o
inclusi e educa ion (Schuppene e al., 2023).
As pa o a compila ion on powe ela ions ega ding he coope a ion o pa en s
and schools, Dean (2021) claims ha schools label some pa en s as di icul o each,
bu ha hese pa en s eel empowe ed and ein o ced in school-based pa en ca és. On
he o he hand, Dean shows how o mal pa en boa ds a e domina ed by p i ileged
pa en s so ha bo h pa en g oups ind hemsel es in a compe i i e ela ionship wi h
each o he . The nego ia ions be ween hese g oups e eal unequal powe ela ions wi h
dep i ileged pa en g oups expe iencing acism and classism (Dean 2021, simila
indings: Med ede , 2020). This is no a singula expe ience, as acism in Ge man
schools has been discussed o qui e a while (Doğmuș e al., 2022).
O e all, his li e a u e sugges s ha school-based pa en ca és a e o ganized o
empowe and in eg a e (linguis ically) di e se amilies. The quali a i e s udies we ind
also show con incingly, ha acism, classism, and o e all powe ela ions ha e al eady
been indica ed wi hin school and pa en co-ope a ion. Theo ies o powe ep oduc ion,
monolingual habi us, linguicism, and aciolinguis ics a gue ha exis ing powe ela ions
a e (sub ly) s abilized e en hough go e nmen p og ams a e ins alled o o e come
hem. This leads o he esea ch ques ion o how possible unconscious and unin ended
aciolinguis ic a i udes in school-based pa en ca és co-p omo e exclusion.
Me hods and da a
Alexei Med ede has been wo king as a p ac i ione o o e 10 yea s and, he e o e, is
well-es ablished wi hin his in as uc u e. A he same ime, Au ho 1 belongs o a
uni e si y esea ch g oup led by Anke G o lüschen. This double posi ioning equi es a
high e lec ion o he esea che 's ole ega ding possible biases and p io knowledge
[344] Med ede & G o lüschen
cons ain s de i ed om being a p ac i ione in he ield o a long ime. Be o e he da a
collec ion s a ed, e hical clea ance was ob ained om he school au ho i y. The
acul y’s doc o al commi ee app o ed he esea ch design. Besides, he coding p ocess
and he analysis s eps we e discussed and alida ed by a esea ch colloquium o a
pos g adua e school o he same acul y.
Da a we e collec ed ia a la ge in as uc u e o school-based pa en ca és
(he ea e : SPC) in Hambu g. A ha poin , 50 schools ook pa in he Schulmen o en
p ojec , 40 o which we e ac i e in pa en educa ion. 64% o hese schools (n=32) ha e
o ha e had a pa en ca é, 10% o o he schools (n=5) s a e ha hey a e planning one.
This means ha 74% o all schools (n=37) ha e deal wi h he opic o pa en ca és.
All he schools pa icipa ing in he Schulmen o en p ojec we e eached ou o, 18
o hem ga e a posi i e esponse. So, he ull sample consis s o 18 in e iews wi h 47
pa icipan s (45 emale, 2 male). The eams esponsible o he pa en ca és - school
s a membe s ( eache s o social pedagogues) and olun ee pa en men o s - we e
in e iewed using p oblem-cen ed in e iews (PCI). 17 in e iews ook place in pe son
be ween Sep embe and No embe 2023 in Hambu g in schools and in one case in an
ou -o -school enue. The language o he in e iews was Ge man. The linguis ic and
unc ional composi ion o he in e iewees was as ollows: 21 in e iewees spoke
Ge man as hei i s language, 26 as a second language. 25 pa en s in hei unc ion as
pa en men o s and 22 school s a membe s ( eache s and social pedagogues) we e
in e iewed. Fo he momen o he s udy, all he in e iewees we e in ol ed in he
managemen o hei school’s pa en ca é.
All in e iews ha e been eco ded, au o- ansc ibed, manually e ised,
anonymized, and app o ed by all he pa icipan s. The analysis was planned and ca ied
ou using he G ounded Theo y (S auss & Co bin, 1996). The quali a i e in e iew
p o ocol was de eloped in an open mode o allow o induc i e analyses.
The main pa o he s udy was submi ed o publica ion (Med ede , in p ess).
Wi hin he ull coding and publica ion p ocess, i became ob ious ha he e a e many
mo e ele an aspec s o acism, s e eo ypes, and linguis ic exclusion le ou o he
co e age o he main s udy. These aspec s we e ully coded, bu because hey did no
belong o he ini ial esea ch ques ion, hey we e pu aside o a new in-dep h analysis
ha is p esen ed in his a icle. This analysis builds on he heo ies o acism and
linguicism (see abo e). The ini ial codes ‘O he ing’, ‘Sel -o he ing’, ‘P og amma ic’,
‘Challenging pa icipan s’, ‘Linguis ic p ac ices’, ‘Supposed knowledge abou non-
pa icipan s’, and ‘Pe cei ed he e ogenei y’ we e elabo a ed anew. New seman ic
connec ions we e iden i ied.
Findings: How he s a us o being o e e o eign is p oduced
The mos impo an indings o his s udy can be summa ised in h ee hema ic blocks:
Ge man as a me apho o human language, Languages o ‘majo mino i ies’ as
al e na i e linguae ancae, and Raciolinguis ic dep o iling.
Ge man as a me apho o human language
Se e al ecu ing pa e ns in he in e iews e eal p esumably unconscious and
unin ended monolingual habi ual a i udes. The concep o ‘a language’ is consis en ly
equa ed wi h he idea o speaking ‘ he Ge man language’. By saying someone is no
speaking ‘ he language’ he in e iewees p obably do no mean he pa en s would no
Supe di e se and mul ilingual, bu s ill languageless [345]
ha e any command o any language. Howe e , by pe pe ua ing i , he Ge man language
is epea edly conside ed he only ele an language (which mi o s a monolingual
habi us). The in e iewees (in e iews#1, 8, 9, 14) seem o o ge abou he
mul ilingualism o he pa en s, some imes hei command o di e en sc ip sys ems
like A abic and Cy illic, hei e o s o manage hei child en’s language skills. Ge man
becomes a me apho o ‘ he language’. I pa en s do no speak (enough) Ge man, any
o he language compe ence is made in isible. This happens because in he in e iews on
a symbolic and me apho ical le el, Ge man, as one o he languages spoken oday is
made in o he human language pe se: In he s a emen s, he assessmen o he pa en s'
(supposed) Ge man compe ence(s) becomes a judgmen on he (in)abili y o pa ial
abili y o human speech pa excellence. This can be obse ed in many in e iew
passages (see below). A pos -colonial in e p e a ion o his inding e e s o wha Rosa
and Flo es (2017) call ‘longs anding acialized ideologies o languagelessness’ (p. 624).
Th ee le els o his subjec i e-symbolic languagelessness can be dis inguished.
The mos adical le el implies ha pa en s who do no speak o unde s and Ge man,
alias ‘ he language’, would be a he languageless han mul ilingual, because o he
languages han Ge man a e made in isible, as his quo e o a pa en olun ee exp esses:
‘I doesn' ma e ha he language is no he e. Ne e heless, hey [pa en s who don’
speak Ge man] can do some hing o he school and o he pupils. And I hink ha 's
some hing e y impo an ’ (in e iew#9, i ems2 13, 17, 26, 61-64, see also in e iew#1,
i em 16 in e iew#8, i em 37; in e iew#14, i em, 35).
Al hough he second le el o languagelessness acknowledges ha he pa en s speak
some Ge man, i.e. ‘ he language’, i emphasizes language de ici s ha ake he o m o
‘some’, ‘many’, ‘se e al’, ‘ ela i ely high’ ‘linguis ic ba ie s’ (in e iew#1, i em 16;
in e iew#6, i em 59; in e iew#12, i em 23), ‘comp ehension ba ie s’ (in e iew#14,
i em 54) ‘pe haps language di icul ies’ (in e iew#17, i em 13), ‘language p oblems’
(in e iew#17, i em 32) and would he e o e possibly impai communica ion in he
SPC:
I we know ha someone is coming who is no so p o icien in he language, ha we can
ha e someone come in o ansla e and all so s o hings, because ha 's jus ...many
people don' know ha he pa en s come o school and a e in eg a ed. (in e iew#15, i em
21)
I pa en s ‘wi h language ba ie s’ da e o speak Ge man, i.e. ‘ he language’, a school,
he e was a isk ha hei language skills would be ‘judged’ (in e iew#12, i em 43) by
o he pa en s o ha hey e en migh be ‘laughed a ’ (in e iew#6, i em 59).
The hi d le el o linguis ic de- ecogni ion quali ies s ongly de eloped Ge man
compe ence(s) o pa en s wi h a i s language o he han Ge man a he as an
excep ional si ua ion, which only conceals he de icien iew: ‘We o e ed Ge man
cou ses. I emembe , o example, ha in hose eigh yea s, he mo he s, who ha e a
mig an backg ound bu s ill speak Ge man e y well, augh Ge man o each o he .
Wha a g ea hing!’ (in e iew#5, i em 50). As a signi ican con as , a quo e om
ano he in e iew can be ci ed he e, which also a es s ha language de ici s o pa en s
wi h Ge man as hei i s language a e he excep ion a he han he ule: ‘[...] I e en
ha e Ge man pa en s ha I ca e o who a e illi e a e, who can' ead he ma ks a all bu
would ne e say so. And hen o cou se hey a e a aid’ (in e iew#1, i em 44).
E en i he p og amma ic o he indi idual SPCs sounds posi i e a i s glance, o
example by announcing a no ion o c ea e ‘a b oad linguis ic base’ (in e iew #1, i em
35) o ‘ o de elop some hing in he ield o language’ (in e iew #14, i em 50), such a
[346] Med ede & G o lüschen
posi i e agenda can also con ain exclusiona y aces ha shape a biased iew o he
a ge g oups and la e he pa icipan s: ‘We don' jus p o ide linguis ic suppo , e en i
you can also speak he language bu need suppo om a mum o dad, hen we a e also
esponsible o ha ’ (in e iew #8, i em 20, see also in e iew#1, i em 16;
in e iew#17, i em 13).
The hesis o he monolingual habi us o he Ge man school is con i med se e al
imes in he in e iews, in ha a dicho omous s uc u e o Ge man s. o he languages is
epea edly e iden , which is well exp essed in his quo e, o example:
Well, we speak Ge man in he g oup. Bu we ha e a ew op ions, and i has also happened
ha pa en s who ha e ound each o he ha e hen spoken some hing in hei language. I
was also he case ha (...) ha didn' bo he hem. I was kind o like, well, i one o hem
didn' unde s and some hing, he o he mum would ell hem. So, i was qui e pleasan so
a . (in e iew#12, i em 40, see also in e iew#1, i em 35; in e iew#6, i em 60;
in e iew#8, i em 11; in e iew#18, i em 26)
This pa e n is ypical and epea ed o en. I shows ha he in e iewees s ick o
Ge man. They see mul ilingual p ac ices as an auxilia y cons uc o he pa en s and
accep i . Howe e , he in e iewees aim o communica e monolingually.
Ano he in e iew p o ides conc e e compensa o y app oaches ha , on he one
hand, con ibu e di ec ly o language suppo o pa en s, bu a he same ime
emphasize he language de ici s o Ge man lea ne s who s ill speak ‘b oken Ge man’
and ancho he s a us o Ge man in i s educa ional language a ian e en mo e i mly as
a no ma i e (language) educa ion goal: ‘Yes, in he Ge man language, he e is plen y o
p o e bs and all hese images and me apho s. And i you can jus d op some hing like
ha , as someone who is a Ge man lea ne , i 's pe cei ed e y di e en ly’ (in e iew#6,
i em 22). The p ese a ion o he monolingual habi us is no only jus i ied by he
in en ion o p omo e language, as shown abo e wi h he example o p o e bs bu is also
p oblema ized as a esou ce issue: ‘[...] mul ilingual design. I is simply eno mously
ime-consuming, especially when we ha e o make e e y single in i a ion’
(in e iew#6, i em 61). Ne e heless, i would be p esump uous o claim ha he
monolingual habi us conce ning Ge man emains cons an o solely dominan in he
SPC.
Languages o ‘majo mino i ies’ as al e na i e linguae ancae
The image o he dicho omous posi ioning o Ge man as he hegemonic language in he
school sys em s. o he languages desc ibed abo e equi es wo addi ions in he con ex
o he s udy conduc ed.
Fi s ly, his posi ioning does no e eal nei he language hie a chies no language
compe i ion ela ing o he languages as a whole in he in e iews3. Fo example,
English o o he languages o he global No h don’ domina e and a e no alued
di e en ly om he languages o o igin o he la ges pa en communi ies. The
in e iews end o show ha because o gen i ica ion and he inc easing supe di e si y
in he neighbou hoods, new indi idual pa en s o pa en g oups wi h addi ional
languages a e being added ha we e no p e iously ep esen ed in he SPC, e en hough
hese languages may belong o he global playe s:
I don' know why o he immig an s ha e joined. (...) Appa en ly, se e al o he coun ies
ha e been added, such as Po ugal. Spanish, which we didn' ha e, is now a ailable and
he pa en s also come o he pa en s' ca é. (...) Today we had ou Spanish-speaking
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