The Functions of Multiple Languages in Mealtime Interactions of an Arabic-English speaking family: A Sociolinguistic Approach

This paper discusses the ways in which members of an Arabic-English speaking family under study use language for a variety of social roles and functions during their joint mealtime conversations. The data was collected over a period of 8 months, and subsequently analysed from a sociolinguistic and applied conversation analytic standpoint. The findings indicate that the use and switch between Arabic and English serve to assist parents in socialising their children into specific desired social practices and understandings, in allowing them to reinforce their identities as socialisers, as well as a way for them to communicate emotion to their children. These languages equally serve to assist the children to reinforce their constantly changing identities, to form a connection with their parents, and importantly as a symbolic tool through which they take up their agency in the process of socialisation. The findings also suggest that the constant use of both languages in this everyday mundane activity of joint mealtimes plays an integral role in maintaining the Arabic language as the family’s home or minority language

Arabic complementary schools in England: language and Fundamental British Values

Heritage language education is not included in the national curriculum in England and therefore formal learning and teaching of heritage languages is primarily achieved through complementary schools, which are part-time, community-led and linked to various ethnic and national backgrounds. This study focuses on Arabic complementary schools and explores educational practices for teaching Arabic. The study also explores how pupils and teachers conceptualise, construct and manifest their linguistic and social identity, especially with regard to the context that is informed by the promotion of so-called Fundamental British Values (FBV). Observations are based on data from interviews with pupils, teachers and headteachers from three Arabic complementary schools across England. A qualitative analysis of the data reveals that the schools are strongly commited to tolerance and respect, which are part of the FBV; as well as to inclusivity and community cohesion. The analysis also shows that Arabic plays an important role in the construction of community and linguistic identities in the current political environment of suspicion

Heritage schools: a lens through which we may better understand citizenship and citizenship education.

Heritage schools are part-time community-based educational institutions offering language and cultural education. In this article we recognize that the UK government is keen to promote diverse, enterprising, community-based educational action and, simultaneously, keen to promote a particular values-based national identity. In general terms, we would expect Heritage schools to be supported for their contribution to communities and as an example of enterprise, but they are instead viewed by the government with suspicion. Following introductory comments, the bulk of the article is given over to an identification of and discussion about seven tensions in debates about Heritage schools that illuminate thinking and practice about aspects of citizenship and citizenship education. Our argument is that by considering these tensions we can illuminate the nature of citizenship and character education. We address two fundamental and contextual tensions by looking at general issues of freedom and control in educational policy and the characterization of Heritage schools. We then discuss five other tensions to do with equality, diversity, achievement, language education and finally the teaching and learning of citizenship and character

Using linguistic methods in clinical communication education

Analysis and reflection are important components of clinical communication learning in undergraduate medical education. Current medical consultation models do not provide an effective means to analyze interaction during consultations, compromising a conversational approach to consultations. This paper introduces a conversational analytic framework: The Clin-Com Tool (CCT), drawing on interactional linguistics. Methods: 17 medical students and six communication tutors took part in an educational intervention. A mixed-methods evaluation was conducted to compare 1) participants’ abilities to analyze consultations pre- and post-intervention, and 2) elicit their perspectives of learning and using the CCT. Results: The findings showed an improvement in participants’ analytic skills in the post-intervention test (p<0.044, 95% Confidence Interval). Participants felt that the CCT heightened awareness of interactional features and socio-cultural effects on communication, and provided a systematic approach to analysis using a set of common language. Conclusion: The CCT emphasizes the development of students’ critical ability to judge and act upon the constantly changing interactional communicative situations. It transforms intuitive feelings into systematic and evidence-based analysis of interaction, enabling the development of more strategic and conversational communication with patients. The Tool can become a useful addition to other communication and consultation models used in undergraduate medial education

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Bilingualism and Identity. Spanish at the crossroads with other languages. Mercedes Niño-Murcia and Jason Rothman (eds) (2008)

Book revie

“Ahyaanan I text in English ‘ashaan it’s ashal ”: Language Crisis or Linguistic Development? The Case of How Gulf Arabs Perceive the Future of their Language, Culture, and Identity

Gulf Arabs are perceived as the most advanced of the Arabs in terms of state wealth, living standards, quality of life, education, and literacy levels for both men and women and overall opportunities availed to them by virtue of being citizens. In order for this advancement to have taken place the Gulf had to find a way of educating its people to international standards. One such way was the introduction of English in the education system at all levels and most importantly in higher education. Foreign workers from Europe, America, Canada, and Australia were brought in to assist in this moderni- zation process and the language of common communication became English. After two or three decades, there are now calls to revive Arabic and reduce the ef fect and impact of English, not only in the education system but in the everyday lives of Gulf Arabs, where the use of English in non-formal situations has become the norm. Some quarters are claiming that the Arabic language is at the beginning of its death and soon will have no speakers, if English continues to be promoted over Arabic, in the media, through domestic South Asian maids and nannies, and in the education system

A sociolinguistic study of multilingual talk at mealtimes

PhD thesi

Review: Language and identity: An introduction. Key topics in sociolinguistics, by Edwards, J.

Book review by Fatma Faisal Saad Said

Global economic burden of unmet surgical need for appendicitis

Background There is a substantial gap in provision of adequate surgical care in many low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to identify the economic burden of unmet surgical need for the common condition of appendicitis. Methods Data on the incidence of appendicitis from 170 countries and two different approaches were used to estimate numbers of patients who do not receive surgery: as a fixed proportion of the total unmet surgical need per country (approach 1); and based on country income status (approach 2). Indirect costs with current levels of access and local quality, and those if quality were at the standards of high-income countries, were estimated. A human capital approach was applied, focusing on the economic burden resulting from premature death and absenteeism. Results Excess mortality was 4185 per 100 000 cases of appendicitis using approach 1 and 3448 per 100 000 using approach 2. The economic burden of continuing current levels of access and local quality was US $92 492 million using approach 1 and$73 141 million using approach 2. The economic burden of not providing surgical care to the standards of high-income countries was $95 004 million using approach 1 and$75 666 million using approach 2. The largest share of these costs resulted from premature death (97.7 per cent) and lack of access (97.0 per cent) in contrast to lack of quality. Conclusion For a comparatively non-complex emergency condition such as appendicitis, increasing access to care should be prioritized. Although improving quality of care should not be neglected, increasing provision of care at current standards could reduce societal costs substantially