English in Nordic Universities

“At a time when the roles of universities are changing and there is tension between the dominant ideology of internationalization (and thus often Englishization) and the desire to preserve national languages as languages of scholarship and education, there is need for a scholarly, readable and measured account of how ideology and actual practice match (or do not) in higher education. This important book fills that need. It provides an in-depth understanding of the relationship between international and national ideologies and practices in the use of languages in Nordic universities. Its relevance extends far beyond the Nordic countries, and is essential reading for all caught up in this era of the internationalization of higher education.”

“This book is a timely antidote to those may maintain that handling language is a simple phenomenon in higher education. The book will be of great value to both those who take an ‘internationalist’ stance, and those who argue for strengthening the ‘nationalist’ underpinning of higher education. Concepts that risk being inadequately thought through, such as domain and ideology, are discussed in depth by the contributors. The contributors from five Nordic countries display a wide range of approaches to higher education ideology and to the application of language and educational policy in practice. The book will prove of much value to policymakers and practitioners elsewhere in Europe and beyond.”

“[T]he volume is a very welcome addition to the field of language studies in higher education, and it will be an indispensable source of reference to authors working in this area. Because of the relevance of the topics discussed in all papers, it should also be appealing to university policymakers and officials who, in all likelihood, will find the discussions in these chapters highly pertinent to their professional endeavors.”

“Englishization is a global phenomenon. This volume presents a multi-faceted approach to the subject by establishing a dialogue, [...], between ideologies and practices. The volume would be of interest to a great variety of students and researchers: those currently conducting research in the phenomenon will encounter sound, up-to-date findings; those involved with other topics within the field will benefit from a varied and balanced collection of papers that use different data sources, methods, and analytical approaches.”