Multilinguality, education and harmony

Language conceptualised as multilinguality is constitutive of being human and may be a potential site for negotiating conflict and exploring paths of harmony in education. In various domains of activity, most people would rather see ‘a language’ as a homogeneous, pure and standard pairing of a lexicon and syntax. There is substantial evidence to show that human linguistic behaviour is marked by fluidity rather than rigid compartmentalisation. More and more scholars working on the interface between language, education and social justice have started looking at the fluid nature of language. In recent years, several proposals have also been made for pedagogies rooted in multilinguality. This paper attempts to contribute to the discourse of conceptualising ‘language’ and ‘multilingualism’ in alternative ways; it also examines how this alternative conceptualisation can become a resource in education.