Language Policy as Practice: Advancing the Empirical Turn in Language Policy Research

This edited book brings together original contributions from scholars working across Language Policy and Planning to advance the recent 'Empirical turn' that has taken place in the field. All the chapters in the volume show how Language Policy can be conceptualized 'as practice' in a variety of domains, ranging from the home to the workplace, schools, and higher education. The authors also suggest further theoretical, methodological, and empirical developments for the discipline in light of this epistemological shift. A Foreword and an Afterword shed light on the theoretical and empirical lineage of this volume and show how this book contributes to the humanization of Language Policy research. This book will be of interest to scholars and post-graduate students working across Language Policy and Planning, Language in Education Policy, and Family Language Policy, as well as those in adjacent fields including Education Policy, Classroom Discourse, Linguistic Anthropology, Sociology of Education, and Multilingualism.

Table of Contents:
Foreword.- Chapter 1 – Introducing Language Policy as Practice.- Part 1 – Theoretical Developments.- Chapter 2 - Towards an Understanding of the Dynamic Nature of Practiced Language Policies.- Chapter 3 - Pedagogy and Practiced Language Policies: The Case of Mandarin Language Teaching In Scottish Primary Schools.- Chapter 4 - What and Why of Equity for Whom and Where. Analytical Engagement With Languaging Promises-in-Policy and Policy-as-Participation.- Part 2 – Methodological Innovations.- Chapter 5 - Negotiating Language Choice in a Multilingual University: The Interplay between Formal Policies and Language Policy as Practice.- Chapter 6 - The Body and Practiced Language Policies in EMI and CLIL Classrooms.- Chapter 7 - A Multimodal Analysis of Language Policy as Practice: The Case of Two English Medium Schools in Bangladesh.- Part 3 – Empirical Explorations.- Chapter 8 - Practiced Language Policy in FLP Research.- Chapter 9 The Emergence of Language Policy as Practice  in Transient Social Configurations.- Afterword or Commentary.

About the Author :
Florence Bonacina-Pugh is a Lecturer in Language Education in the Moray House School of Education and Sport at the University of Edinburgh, UK. She is also the co-founder and co-chair of the Language Policy Special Interest Group of the British Association of Applied Linguistics. She co-chairs the Language Policy Forum, an international event that gathers language policy scholars and language policy makers annually.

Review :
"Language Policy as Practice: Advancing the Empirical Turn in Language Policy, explores situated linguistic choices as a fertile site for the invocation, formation and rejection of linguistic norms. ... it gives a thorough and clearly written account of contemporary empirical approaches to language policy research. ... the volume will naturally meet the interests of language policy scholars, but should also be recommended reading to students, teachers ... working in the field or in other areas of socio- and applied linguistics." (Erin McInerney and Christine Hélot, Language Policy, Vol. 24 (3), September, 2025) "This volume, while insightful in its exploration of practiced language policy, might leave some readers wanting more in terms of practical application. It would be valuable for future volumes to build upon these theoretical discussions and empirical findings by offering more concrete solutions or practical guidance for policymakers, educators, and practitioners." (Alia Amir, Language Problems and Language Planning, May 23, 2025)