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Australian applied linguistics

Its distinctive contribution from an international perspective

 | SOAS University of London
ORCiD logo with link | University of Warwick
Published online: 30 September 2025
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/aral.25028.pau
Abstract
As a general feature, applied linguistics work in Australia has been characterized by a strong focus on multilingualism. This focus reflects the way the discipline was formed in Australia, growing out of an intersection of in multilingualism, language policy, and language education, which has given work in Australia a different profile from applied linguistics in many other places in the world, where English and foreign language teaching was the main catalyst. The early inclusion of a focus on multilingualism has given Australian applied linguistics a unique character that has played a significant role in broadening the spectrum of the discipline around the world. In this contribution we will document the main aspects of this applied focus on multilingualism, including the close collaboration not only with families and ethnic and indigenous communities, ethnic and indigenous communities but also with local and national authorities around issues of language maintenance, shift, loss, and revitalization. Australia has also made a distinctive contribution in the field of language education. This contribution can be seen in two main areas: policy and practice. The policy contribution began especially with the process of developing of the National Policy on Languages in 1987. This early work on language policy focused on the process and contribution of the policy, which was viewed as a unique achievement for an Anglophone country. However, as the policy was dismantled, a more critical language policy scholarship emerged. The contribution to practice is more diverse with strong scholarship in community languages education, foreign/second language education and language assessment, all of which are characterized by a strong focus on addressing the diversity of languages in education.
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • Discovering applied linguistics in Australia: Our personal views
  • Multilingualism as a keystone of applied linguistics in Australia
    • Language maintenance and shift: Processes and factors in migrant communities
    • Linguistic diversity and vitality on a national scale: Census data and large surveys on languages
    • Multilingualism: From research to practice
    • Indigenous languages and applied linguistics in Australia
  • Language policy and language education
    • Language policy studies
    • Language education studies
  • Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
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