With the internationalization of higher education (HE) in recent decades, there has been a growing trend to use English as a medium of instruction even in non-anglophone countries. Additionally, HE globally has witnessed a growing trend to use technology for pedagogical purposes. However, little is known about inclusion issues associated with these two trends, particularly in Asia. Utilising survey questionnaires with teachers (n = 327) and students (n = 5760), interviews with teachers (n = 20), and Padlet discussions (n = 49) and focus groups (n = 75) with students from the four most populous countries in Asia (Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia), the study provides insights into inclusivity in Asian HE. Findings highlight barriers created by the requirements for the English language and technology in entrance tests, digital divides with resulting impacts on students’ learning, and difficulties faced by students in their studies. The paper calls for more research to inform context-sensitive ways to use English and technology.

Since its transportation in the seventeenth century, English has come a long way in Nepal to become the most dominant and most sought‐after language, playing key roles in all aspects of the Nepalese people's lives. This entry provides a historical pretext of how English, first adopted as a foreign language, has become a local language, known as Nepali English. In fact, it has become indispensable in all aspects of life and at par with Nepali, the only official language. As such, its speakers claim that Nepali English deserves more veneration than the term of “foreign” offers. By providing its sociolinguistic and functional analysis, and by drawing from research and notable literature on world Englishes, the entry looks into its evolution and assesses to what extent such a claim is justifiable.

Girls in South Asia are exposed to different forms of social inequality and discriminatory gender norms which create a barrier to their education. Available research suggests that there is a gender divide in the use of digital technology for learning but remains silent about the factors that cause such a divide. This paper presents the role of gender in marginalised schoolchildren's access to and use of technology for learning in Bangladesh and Nepal. A total of 80 students, 8 teachers and 32 parents participated in the study. Multiple methods of data collection (focus group discussions, interviews and classroom observation) were used to ensure that research questions of the study are addressed with sufficient depth. Findings suggest that gender inequality in the use of digital technology persists in the two countries as traditional socio-cultural structures continue to create barriers to girls’ access to technology. Pedagogical implications of the study are discussed.

In a project funded by the British Council, researchers interviewed students, teachers, parents, and schools in marginalised communities across four countries: Bangladesh, Nepal, Senegal and Sudan. They found a growing trend of young people, regardless of their backgrounds, using technology and English to seek information. The findings of the study have been organised into three themes: English language, technology and gender. The research found that English is viewed as crucial for both technology and education. It is thought to help individuals secure better job opportunities and stay connected globally. Technology and English support each other, although not everyone has strong English skills, which can hinder technology use. Students generally have a positive attitude toward technology, believing it aids in learning and job searches. However, challenges such as power outages in schools persist, with the Covid-19 pandemic accelerating the use of mobile phones for learning purposes. Access to devices and networks varied, with some children having their own devices, others borrowing from family members, and some drawing on extended social networks for internet connections. Students sometimes found ways to support their education both in and out of school, for example by borrowing devices from friends. Some had access only at home. Gender differences influence technology access, with girls sometimes having fewer opportunities due to household rules. Parents tend to monitor girls' technology use more closely. Girls and boys also use technology differently, with girls focusing more on research and content sharing, while boys prefer chatting and gaming. It is uncertain if boys have better English learning opportunities than girls. However, teachers perceive girls as more interested in learning English. Additionally, girls often have ambitious goals for their future, potentially driving their enthusiasm for English learning. In summary, the study highlights the interconnectedness of technology and English learning. Ensuring equal access to technology and English learning opportunities, regardless of background or gender, is crucial for promoting inclusive education and skill development in a rapidly evolving digital era.

Disadvantaged young people in low-resource countries are less likely to complete their education or to progress to higher levels, which means that their upward mobility can be severely constrained. Versatile technologies such as smartphones, when combined with an ability to use the English language, can facilitate access to learning resources, thereby helping to support young people's education where the school facilities and local teaching resources are often insufficient and may reinforce existing inequalities. However, technology access and usage vary, and linguistic or other barriers to effective engagement are multifaceted. To gain a deeper understanding of the role of languages and technologies, our research project collected first-hand accounts of the educational experiences of marginalized young people aged 13–15, their parents and teachers in harder-to-reach urban and rural settings, in four low-income countries in Africa and Asia. The research investigated perspectives on the English language and use of technology in education in school and outside of school. Our findings provide original insights into local cultures of technology use and English language use in the context of young people's lived experiences. The paper covers young people's use of English and attitudes toward English alongside other languages in their local settings, and how they are learning with mobile digital devices at school, at home, outdoors, and in the homes of relatives, friends and neighbors. Relationships between languages and technologies are discussed, as well as the sustainability of English- and technology-mediated education in the countries in question, which will have broader applicability in other low-resource settings.

In the last five decades, the Afghans have lived in a war-torn country in which the socio-political conflicts have broken once a powerful land into weak, and uncoordinated sects and segments. Despite the ongoing, volatility, political instability, and uncertainty about their future, a significant portion of Afghans wants peace and change in their educational system. Most people favour peace, reconciliation, and societal reconstruction. Most importantly, they favour educational reform on mother tongue-based multilingual education (MTB-MLE) as a model with English as a neutral language, or the language of escapism. This chapter critically analyses the linguistic landscape of Afghanistan and current constitutional provisions regarding multilingualism in education. Based on the available literature, the chapter analyses its language situation, changing national language policy and practice, and people's willingness to modernise and reform its educational system. By examining how people's attitude towards English has lately changed from largely negative to neutral, it elucidates the changing role of English – how English has become a language of symbolism, motivation/inspiration, escapism, and now of development. It also elucidates how the growing influence of English as the most vigorous and dominant foreign language, and its uneven spread across the country, potentially causes resentment and rift in Afghan society.

Teachers in marginalised communities are known to face numerous challenges that may impact on their classroom practices. However, very little is known about their classroom practices in terms of their use of language and technology. Drawing on data collected in an international research project involving teachers and schoolchildren in several marginalised communities in Bangladesh, Nepal, Senegal and Sudan, the paper reports and reflects on the roles of languages and technology in education from the perspectives of teachers. The research data pertaining to teachers was collected through interviews and classroom observations and analysed through the lens of activity theory. Contradictions emerged between official languages used in class and the need to use local languages to support understanding, communication and discussion. Digital tools for teaching and learning were highly valued but scarce, consequently some teachers filled the gap by using their own digital and financial resources. Despite some challenges using English with students, teachers’ attitudes towards English were positive due to the perceived value of English for employment, access to information and social status. The research contributes to renewed awareness of marginalization and inequity and to promoting inclusivity. It contributes insights directly from communities that have not been studied from the combined perspective of languages and technology use in education. We discuss the implications of the findings for the improvement of pedagogical practices in marginalised communities.

Professional development for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers has gained increasing relevance worldwide. This study reports on issues of Nepalese EFL teachers’ professional development (needs, interests, enablers and barriers). Data from 257 EFL teachers were used to assess and explore these issues. Quantitative data were used to describe the needs, interests and their relationships with the teachers’ socio-demographics; while qualitative data were used for exploring the enablers of and barriers to teacher professional development. More than half of the teachers reported their professional development needs for various instructional skills to be high to very high. Similarly, more than two thirds of the teachers reported their PD interests for all professional development activities to be high to very high. The EFL teachers also highlighted a number of environmental, institutional and personal enabling and challenging factors in pursuing their professional development. This study concludes that Nepalese EFL teachers demonstrated a considerable need of and interest in TPD despite experiencing several types of challenges.

Abstract This article is a pedagogical response to the theoretical and ideological stance which suggests that not all languages are worthy of inclusion in the school curriculum. It argues that, like any other resource, languages can be developed, conserved, and promoted through education. Very often, languages and cultures in contemporary socio-political discourses are referred to as valuable resources of a nation. However, citing a lack of resources and practical relevance, scholars contest the ways and the extent to which these languages should be developed and preserved. This article challenges such a politico-economic stance and recommends that a plurilingual education policy, based on the ground realities of a nation and a linguistic ecology needs to be considered for the development and promotion of languages. Presenting Nepal as a case, the article claims that in its complex linguistic context, plurilingual education is more relevant than bi- and tri-lingual education, and therefore, there is a need for a pedagogical shift in language education. Nepal, a small, multilingual Himalayan nation has embarked upon seeking a new political will and a fresh mandate for developing an inclusive language education policy in the federal system of governance. The federal states are seeking to adopt the three-language education policy with Nepali, English, and one locally chosen language. In a context where there are scores of languages, this policy is flawed for more than one reason. The paper analyses the proposed policy and offers a language education framework with a view to re-engineering plurilingualism at the grassroots level. Based on the relevance of fostering individual as well as societal plurilingualism, and an analysis of related literature, it argues that in the developing socio-political scenario and existing linguistic landscape, the much-hyped three-language education formula will damage the existing linguistic fabric and create further divisions in the Nepalese population.

The article positions mixed-method research (MMR) as a principled complementary research method to the traditional quantitative and qualitative research approaches. By situating MMR in an analysis of some of the common research paradigms, the article presents it as a natural choice in order to complement and cater to the increasingly complex needs of contemporary researchers. It proffers MMR as a flexible and adaptive conceptual framework for designing and conducting mixed methods research in a simplified manner. By explaining fundamental principles and major theoretical tenets of a mixed-methods approach, which involves both quantitative and qualitative data collection in response to research questions, it elucidates several benefits of adopting MMR since it integrates post-positivism as well as interpretivism frameworks. There is abundant literature around this research design aiming to provide researchers an understanding of the approach. Yet there is limited literature that provides illustrative guidance to research novices in comprehending mixed methods, understanding reasons for choosing it, and selecting an appropriate mixed methods design. Based on an analysis of some notable works in the field, this article provides an overview of mixed methods designs, discusses its main types, and explains challenges one can potentially encounter when in using them with a view to assisting early career researchers in particular and other researchers in general.

Online education has been adopted widely to address the educational chaos created by the Covid-19 pandemic. Reports on its constraints and challenges appear daily in the global media. However, accounts of teachers’ and students’ experiences of this abrupt shift in pedagogical modality are conspicuously absent in the available literature. This article reports the findings of a study that explored teachers’ and students’ experiences of online education during the pandemic in the context of higher education in Bangladesh and Nepal. The online survey with 147 students and 76 teachers and interviews with a sub-sample of 17 participants indicate that they adapt the action potentials of the digital artifacts to local contexts and use them in the best possible ways to facilitate their communication and enhance student learning in difficult circumstances. The major challenges and constraints they experience in transitioning to online education include poor network, lack of digital skills, lack of technological support from institutions among others. The study findings indicate some pressing policy, pedagogical and research implications, which are discussed in the final section.

This chapter is jointly written by the three co-editors of this volume. In line with the book's title, "Functional Variations in English: Theoretical Considerations and Practical Challenges", we begin by outlining a theoretical view of functional variation that is in keeping with the work of Ravinder Gargesh, to whom the volume is dedicated. Gargesh works in genre studies, is very active in world Englishes, and is a teacher of English. A key focus of the chapter, and the rationale of the volume as well, is on what Braj Kachru termed as 'the alchemy of English': the idea that English is often an instrument of individual and societal transformation or transmutation, in which various (multi)linguistic components are magically mixed, resulting in a new and precious outcome. The chapter begins by explaining the pluralistic view of English(es) which informs all of the contributions. We carefully outline the similarities and differences between EIL, world Englishes and ELF: paradigms which are viewed here as not competing, but as mutually supportive. We then summarize the important aspects of each chapter, as the book progresses from general perspectives (Part I), to perspectives from outer circle contexts (Part II), views from the expanding circle (Part III), and finally, to the practical pedagogical implications of functional variation (Part IV). As is inherent with a functional outlook on English, we are concerned with how, and for what purposes, English is used around the world. It is hoped that this chapter can provide a synthesis of the complexity, and commonality seen in the various chapters, and act as a guide to the following chapters.