1-1: LANGUAGE binds SCHOOLING
Language is at the heart of everything that happens in schools. It connects learners and teachers, shapes how knowledge and values are shared, and holds together the social and intellectual life of education. Every part of schooling, from curriculum design to classroom talk, assessment, and reflection, depends on language as its central organising force. Through language, learning assumes a structured form, becomes collective, and acquires meaning.
Within the ERL Framework, language has a truly central place. It is not treated as just one element of education, but as the foundation on which the entire educational experience rests, encompassing institutions, subjects, and cultures, as well as individual aspects such as thinking, identity, and emotion. Language links cognition with communication, personal growth with social participation, and theory with practice.
This perspective informs the two-tier ERL model and its eight key strands, which collectively examine how language permeates every layer of education. Through these strands, the ERL Association studies how language shapes learning environments, supports inclusion, and influences both knowledge and identity.
The phrase âLanguage binds schoolingâ captures the ERL core belief: education can only happen through language, and it becomes significant when we recognise, explore, and value the binding role that language plays.