Language Ideologies and the Use of Mother Tongues as the Medium of Instruction and Learning in Junior Primary Schools: A Case Study of Parents and Teachers in a Namibian School

In the Namibian education system, teaching in junior primary is supposed to be done learners’ mother tongue. However, there always controversy on adopting a language used as medium of instruction (MoI) due multi-ethnic and multilingualism society. To make matters worse, parents equally cast doubt enrolling their children schools that uses tongue an MoI. Framed within qualitative case-study orientation, this research investigated: parents’ teachers’ ideologies beliefs; factors informed embodied expressed beliefs teachers’; how these dominant belief systems choice general implementation policy school. The study found both teachers harbored monolingual ideological did not only construct perpetuate “English-only” zone but also banished all languages from school premises. Not do findings point hegemonic positioning English minds parents, teachers, principals can lead success, its violation was punishable derogatory manner. concludes that, among others, principals’ were shaped by prevailing hegemony. liberal duality stance policy, decentralization, partly resulted neglect heterogeneity very same purports advocate. recommends raising awareness embracing heteroglossia practices for ministry consider more inclusive policy.