Language policy, technologization, and English ideologies in Brazilian public schools

a critical analysis of three programs in Paraná

Resumen

English is the only modern foreign language included in national and state basic education curricula (BNCC/CREP) and is considered an essential tool for the internationalization of Paraná’s public education system. Moreover, these educational policies emphasize the use of digital technologies in language learning contexts. In this sense, the present study is justified by our professional engagement as English language professors involved in teacher education. The aim of this paper is to investigate discursive constructions of English and digital technologies in three language policies implemented within Paraná’s public education system. More specifically, this small-scale study seeks to identify how proposals within these language policies are operationalized by language management at the secondary school and university levels. Adopting a qualitative approach grounded in Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), the study examines how ideologies surrounding the English language and discourses of technologization are constructed in three language education programs, with particular attention to the ideologies underpinning these policies and the role attributed to technology in their implementation. Through a literature review and document analysis, this study focuses on three state language policies: Paraná Fala Inglês, Ganhando o Mundo, and Inglês Paraná. These programs are analyzed in light of theoretical perspectives on language policy, linguistic ideologies, and discourses of technology. The findings suggest that these policies reinforce native-speakerist discourses and emphasize technology as a means of addressing perceived deficiencies in language teaching. In the case of Paraná Fala Inglês, English is discursively framed as a strategic resource for institutional advancement and academic competitiveness. Ganhando o Mundo operates through a meritocratic logic that reduces student value to quantifiable outcomes—such as standardized test scores—to justify substantial investment in a limited group of participants. Finally, Inglês Paraná relies heavily on platform-based instruction, frequently marginalizing local teachers in favor of pre-packaged digital “solutions.” Overall, these programs operate within a modernization logic that intertwines the prestige of English with digital transformation, often at the expense of democratic participation, critical pedagogy, and educational equity. Although presented as inclusive and transformative, these policies risk reinforcing social inequalities, narrowing conceptions of English, and displacing locally grounded teaching practices.