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In England one of the key national determinates is English monolingualism which is reflected in an English-only educational system. Drawing on the framework of legitimate discursive practices and languages (Nic Craith, 2000) English is perceived as the language of government and power and awarded legitimacy, while languages spoken by minority groups have no official legitimacy and are not recognised as legitimate languages for learning or schooling. Thus, schools are potential sites of contestation for issues of structure and agency around language diversity where linguistic minority learners construct their languages in their social and discursive practices. This paper explores how bilingual children manage their cultural and linguistic capital (Bourdieu, 1977) by colluding with, and contesting, the structures of language and power in school (Martin-Jones & Heller, 1996). An important gender perspective emerges in the children's discursive strategies in constructing languages in school.
