Perceptions of and attitudes towards varieties and languages at Austrian schools

Data will be collected in secondary modern (Neue Mittelschule, NMS) and vocational schools (Berufsbildende Schulen, BM/HS) in rural and urban areas of different Austrian provinces: 1) questionnaire and 2) interviews; 3) group discussions on multilingualism, individual ratings on records of students’ speech. Processing of data for analysis; analysis of linguistic biographies and of perceptions and attitudes of teachers in relation to their own linguistic behaviour. Testing of impact on defined variables (e.g. area, school type, gender. Triangulation of different types of data. Analysis of the interdependencies between (self-) assessment of linguistic biographies, perceptions of standard and other language varieties as well as of the attitudes towards these varieties in L1 (and L2). Investigation of: 1) (mono-, bi-, multilingual) teachers’ and students’ perceptions of standard and non-standard; 2) their evaluation of code switching and mixing between languages as well as between varieties; 3) the influence of such evaluations on teachers’ and students’ assessments of ‘acceptable’ language use in and outside (i.e. in peer groups etc.) the classroom.