This paper describes a case study of language development in rural Papua New Guinea, in which parents felt the local school was not meeting the educational needs of their children. In this case study, the local, national and global narratives concerning use of the vernacular in education were apparent in the negotiation leading to an apparent consensus to start a vernacular-only preschool. However, several years later the preschool had ceased to operate. The case study illustrates the complexity and fluidity of language development decisions, as located within a mix of narratives, types of capital, "symbolic violence" and the cultural value of social harmony.