Critical discourse analysis of policy contexts and documents has been employed in this research to analyze the role of language in promoting normative positions affecting the quality of education in Cambodia and Laos. The article examines the ways institutional normative influences at multiple levels within the Education for All (EFA) program have influenced education policies in aid-receiving countries. This includes "harmonization" processes through which policies are formed and promulgated, and some implications for national ownership and the quality of education in relation to these processes. (Contains 4 tables and 4 footnotes.)