The Complexity of Identity and Interaction in Language Education

Bedrettin Yazan editor Ali Fuad Selvi editor Nathanael Rudolph editor

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Multilingual Matters

Published:7th Aug '20

Should be back in stock very soon

This paperback is available in another edition too:

The Complexity of Identity and Interaction in Language Education cover

This book addresses two critical calls pertaining to language education. Firstly, for attention to be paid to the transdisciplinary nature and complexity of learner identity and interaction in the classroom and secondly, for the need to attend to conceptualizations of and approaches to manifestations of (in)equity in the sociohistorical contexts in which they occur. Collectively, the chapters envision classrooms and educational institutions as sites both shaping and shaped by larger (trans)communal negotiations of being and belonging, in which individuals affirm and/or problematize essentialized and idealized nativeness and community membership. The volume, comprised of chapters contributed by a diverse array of researcher-practitioners living, working and/or studying around the globe, is intended to inform, empower and inspire stakeholders in language education to explore, potentially reimagine, and ultimately critically and practically transform, the communities in which they live, work and/or study.

As labels for people and practices proliferate in contemporary scholarship with sometimes inconsistent conceptualizations of language education, this book brings these theories to bear on situated interactions. It transcends disciplinary boundaries by drawing from the wealth of available scholarly resources for interpretation. Thus it provides much-needed clarity on the way these conceptualizations play out for different educational outcomes.

* Suresh Canagarajah, Pennsylvania State University, USA *
Resistant to the vacuous pitfalls of reductionism, this dynamic volume draws from an impressively broad range of contexts and collaborators to scrutinize how identities of tangible substance and complexity are realized as impacting upon the seen and unseen powers and processes within language education. * Damian J. Rivers, Future University Hakodate, Japan *
For educators who are feeling increasingly pushed towards efficiency, speed, and productivity, and therefore often towards limited and reductionist understandings of identity, this volume’s call to focus on complexity is refreshing. The collection of voices from an expansive range of geographical, institutional, and social contexts offers a variety of approaches to considering identity work in the context of our everyday interactions. * Suhanthie Motha, University of Washington, USA *

From a methodological and theoretical perspective, the volume presents a variety of promising approaches for scholars designing studies on these issues, which is one of its primary contributions to a field long dominated by positivist and experimental models of research [...] the volume would be a worthwhile addition to teacher educators’ libraries, a potential text for second language acquisition courses – particularly for those planning to teach at the university and adult levels – and a useful supplemental resource for research-focused applied linguistics courses.

-- Melissa B Hauber-Özer, George Mason University, USA * LINGUIST List 32.21

ISBN: 9781788927413

Dimensions: 234mm x 156mm x 16mm

Weight: 484g

312 pages