"You Have Better Status if You Speak English": Learning English in Postcolonial Ghana and the United States

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 16
  In Roundtable Session: Fostering Multilingualism and Empowered Identities Within Contexts of English Hegemony

Abstract

This qualitative study explored the English literacy experiences outside the classroom of six adult immigrant women enrolled in English as a Second Language (ESL) programs in the US and Ghana. Grounded in critical sociocultural theory, within- and cross-case analysis of field notes and interviews found these women had high levels of awareness of the privileges associated with English literacy and deliberately invested in English Discourse communities outside the ESL classroom. However, their postcolonial sensibilities constructed multiple linguistic identities and engaged in bilingual literacy practices within these English Discourse communities. This simultaneous dynamic towards language maintenance and second language acquisition underscores the importance of supporting rather than replacing learners’ languages and building partnerships across Discourse communities to support language learning efforts.

Authors

• Josephine Amoakoh, University of Utah

• Veronica E. Valdez, University of Utah