(Be)coming Intercultural Through Critical Reflexivity: The Exploration of Three Black ESOL Teachers’ Life Histories

• In Event: Reclaiming and Negotiating Space and Identity

Abstract

This qualitative case study investigates the life histories of three Black female ESOL teachers to understand their ways of knowing and practicing interculturality in teaching. Drawing on critical interculturality (Dervin et al., 2020) and intersectionality (Collins & Bilge, 2016), I examine the teachers’ narratives on their intercultural experiences that (re)shape their teaching practices and my own interculturality as an Asian scholar. Findings underscore the significance of critical reflexivity, informed by intersectional understandings, in advocating for marginalized ESOL students and their families. However, the teachers lack knowledge and confidence in intercultural language education. The study contributes to our deeper knowledge of interculturality, identifying seven key factors for developing teachers’ critical interculturality and providing implications for future research and teacher education.

Author

• Gyewon Jang, University of Maryland - Baltimore County