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'Language of the Enemy': Foreign Language Education and National Identity
- Source :
-
International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism . 2003 6(5):313-331. - Publication Year :
- 2003
-
Abstract
- The focus of the present paper is on the relationship between national identities and foreign-language education policies and practices. The paper examines this relationship through a juxtaposition of three sociohistoric contexts in which sociopolitical events led to major changes in foreign-language education: post-World War I United States, post-World War II Soviet Union, and post-communist Eastern Europe. On the example of these case studies, it is argued that shifts in national identity images and sociopolitical allegiances have implications for foreign-language policies and practices. It is also argued that foreign-language learners may choose to construct oppositional identities in language classrooms: some, for patriotic reasons, may reject the languages imposed on them, while others may instead reject the dominant national identity and create an alternative one through the means of a foreign language.
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1367-0050
- Volume :
- 6
- Issue :
- 5
- Database :
- ERIC
- Journal :
- International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- EJ789495
- Document Type :
- Journal Articles<br />Reports - Research