Humanizing diversity implies telling authentic stories of learners and teachers from marginalized backgrounds and sharing the best practices educators have employed to meet diverse needs. Humanizing marginalized learners and teachers is a first and necessary step toward realizing equity and inclusion in education and beyond.
Empowering learners and teachers begins with giving the marginalized a voice in the planning and delivery of curricula. Decision making in education should be driven by the actual experiences and needs expressed in complexly dynamic classrooms.
Empowerment cannot be endowed at the discretion of those in power. Empowerment is derived from the actions and decisions taken by the marginalized.
Fostering agency must therefore remain a primary objective of 21st-Century language education. Students must develop competencies and strategies which permit them to take an active role in their education. Teachers must emerge as change agents within their profession and within society.
Language teaching has always been about
raising awareness. Traditionally, the focus was on raising linguistic awareness. Gradually, it was recognized that cultural awareness is equally essential to becoming an effective communicator with additional languages. In the 21st Century, we must also work toward raising critical awareness, that is, the ability to recognize, question, and subvert all practices which result in the oppression or marginalization of learners and their teachers.
Translanguaging has become a well-established concept in applied linguistics. Research has demonstrated that languages are not stored and recalled independently of one another in the human mind, but that they are intricately intertwined within a unitary linguistic repertoire. Yet, educational policy and practices tend to adhere to outdated monolingual models which forbid the use of additional languages in the classroom and during high-stakes assessments. We must challenge the “monolingual myth” and the “native speaker bias” at every turn. This also entails a recognition of the intrinsic value and abilities of non-native English speaker teachers (NNESTs) and the role of English as a lingua franca (ELF).
Perhaps no educational subject is better equipped for
highlighting democracy in the classroom than ours, as it provides a safe space where different cultures and languages interact and the marginalized are encouraged to speak up and speak out. Unfortunately, education has also become a prime target of anti-democratic misinformation, rhetoric, and policies. In addition to teaching communication skills, we are increasingly called on to teach toward ideals such as social justice, civic engagement, media literacy, and inclusion.
Motivating learners is the key to their empowerment, equitable treatment, and inclusion. It could therefore be argued that engaging learners is the core task of language teachers. However, in our focus on learner motivation, we often neglect teacher motivation. Given the burden society places on the shoulders of teachers in the 21st Century, we are at risk of fatigue and burnout. Teacher wellness should become a priority and our core mission should shift to
engaging learners and teachers.
Realizing DEI objectives necessitates
advocating for learners and teachers. In many contexts, those who enjoy power and privilege in educational systems and throughout society must advocate for the marginalized, at least initially. But the marginalized must ultimately feel empowered to invoke their agency and voice.
Reflecting on practices is fundamental in education. Given the complexity of societies and classrooms nowadays, it is crucial to reflect not only on what works and does not work in the classroom, but also on 21st-Centry educational objectives and our changing roles in society. Now, more than ever, we must engage in introspection and actively participate in communities of practice. We must engage current trends in research and take a leading role in closing the gap with practice. The 21st-Century teacher must be a reflective practitioner and teacher researcher at once.
Each of the objectives outlined above constitute an element of transformative education, the goal of which is
transforming perspectives. If we want to construct a more equitable and inclusive world, we must first motivate and empower individuals who take informed, evidence-based decisions and actions. Developing plurilingual literacy and oracy skills is essential, but teachers and learners also need to learn to empathize with others and collaborate in diverse teams to solve complex problems. Transformation starts with educational practices, but when done right, it can quickly evolve into educational and political reform.
The organising committee is particularly interested in submissions which explore these and related themes in connection with current and emergent trends in TESOL, including the ways in which
technology, digital literacies, online learning, artificial intelligence, early language learning, teacher education, professional associations, and content and language integrated learning (CLIL) can help transform perspectives and realize DEI objectives.
