DIVERSITY IN ENGLISH TEACHING: DECOLONIZING PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICES

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Abstract Summary

This communication aims to discuss how the teaching of English, crossed by diversity toward emancipation (Freire, 1970), decolonization (Walsh, 2010), can question the status quo that has been presented in the English textbooks in Brazil. This work is grounded in a decolonial perspective that emphasizes the continuous struggle and survival, against the colonial matrix of power, in all its dimensions, imposed on subaltern and invisible groups (Walsh, 2010; Mignolo, 2017; Santos, 2021). The decolonial perspective promotes the detachment of colonial structures, contributing to the revisiting of the historical events of the past, which implies the recognition of multiple voices coexisting at the same time-space (Walsh, 2010). In this sense, English language teaching can be achieved by a more robust contingent, aiming at being and acting in a more democratic and inclusive way in the contemporary world. In this work, the focus is on images and selected statements from English textbooks that enable teacher and student's interaction considering the multiculturalism (Candau, 2020) of the modern world. The communication seeks to bring cultural diversity as an element in educational and social formation so that new realities are (re)constructed.

Submission ID :

AILA324

Submission Type

Oral Presentation

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[SYMP32] English teaching in contemporary neoliberal framework: narratives that merge or split?

Argument :

Contemporary narratives, especially in social networks and in the discourse of some governments and institutions, dialogue with reductionist and oppressive conceptions in language teaching, since individualities are silenced by normative, dogmatic, and colonial standards. Moreover, racism, homophobia, misogyny, control, among other extremist or totalitarian ideologies, permeate much of contemporary social dynamics. As a counterpoint, interventionist and critical-collaborative educational actions, for example, in the teaching of English are central to problematize colonizing practices nowadays. Aligned with the theme of this symposium and, also, with an Applied Linguistics perspective focused on real-world problems, this study discusses more collective, equitable, transformative, and emancipatory issues (Freire, 1970) of teaching English in order to increase possibilities for a more democratic teaching.