In this polylog to the special issue on "The rise of Chinese language education policies in the oil-rich Arabian Gulf: New players, discourses and linguistic markets," three researchers with different personal and professional connections to the three languages 'at play' in the region -- English, Chinese, and Arabic -- offer their…

This paper explores the intersection of neoliberal ideologies and language policy in the context of Chinese language education in Oman's higher education system. Drawing on critical discourse analysis and theoretical frameworks of neoliberalism, the study investigates the introduction of Chinese language programmes within Omani universities, with…

This reflective article examines the emerging tendencies in critical perspectives within English Language Teaching (ELT). The article begins by providing a brief historical overview of ELT's critical pedagogies and discussing its perspectives in the post-pandemic era. It highlights the need for critical approaches that address power dynamics,…

This point of departure offers several provocations for languages education in the higher education sector. From our standpoint as world language educators working in Australia and New Zealand, we trace universalising claims about languages through coloniality and the attendant ideology of monolingualism. We then consider the emancipatory…

An increasing number of studies have demonstrated how language textbooks serve as an arena for ideological reproduction. Following the theory of language ideology, this paper aims to examine the ideological representation of English in a textbook targeting Chinese university students in China. Data were subjected to content analysis and critical…

Critical pedagogy as an instructional approach to teaching and learning focuses on democracy, freedom, and the opportunity to challenge oppressive power structures founded upon hegemonic ideologies. This article presents a critical pedagogy approach to support the instruction of adult English language learners. Such an approach should adopt the…

This study problematizes English language teaching departments (ELT) in Turkey that have ignored the importance of radical pedagogy, the history of British colonialism and neoliberalism in the curriculum because Orientalist, Occidentalist and neoliberal discourses have led to the exclusion of critical discourses in ELT in Turkey. Therefore, the…

This study analyzes the impact that U.S. curricula have on Mexican transnational returnees. Specifically, this article focuses on the ideological development of the army and imperialism promoted in U.S. schools among Mexican populations. Using a framework that combines critical literacies, transnationalism, and Bourdieu's concepts of…

English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers and students are often pressured to use generic, globally published textbooks featuring 'inner-circle' social realities. While some studies look at specific instances of content that socially marginalizes their intended audiences, few attempt comprehensive examinations of the multimodal ensembles on…

The field of English language teaching (ELT) has long centred whiteness without acknowledging as much. Practitioners accept the field's racial disparities under the guise of the search for profit, yet hegemonic whiteness controls our institutions, our curricula, and our pedagogy unless we, as members of this field, consciously seek to counteract…

Choosing which additional language to include in national curricula and when to begin teaching it are important educational policy decisions. The current study aims to provide a contextually embedded picture of such policymaking process in the Iranian context. More specifically, the study is intended to explain the agency mechanism of different…

As a neoliberally-driven test, China's postgraduate entrance exam is gaining an increasing attention nationwide due to the intense competition in the local market and the dramatic size of Chinese students taking the exam. Under the neoliberal mechanism, Chinese candidates are ideologically self-regulated and emotionally-driven to mobilize their…

This study explores the interplay of nationalism and English Language Teaching (ELT) classroom practices, as reported in 11 interviews with ELT educators in various locations (e.g., United States, Serbia, France, and Saudi Arabia). The study approach is informed by theories of discursive nationalism which interpret nations and nationalized things…

This study critically examines the discursive reconstruction of ethnic hierarchies in English language textbooks used in public schools in post-conflict Sri Lanka. Set against a social and political backdrop of larger nation state-building and national reconciliation taking place in Sri Lanka after it ended a three-decade ethnic conflict, this…

This paper identifies the issues of internal orientalism that are reproduced at a micro level within Pakistan because of English linguistic imperialism. The unequal education system engenders attitudes of English supremacy. Orientalism supports global divisions East and West wherein the former is subservient to the latter. This division is…