In this chapter, I explore how the study of grammatical gender has been a prime example of the impact that boundary crossing can have on the understanding of a phenomenon by creating nuance through the incorporation and juxtaposition of multiple perspectives. In the first section, I start with a description of grammatical gender and its different…

This language classroom article demonstrates how L2 (second language) feature films, through the incorporation of tasks that facilitate comprehension, interpretation, and cultural comparison, can be used at a range of levels to teach students about immigration and other global challenges. While the scaffolding strategies described in the article…

Translanguaging refers to the communicative practices that go between and beyond defined linguistic systems. In language learning, it can be applied by helping learners access their whole linguistic and semiotic repertoires, thus enhancing language acquisition. This paper draws on quantitative data provided by language teachers of both elementary…

Multilingual education and acculturation research share a parallel history of problematic research paradigms that center the majority viewpoint and view minorities through a lens of deficit. This continual pathology of cultural difference has led to the pathologization of minority individuals, and has hampered our efforts to effectively understand…

This paper illustrates how spaces were created for children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds to emotionally engage in traditional Chinese literacy practices in a primary school in Sydney, Australia. The ethnographic data allow insight into how ordinary activities organised around character tracing and writing can…

Disagreement is face-threatening but necessary for teachers to correct errors and prompt learning. However, little research has examined how teachers employ disagreement as feedback, especially from a multimodal perspective. This study investigated the differences in linguistic markers (LMs) and accompanying nonverbal behaviours (NVBs) associated…

In the era of globalization, the English language has been used as a major means of communication, and English language competence has become one of the key goals in the education and training of individuals in different fields. However, it is undeniable that the mere mastery of language cannot fully ensure the success of English users when…

In this article, the authors reflect on the ways research on Virtual Exchange (VE) has had an impact on language education practices and, conversely, areas in which research has been underexplored, misapplied or perhaps even over applied by VE practitioners in formal education settings. Starting from a brief historical overview of VE, the text…

This article provides a theoretical exploration of the connections between critical literacy and symbolic competence with some pedagogical examples from an empirical study. More specifically, we argue that critical literacy can be utilised as an approach to develop symbolic competence, and, by extension, encourage intercultural learning. Our…

Despite the large numbers of Chinese students in Western TESOL and English language teacher (ELT) programs, very little research has been conducted on these students and we know little about their practicum teaching. This qualitative research study addresses this knowledge gap by investigating the student teaching and post-lesson reflections of…

Utilizing a structural equation modeling approach, this article aims to examine the dynamics between Informal Digital Learning of English (IDLE) and Intercultural Competence (ICC). Altogether, 1490 Chinese college students from different types of universities in China answered the self-developed and validated IDLE-ICC questionnaire. The results…

The plurality of the use, users, and forms of English has prompted Global Englishes scholars to advocate the need for English language curricula to more accurately reflect the current sociolinguistic landscape of English and the intercultural nature of contemporary communicative exchanges. However, the scarcity of teaching materials has been…

This article provides practical strategies for language educators to utilize picturebooks in nurturing learners' critical perspectives. It emphasizes the importance of encouraging students to challenge their established viewpoints within the framework of critical multicultural education. By adopting a critical lens when engaging with picturebooks,…

As of 2024, nearly three decades have passed since Bonny Norton introduced the investment model. This bibliometric review analyses research on this model using metadata from 424 publications indexed in the Web of Science database. Employing bibliometric techniques, the study identifies and visually presents significant sources, countries,…

This paper investigates the phenomenon of greeting in English, which can be surprisingly challenging for speakers of other languages, such as Chinese. By 'greeting' we mean the seemingly 'simple' act of choosing conventionalized expressions at the opening of an encounter. Following pilot interviews with Chinese learners of English who reported…