Michael Rabbidge
Hankuk University of Foreign Studies
About
Michael Rabbidge is an assistant professor at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, where he lectures on SLA and other areas related to applied linguistics. His current research interests focus on language identity, translanguaging, language ideology, and language teacher research issues.Sessions
Ideological Shifts and Developing Language Identity in Afghanistan more
Sat, Apr 30, 15:30-Tue, May 31, 23:55 Asia/Seoul
This presentation discusses how dynamic shifts in the global era influenced Afghan’s willingness to invest in learning a new language, and how this investment is tied to issues of ideology, capital, and identity. This qualitative study employed narrative data collection techniques of narrative frames and semi-structured interviews to comprehend the experiences of Afghans who have lived through a relatively prosperous time in Afghanistan’s recent history, yet who also face uncertainty due to sudden shifts in power that threatened the conditions which had allowed them to align themselves with more global ambitions. The participants were selected as they had all graduated with a degree in English, with most gainfully employed because of this degree. Discussions center on how societal power shifts in Afghanistan initially drove investment in learning English and aligned Afghans with western based ideologies and transnational identity positions. It also exposes how recent geopolitical upheaval impacts the perception of this investment and threatens the possibility of participants maintaining their positions as linguistic entrepreneurs.
Ideology Complexes in the South Korean Private Education Sector more
Sun, May 1, 09:00-Tue, May 31, 23:55 Asia/Seoul
The South Korean English education sector is constantly being pulled in different directions by an array of ideological shifts that are both local and global in origin. Although the ideological complexes that interact to create these shifts impact the actions ELT practitioners, they are often left unarticulated in ELT discourses. To better appreciate ideologies surrounding the English language in South Korea, this presentation discusses the beliefs of foreign and South Korean teachers of English who work in private academies. In-depth data was collected through the medium of bio questionnaires, narrative frames, and interviews. Results reveal how both sets of teachers were influenced by a complex of unacknowledged ideologies that included Confucianism, neoliberalism, and globalization. When interpreted through the notions of capital, investment, and identity, findings reveal further implications related to English language teaching practices, students’ developing language identities, and possible changes in the future linguistic policy in the South Korean context.
