AbstractThis chapter provides a critical perspective on the Internet-mediated intercultural projects presented in this volume. Internet-mediated intercultural
foreign language education (a.k.a. telecollaboration) is presented as a site of critical intercultural discourse shaped and mediated by the technologies, ideologies, and practices that inform the complex ecology of foreign language education in general.The focus on the global term “education” is intended to conceptualize the ecological character of the endeavor, such that foreign language
learning and second language acquisition are not viewed as separate
from the teaching of foreign languages (i.e., instruction, pedagogy, curriculum)
or from issues of sociocultural identity, educational policy, and teacher
education. A critical reflexivity is outlined with special attention to the educational project of critical awareness of language, culture, community, and identity through intercultural interaction with peers. Some key ideologies of foreign language education are examined in socio-historical context with respect to the technologies and ideologies of standardization that have constructed
the Native Standard Language as the dominant model for language,
with its hegemonic implications for notions of culture, identity, and community in local, national, and global contexts. Ideologies of learner identity
grounded in the concept of (Non)Native Speaker are critically discussed as
contested sites of standardized and standardizing competence and language use (e.g.,“communication,”“negotiation,”“interaction,” and “error”).The possibilitie for new intercultural conceptions of learner and teacher identity, expertise, and agency emerging in the telecollaborative practices described in this volume are considered.
Works published here are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.