Sociolinguistics and Language Education.pdf

390 Part 5: Language and Identity
varieties, learners of languages such as Japanese may value nonstandardized
dialects over prescribed forms, or they may choose not to raise their
pitch to a ‘normative’ level (Ohara, 2001, forthcoming). These identity
choices can be interpreted negatively by teachers, particularly those who
only value students’ efforts when they come close to the prescriptive
norms for the ‘standard’ version of the target language. However, given
the reality of dialect diversity and gender identity diversity (also present
among L1 speakers), it is important to allow for a greater range of expressive
choices in language learning contexts. This may be achieved through
providing more materials on language diversity and gender identity to
pre-service and in-service language teachers through teacher training. Of
course, teachers also need to ensure that their students are making
informed choices, and that they are able to consider the ramifi cations of
their choices when interacting with speakers who may or may not appreciate
how they have chosen to gender identify in their L2.
At the level of curriculum planning, gender discourses can also become
a topic of exploration and activities in classrooms. In fact, asking students
to make comparisons between L1 and L2 gender identities is compatible
with intercultural pedagogy, an approach to teaching culture and cultural
differences developed by Michael Byram and his colleagues for over a
decade (e.g. Byram, 1997; Byram et al., 2001; Byram & Zarate, 1995).
Intercultural pedagogy strives to raise intercultural awareness (ICA)
among learners with regard to similarities and differences among their
fi rst and second cultures. Rather than simply comparing and contrasting,
however, which is often how multiculturalism is brought into classrooms,
ICA involves refl ecting on why one’s L1 or home culture is the way it is
and trying to make sense of how and why it differs with the L2 or new
culture. Through ICA, learners practice their ability to relativize their own
value systems, beliefs and behaviors and to develop the ability to see their
own cultures from the perspective an outsider might have. While ICA has
not focused specifi cally on gender in an extensive way, it does provide an
approach that could easily be applied to gender identities. Through journal
entries, role plays, and small-group discussions, gender identity in
one’s L1 and L2 might be explored as a way for learners to refl ect on their
lived experiences and to try to obtain outsider perspectives on their own
L1 gender identities. Some learners’ thoughts about their L1 and L2 gender
identities may be quite personal, as was the case with Piller and Takahashi’s
(2006) study, and so any language learning tasks or activities would need
to take into account learners’ willingness to speak or write about these
topics, and their comfort level with the other members of the class.
Another way that teachers can tackle the important role of gender discourses
in their own classrooms is to employ critical pedagogy approaches.
Though there are many defi nitions of critical pedagogy, it is generally
understood as a teaching approach that helps students to question and
critique power relations and which has as its goal a social and educational