Volume 1, Issue 2 August 2018, pp. 64–82 
Regular Articles
An essay on internationalism in foreign language education
Michael Byram 
1
1 Durham University, United Kingdom 
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29140/ice.v1n2.54
Abstract
This essay is an attempt to introduce into the discourse of Foreign Language Education the concept and phenomenon of internationalism. It begins with an analysis of the ways in which education systems promote nationalism and "national citizenship," and suggests that an internationalist perspective would enrich this tradition in education. It continues with a discussion of the concept and the historical phenomenon of internationalism in its various forms, and the values it incorporates. Some approaches to defining notions of "global citizenship" and their limitations are identified and the essay then argues that internationalism offers a more comprehensive basis on which to build "global," "cosmopolitan" or other concepts of citizenship. This is then the foundation for presenting a way of thinking about Foreign Language Education as a means of promoting internationalism, which is illustrated by examples from recent practice. The essay ends with some thoughts about future directions in which the internationalist educational purposes of Foreign Language Education might be further realised.
Copyright
© Michael Byram
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Suggested citation
Byram, M. (2018). An essay on internationalism in foreign language education. Intercultural Communication Education, 1(2), 64–82. https://doi.org/10.29140/ice.v1n2.54
Related Articles:
Incorporating hypnotic suggestion into teacher education programs
Farshad Ghasemi
Australian Journal of Applied Linguistics Published: 31 December, 2019, Volume 2(3), 83–103.
What makes students speak Japanese in immersion programs?
Kumiko Katayama, Kayoko Hashimoto
Australian Journal of Applied Linguistics Published: 31 December, 2019, Volume 2(3), 104–120.
Voicing the academy
Davina Allison
Australian Journal of Applied Linguistics Published: 31 December, 2018, Volume 1(3), 102–117.
Theory of Mind development and narrative writing: A longitudinal study
Birgitta E. Svensson
Australian Journal of Applied Linguistics Published: 31 December, 2018, Volume 1(3), 118–134.
Incidental vocabulary learning through watching movies
Robert John Ashcroft, Joseph Garner, Oliver Hadingham
Australian Journal of Applied Linguistics Published: 31 December, 2018, Volume 1(3), 135–147.
The Council of Europe Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture:
Ideological refractions, othering and obedient politics
Ashley Simpson, Fred Dervin
Intercultural Communication Education Published: 20 December, 2019, Volume 2(3), 102–119.
"I don't want to be stereotypical, but..."
Norwegian EFL learners' awareness of and willingness to challenge visual stereotypes
Cecilie Waallann Brown
Intercultural Communication Education Published: 20 December, 2019, Volume 2(3), 120–141.
(Re)imagining a course in language and intercultural communication for the 21st century
Adriana Raquel Diaz, Paul J. Moore
Intercultural Communication Education Published: 29 December, 2018, Volume 1(3), 83–99.
Critical intercultural communication education: cultural analysis and pedagogical applications
Sofia A. Koutlaki, Zohreh R. Eslami
Intercultural Communication Education Published: 29 December, 2018, Volume 1(3), 100–109.
Advancing intercultural learning in world language education: Recent developments in pre-service teacher education in the U.S.
Paula Garrett-Rucks
Intercultural Communication Education Published: 29 December, 2018, Volume 1(3), 110–122.
