Decolonial approach to the intercultural bilingual curriculum:

Abstract

This reflection article is intended to reflect upon the benefits of a decolonial intercultural approach to the EFL curriculum. As interculturality is opposed to multiculturality, a distinction between these two frames is pivotal to cast light upon linguistic colonialism practices and other forms of power-knowledge colonial matrix in some curriculum designs. Interculturality suggests interaction, respect, and recognition among cultures, while multiculturality involves the co-presence of several separated cultures, competing to hegemonize or control other cultures. Although, the former has much more acceptance, the decolonial critique to interculturality might offer a problematization of a widely restrictive view of mainstream interculturality. With awareness of these counterforces, this article discusses how interculturality can be used to decolonize the only English curriculum to give other senses to the bilingual curriculum.

"To be the person who is not the native speaker". Interculturality as empathy in cross-cultural experiences abroad

“…From our understanding, and Zhu's interests, intercultural empathy conveys "the prerequisite and assurance for effective cultural communication" (p. 117). In this sense, there is a considerable ethical and political importance to how we depict the target culture with values that do not belong to ours and therefore making it possible to understand the downfalls and struggles of the studied culture (Soto and Méndez, 2022). In other words, the shift consists in moving from an "ego-logical (individualistic)" to an "eco-logical (contextual and distributed)" position of oneself.…”