Imagined Communities and Language Socialization Practices in Transnational Space: A Case Study of Two Korean “Study Abroad” Families in the United States

Abstract

This is a yearlong ethnographic case study of 2 study abroad South Korean families' language socialization practices in their home. It explored how these parents', particularly the mothers', future visions of their returning community in South Korea influenced their home language socialization practices. As their future vision, it employed the notion of “imagined communities” (ICs) (Anderson, 1991; Kanno & Norton, 2003; Norton, 2001; Norton & Pavlenko, 2007). The data from interviews and participant observations revealed that these 2 mothers not only created different ICs, but also aligned themselves differently with their ICs. I argue that each family's unique negotiation of multiple memberships among communities they left behind, local ones, and ones they hoped to become part of in the future caused that diversity, which led to their divergent practices and attitudes toward different languages in their home. Furthermore, having membership renewal as the main goal in their IC, these families strived to maximize their language learning opportunities overseas and at the same time imposed constraints on their daily practices through language ideologies brought from their ICs.

Case Study Research on Language Learning and Use

“…In a related case study, Song (2012) examined the experiences and perspectives of the mothers of two much younger Korean boys (age 5) in an early study-abroad context in the United States over a 1-year period. She analyzed the linguistic practices cultivated in the home and the rationale for those practices.…”

Language Ideologies and Policies: Multilingualism and Education

“…Another example of the global spread of English is the phenomenon of Asian families with young children who move to English‐speaking countries, including Expanding Circle countries (Kachru 1982) in which a local variety of English and local language(s) coexist, so that their children will learn English and thus enter an imagined cosmopolitan community (Chew 2009; Song 2010, forthcoming; Yeoh et al. 2005).…”

(Il)Legitimate Language Skills and Membership: English Teachers' Perspectives on Early (English) Study Abroad Returnees inEFLClassrooms

“…ESA students have different language learning goals and attitudes toward local cultures and communities both during and after their study abroad (Chew, ; Cho & Shin, ; Kanno, ; Moon, ; J. S.‐Y. Park & Bae, ; Song, , ). Thus, the diversity in cultural, linguistic, and identity practices that these students bring to the local classroom will influence teachers' daily practices.…”

“…This will potentially blur the traditional boundaries between and across contexts, including such contexts of English as a foreign or second language (EFL/ESL) and create new and hybrid practices and perspectives that language teachers will encounter in interacting with these students. Finally, the ESA phenomenon will enlarge the proficiency gap between those who have experienced study abroad and those who have not, which will have implications for the burgeoning discussion of the role of learners' sociocultural and socioeconomic background in second language education (Block, ; Shin, ; Song, ; Vandrick, ). These implications urge language teachers in these learners' hosting and source countries to expand their understanding of learners beyond the current context of language teaching to deal with an increasing diversity in the local classroom.…”

“…Studies on these learners' experiences during study abroad have examined the challenges and strategies for keeping up with educational expectations in both their current and future communities (Cho & Shin, ; Kanno, ; Moon, ; J. S.‐Y. Park & Bae, ; Song, ). Other popular areas of research include their struggles and investment in language learning during study abroad (Y. Kang, ; Shin, ; Song, ) and their distinct and diverse language ideologies that guide their language learning practices (Y. Kang, ; J. S.‐Y.…”