Multilingualism and global education on the development of cross-cultural intelligence for students at international schools

Abstract

This study explores how alumni from International Baccalaureate (IB) schools worldwide make meaning of their experiences with multilingualism, IB education, and cultural intelligence. As the world becomes increasingly interconnected and interdependent, the combination of second language acquisition and an IB education impacts a global perspective and mindset in students, providing them effective tools to succeed in their chosen careers. To this end, semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine graduates holding IBDP diplomas. Transcripts were then coded and analyzed. Through this process, five themes emerged: IB students' personal connections with the IB education, ease of navigating different cultures, consequences of causal learning, impact of IB schools and their learning environment, and global citizenship. These findings were analyzed through the lens of second language acquisition, cross-cultural intelligence and the Transformative Learning Theory. Teaching and learning a foreign language still remains challenging on many levels. Even though learning strategies differ for young children and adults, major research studies agree on the cognitive flexibility practice that bilingualism offers our students. By learning a different language, students consequently learn about the cultures that share that language, and thus integrate a tolerance for people's differences into their global perspective. Depending on when a second language is introduced, bilingualism affects the cognitive flexibility of learners, as well as supports the cultural and social-emotional learning of students in schools. Bilingualism may not be for everyone, but it needs to be accessible for all who choose it in order for it to become a global standard rather than a privilege.

Exploring the cultural intelligence levels of bilinguals and multilinguals

“…In the present study, the mean score of overall cultural intelligence level for multilingual students is found to be higher than that of bilingual students, suggesting that there is a statistically significant difference in their cultural intelligence levels, which complies with the studies carried out in this research area (Ang & van Dyne 2008;Daddino 2019;Dewaele, Heredia & Cieślicka 2020;Petrossian 2020). The reasons for this difference can be attributed to both the number of languages participants know and the amount of language learning experience they have, which increases their cultural flexibility enabling them to sympathize with people who have different values and mindsets.…”

“…The relationship between cultural intelligence and language learning seems to be a field drawing the attention of researchers for a long time Bialystok 2009Bialystok , 2010Goh 2012;Gross & Dewaele 2018;Petrossian 2020;Oxford & Cuellar 2014). The studies yield the result that language learners are likely to be more successful learners if they have high cultural intelligence levels.…”