Navigating Critical Language Education at the Crossroads of Neonationalism and Neoliberalism: The Role of Border Talk

Abstract

In this paper, we investigate the pressures placed upon English teaching by neo‐nationalist politics, particularly as it overlays existing neoliberal constraints. We focus on the experiences and perspectives of Brazilian teachers who are committed to critical language education even as it carries increasing risks to themselves. Interviews with five teachers are used to illustrate the ways in which their work is regulated through a form of power working through fear and threat of violence that has been termed (in)securitization (Rampton et al., 2022). By identifying the metapragmatic strategies adopted by teachers faced with hostile neo‐nationalist (in)securitization, including through what we are terming border talk, teachers and other agents in other settings are in a better position to strengthen critical language teaching and, as a consequence, fight for a more democratic future.

“Speak English”: A Comment on English Language Instruction in an Era of Neo‐Nationalism

“…For instance, when it is taught as a second language (ESL), it may support a white-Christian ethnonational state, profoundly shaping the social identities of immigrant students and their families, as Stephens (2023) found. However, when taught as a foreign language, English may be perceived as a threat to the nation, making teachers of it vulnerable to threats of violence (see Windle & Rosa, 2023). Yet despite the diversity of roles that English plays, the common thread running through the articles in this issue is the salience of language in maintaining group boundaries.…”