An Exploration of Iranian EFL Teachers’ Perceptions on the Globalization and Hegemony of English

Abstract

Globalization as an increasingly influencing force has led English language to become the lingua franca of the world. However, the global spread of English is considered as linguistic and cultural imperialism of English speaking countries to exert their dominance, power, culture, ideology and language over the periphery countries. The devastating consequence of this hegemony, according to Canagarajah (2005) can be putting learners in danger of losing their languages, cultures, and identities, giving rise to the devaluation of their local knowledge and cultures. Here, the researchers administ interview to explore thirty-seven experienced Iranian EFL teachers’ (18males/19females) perceptions on English globalization and its hegemony, who were selected based on purposive sampling. The researchers’ adoption of Strauss and Corbin’s (1998) constant comparative method revealed that although Iranian English teachers admitted globalization as an inevitable reality and English language as a tool in the service of globalization to smooth communication among people, they took up a counter-hegemonic stance and resistance towards the values associated with its use. They also suggested some anti-hegemonic strategies to de-colonize the power, culture, values, and ideologies of the West which tries to marginalize other countries and people.

Proletarianization of English Language Teaching: Iranian EFL teachers and their alternative role as transformative intellectuals

“…The dispositions and skills for the promotion of critical thinking should be infused into learning and teaching at all educational levels (Burbules and Berk, 1999). To create transformation in the educational system and society, to challenge the powerful structures of schooling, to fight against oppression, subjugation, and dominance, to liberate students from oppressive education, to uproot the sociopolitical inequity and injustice, and to question status quo and institutional, ideological, and political hegemony (Safari and Razmjoo, 2016), it is essential for transformative teachers to act as critical pedagogues and sharpen students’ minds by means of promoting critical thinking as a valuable asset.…”

Teachers’ engagement within educational policies and decisions improves classroom practice: The case of Iranian ELT school teachers

“…In fact, it ignores the reality that we belong to the global village and need to integrate intercultural understandings in teaching and learning activities to enhance students’ intercultural communicative competence and knowledge. We actually need to strike a balance between the localization of our culture and the globalized view of culture; that is, culture needs to be localized (Safari & Razmjoo, 2016).…”

Returning to our SELF, Cultivating Transformative Learning: Rumi’s Stories in English Classes

“…As I had studied a number of papers on the issue of hegemony in the EFL contexts (e.g. Canagarajah, 1999;Crystal, 2003;Gramsci, 1971;Kanpol, 1999;Kumaravadivelu, 2016;Pennycook, 1995Pennycook, , 2007Phillipson, 1992Phillipson, , 2009Safari & Razmjoo, 2016), the necessity for the insertion of classical works into the curriculum (e.g. Parsaiyan et al, 2014;Parsaiyan et al, 2016;Fatemi et al, 2018) as well as philosophies of Rumi about learning (Enteshari, 2011;Oladi, 2016), I was equipped with deep understanding and insights about theoretical underpinnings and conceptual frameworks.…”

“…Accordingly, Holliday (2005) has shown how pervasive ideologies such as native speakerism has favoured native speakers and marginalized non-native speakers in issues which are concerned with language teaching and learning. In educational settings, these ideologies are so ubiquitous that native teachers are considered to be I 296 Safari -Rumi's Stories in English Classes much better regarding their fluency, speaking skill, competency, negotiation of meaning, and even their pedagogic performances (Safari & Razmjoo, 2016). The furtive movement towards de-skilling and discrediting non-native English teachers is to the extent that they themselves contribute and capitulate to this domineering process as their discourses encompass the traces of hegemonic influences of English language along with its veiled ideologies (Safari, 2017).…”

“…In Iranian EFL contexts of private language institutes, marketed instructional English materials are the best imperialistic tools by which one can examine the traces of knowledge colonization, ideological domination, and mind suppression smothering the local knowledge, interests, values, and culture of students. The prevalence and pervasiveness of American culture, concepts, lifestyle, ideologies, and values through the textbooks are in the form of hidden curriculum (Safari & Razmjoo, 2016). These imported English textbooks encompass the materialistic and secular beliefs and thoughts of Eurocentric countries, aiming at promoting concepts such as individualism, capitalism, consumerism, and neo-liberalism (Abdollahzadeh & Baniasad, 2010;Baleghizadeh & Motahed, 2010;Keshavarz & Akbari Malek, 2009;Koosha, Talebinezhad & Taki, 2004).…”