Recently published in the MEXTESOL Journal, the research article “English Language Teaching and National Identity: Suggestions for Future Research” by Andrew Griffiths highlights an emerging area of inquiry in English language education: the relationship between a learner’s sense of national identity and their experiences learning English.
What the Paper Is About
While most English Language Teaching (ELT) research focuses on pedagogy, curriculum, or classroom strategies, this paper takes a theoretical perspective by asking a deeper question: How might learners’ perceptions of their own national identity influence the way they learn English?
Griffiths draws on insights from political science and international relations to show that scholars in other disciplines have long explored national identity, while it has received much less attention in mainstream ELT research. The paper argues that this gap is important to fill, especially given the current global attention on questions of nationhood and identity.
Key Ideas
- Cross-disciplinary insight: The paper reviews how national identity is treated in other fields and contrasts it with its limited treatment in language education research.
- Suggested research directions: Rather than presenting final research findings, the author proposes areas for future empirical studies to explore how learners’ cultural and national identities might affect their language learning motivation, attitudes, and classroom engagement.
- Timely and relevant: With ongoing global debates about multiculturalism, migration, and national belonging, understanding identity dynamics could be increasingly relevant for designing language education that is both effective and culturally responsive.
Why It Matters for ELT
For teachers, researchers, and curriculum designers, this paper urges us to broaden our understanding of ELT beyond traditional methods and skills. It invites the field to consider linguistic learning as intertwined with learners’ social identities, which could open up richer, more contextualized research and classroom practices.