Othering in an English Language Program

Abstract

In this article, I discuss how the administrators and local teachers in a Turkish university English language centre perceive others in the institution. I present interview data to illustrate processes of Othering, whereby a group constructs a shared, Us-Them representation of another group. The data show that administrators and local teachers view students and each other in terms of difference from themselves. In constructing such representations, they draw on local and wider discourses about learning, social order, national and institutional characteristics, class, and gender. Interrogating biases and developing a deeper understanding of Othering in TESOL contexts can help English language educators to develop appropriate and authentic pedagogies and curricula for local contexts in an increasingly globalized world.