Melinda Dooly – författare

‘Intercultural dialogue’, as a concept and ideology in the European Union, stimulates a rational 21st century society where people can engage in (intercultural) communication on a global scale, and can do so openly and freely in conditions of security and mutual respect. Intercultural dialogue connotes dialogic communication that is peaceful, reconciliatory, and democratic. Yet the term and its accompanying rhetoric belie the intercultural communicative undercurrents and their manifestations that people encounter in their daily lives.

The research-informed chapters in this book, which are situated in international contexts, provide more nuanced understandings, and many even challenge this non-critical ideology by suggesting that the concept of intercultural dialogue is inoperable and problematic under the present conditions of globalisation and migration, where there exists conflict, vulnerability, and instability. The different theoretical perspectives and analyses presented by the authors are a reminder that researchers in the field of intercultural communication require robust and appropriate theories, methods, and pedagogies in order to research these complex conditions and contexts, particularly where different languages and identities are present. The book is also a reminder of how context and power both (re)shape and contest the central tenets of intercultural dialogue—in particular, of who speaks for whom, when, how, and under what circumstances and conditions. This book was originally published as a special issue of Language and Intercultural Communication.

‘Intercultural dialogue’, as a concept and ideology in the European Union, stimulates a rational 21st century society where people can engage in (intercultural) communication on a global scale, and can do so openly and freely in conditions of security and mutual respect. Intercultural dialogue connotes dialogic communication that is peaceful, reconciliatory, and democratic. Yet the term and its accompanying rhetoric belie the intercultural communicative undercurrents and their manifestations that people encounter in their daily lives.

The research-informed chapters in this book, which are situated in international contexts, provide more nuanced understandings, and many even challenge this non-critical ideology by suggesting that the concept of intercultural dialogue is inoperable and problematic under the present conditions of globalisation and migration, where there exists conflict, vulnerability, and instability. The different theoretical perspectives and analyses presented by the authors are a reminder that researchers in the field of intercultural communication require robust and appropriate theories, methods, and pedagogies in order to research these complex conditions and contexts, particularly where different languages and identities are present. The book is also a reminder of how context and power both (re)shape and contest the central tenets of intercultural dialogue—in particular, of who speaks for whom, when, how, and under what circumstances and conditions. This book was originally published as a special issue of Language and Intercultural Communication.

This book brings together contributions on learner autonomy from a myriad of contexts to advance our understanding of what autonomous language learning looks like with digital tools, and how this understanding is shaped by and can shape different socio-institutional, curricular, and instructional support. To this end, the individual contributions in the book highlight practice-oriented, empirically-based research on technology-mediated learner autonomy and its pedagogical implications. They address how technology can support learner autonomy as process by leveraging the affordances available in social media, virtual exchange, self-access, or learning in the wild (Hutchins, 1995).

The rapid evolution and adoption of technology in all aspects of our lives has pushed issues related to learner and teacher autonomy centre stage in the language education landscape. This book tackles emergent challenges from different perspectives and diverse learning ecologies with a focus on social and educational (in)equality. Specifically, to this effect, the chapters consider digital affordances of virtual exchange, gaming, and apps in technology-mediated language learning and teaching ranging from instructed and semi-instructed to self-instructed contexts. The volume foregrounds the concepts of critical digital literacy and social justice in relation to language learner and teacher autonomy and illustrates how this approach may contribute to institutional objectives for equality, diversity and inclusion in higher education around the world and will be useful for researchers and teachers alike.