The Multilingual Instructor

Claire Kramsch and Lihua Zhang use an ecological approach

and a complexity thought model to examine the identities,

experiences, and practices of foreign language teachers as

native or non-native speakers, multilingual instructors, and

professional educators. What is their sense of legitimacy?

How do they bridge the historical and cultural gaps between

them and their students? What stories do they share in the

classroom? Which do they not share? How do they view

their ethical responsibility? Drawing on primary research

with teachers at the college level in the US, the book explores

some of the key issues related to teaching languages in an

era of increasing global mobility, institutional control, and

educational uncertainty.

“In this landmark publication, Kramsch and Zhang show

us the challenges facing the multilingual instructor and

the importance of understanding their experiences in

order to improve the quality of teaching and learning as

transformative practices. The ecological framework provides

a very useful model for future studies, while the attention

to the ethical role of the multilingual instructor is a timely

reminder to us all.” Li Wei, Chair of Applied Linguistics,

UCL Institute of Education, University College London

Claire Kramsch is Emerita Professor of German and Professor of the

Graduate School of Education at University of California, Berkeley

Lihua Zhang is Lecturer of Chinese and Chinese Language

Program Coordinator at University of California, Berkeley

Oxford Applied Linguistics Series Advisers:

Anne Burns and Diane Larsen-Freeman