Asian students in American higher education: negotiating multilingual identities in the era of superdiversity and nationalism

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study focused on the experiences of three Asian undergraduate students at a private urban institution in the United States. The findings indicate that the participants' racial, cultural and linguistic identities are dynamic and complex, echoing features indicated by the concept of superdiversity. Yet, under the influences of the rising nationalism and the strong grip of monolingualism, participants have been constantly under the pressure from English-only ideologies and the so-called forever-foreigner stereotype against Asian Americans. This study sheds light on rethinking higher education teaching and learning from the perspectives of marginalized students in the era simultaneously featuring superdiversity and nationalism.