Forty per cent French: intercultural competence and identity in an Australian language classroom

Abstract

In the development of intercultural language learning, limited research has been conducted on language learners' negotiation of identity and cultural memberships. There is little research in particular on intercultural identity in young (primary school) language learners. With the global growth of languages in the primary school, it is timely to examine the quality of young learners' experiences and their achievement of intercultural goals in more depth. This paper reports findings from a qualitative case study of intercultural competence in a group of Australian upper primary school language learners. The paper demonstrates that the case‐study students are self‐aware of their sense of change and transformation through language learning, and show sophisticated critical negotiation of their simultaneous memberships of different cultural groups. It highlights for teachers the dynamic personal and complex framework constructed by young learners in their interaction with language study.