Authored by Ienneke Indra Dewi, Maria Tamarina Prawati

The English language is taught across the world mostly due to its status as a global language. Therefore, it is no surprise that it is used extensively in virtual speech communities that transcend national borders. Because of this, the language is continuously being shaped by diverse linguistic and cultural practices across local and global contexts. This constant shift raises important questions regarding how language, culture, and identity should be represented when teaching English. The paper “Transnational Culture Pedagogy and Students’ Intercultural Communicative Competence: A Case Study of Digital Natives” by Ienneke Indra Dewi and Maria Tamarina Prawati examines how transnational culture pedagogy (another word for education) operates within English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom and how it contributes to students’ intercultural communicative competence (ICC), particularly among digital natives. The study adopts a mixed-methods approach involving questionnaires and interviews with lecturers and undergraduate students from the English Literature Department at Bina Nusantara University. Quantitative data mapped the presence of transnational pedagogical elements in classroom practices, while qualitative data provided insight into students’ intercultural experiences. Findings indicate that elements of transnational pedagogy were present, particularly in the use of diverse topics and the strategic use of both English and Bahasa Indonesia in instruction.

At the same time, the research identified persistent challenges. From the students’ perspective, Western – especially British and American – cultural perspectives continue to dominate classroom discourse and learning materials. While lecturers encouraged interaction with native speakers as a means of enrichment, this emphasis can unintentionally reinforce inner-circle hegemony. The paper contrasts this classroom dynamic with students’ lived experiences outside the university, where they would regularly engage with both native and non-native English users in internships, online games, and social media, negotiating meaning across accents, cultures, and communicative norms.

The paper concludes by underscoring the need for a more deliberate and systematic implementation of transnational culture pedagogy. By aligning classroom practices more closely with students’ real-world intercultural experiences, English programs can better equip students to function as global speakers of the language.

Full paper: https://www.scitepress.org/Papers/2018/100055/100055.pdf