What is People of Color (POC)

Racism permeates postsecondary language classrooms around the world which affects the experiences and learning outcomes of language students, namely those who study English as an additional language and English as a foreign language, referred to as additional language learners (ALLs), English as a second language (ESL), or English language learners (ELLs). Through an interrogation of the connection between race and language instruction, this chapter discusses anti-racist practices that interfere with language teaching in higher education. It presents a systematized review that aims to critically examine existing literature on the interrogation of racism within higher education with a focus on anti-racist pedagogical strategies. Critical Race Theory (CRT) guides the analysis and highlights the underlying power structures and systemic racism that shape language education. This review finds evidence of epistemological racism, linguistic biases, White supremacy, and English language dominance in the higher education language classroom. Recommendations for teacher practice are made.