Social Justice and Critical Applied Linguistics

Bibliographic Data

ID23717172
AuthorsUfuk Keles (0000-0001-9716-640X, Bahçeşehir University), Tugce Kilic (Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa), Sevil Ak‐çimenler (Anadolu University)
Year2026
Pages1-10
Publication date2026-03-26
Open AccessYes
TypeCHAPTER
VenueEncyclopedia of Applied Linguistics (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/9781405198431.wbeal20916
OpenAlexW7140630530
ISBN9781405198431
LanguageEN
References cited35

This entry offers a comprehensive exploration of social justice (SJ) as both a theoretical foundation and a pedagogical commitment in the field of critical applied linguistics (CAL), language education, and language teacher education. Framing SJ as a dynamic, context‐sensitive process of transformation, the entry draws on foundational principles of redistribution, recognition, and representation to examine how education, particularly language education, can challenge and reconfigure systems of inequity, marginalization, and oppression. Grounded in critical theory and critical pedagogy, the entry situates SJ within historical and epistemological developments in applied linguistics, tracing the field's critical turn from technical orientations toward politically engaged applied linguistics scholarship. Key issues such as raciolinguistic ideologies, linguistic imperialism, intersectionality, and the digital divide are examined in relation to curriculum, teacher agency, learning environments, and materials design. Emphasis is placed on creating inclusive and dialogic language classrooms through asset‐based multilingual pedagogies, critical content, and transformative praxis. While acknowledging institutional and ideological constraints, the entry argues for the urgent need to prepare language teachers and teacher educators as SJ advocates who can envision and enact equitable educational futures. The authors posit that SJ is not as an ancillary concern, but as a central paradigm that reframes language learning and teaching as a vehicle for societal change.

Applied linguistics · Critical discourse analysis · Critical pedagogy · Critical theory · Dialogic · Framing (construction) · Ideology · Social justice · Transformative learning

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