Today we live in a globalized world where we constantly engage in cross-cultural dialogue on a daily basis. As a result of our participation in this growing multicultural environment, our cultural identities are being redefined, as we transcend borders, and broaden our connections to various communities, at home and abroad. While we have achieved new levels of peace and unity, it is evident that discrimination, prejudice, and bias still plague our society and impact our interactions with others.

In this presentation I will critically examine cross-cultural interactions that take place in the ESL classroom, discussing how we as teachers can shape our students into multilingually aware and interculturally competent world citizens.

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Amanda Bent is the Cultural Awareness and Diversity Editor for Wandering Educators and works in in English Department as the Undergraduate Programs and Web Coordinator at San Francisco State University. She holds a BA in Anthropology and English Writing from the University of Pittsburgh, and is currently enrolled in the Masters in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) program at SFSU.