Series 6, Episode 2
Catherine Aymé on teaching French in Central Asia
In this episode of the Asian Education Podcast, we are joined by Catherine Aymé, who is a teacher and researcher at Sorbonne University Paris Nord in Information and Communication Science. Her doctoral research explores some of the intercultural tensions between France and Uzbekistan, focusing on ‘French as a second language’ educational resources that circulate in Uzbek universities. This episode focuses on issues related to language education, the context in which educational resources are developed and circulated, and how they are actually used.
Situated on the Silk Road, Uzbekistan represents a link between China, Turkey and Europe. It has become an alternative destination for many institutions and companies that have lost access to Russia after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. We discuss the geopolitical implications of this for the regions external ties, in education and more broadly. We then discuss the general state of French language education in Uzbekistan.
In her doctoral thesis, Catherine considers educational resources as “composites”, cultural objects circulating in society, drawing on the work of Joëlle Le Marec in the field of information and communication science. Here she explains what this approach can tell us about the cultural politics of French language education in Central Asia, highlighting several intercultural tensions that her work has illuminated. Finally, we discuss how French language teaching in Uzbekistan relates to the broader context of second / foreign language education in a society where Russian and (more recently) English have dominated the foreign language curriculum. We ask what factors have determined the relative popularity of these languages amongst local learners.
Links to the work of researchers mentioned in the interview:
Pierre Moeglin, Professor in Information and Communication Science on Industrialisation of education Français : https://shs.cairn.info/industrialiser-l-education--9782842925475?lang=fr
Joëlle Le Marec, Professor in Information and Communication Science at the French National Museum of Natural History, laboratoire PALOC. on "Composites" in communication Français : https://shs.cairn.info/revue-etudes-de-communication-2002-1-page-2?lang=en
Alex Frame, Professor in Information and Communication Science University of Burgundy on interculturality Anglais : https://www.academia.edu/6311710/Frame_A_On_Cultures_and_Interactions_Theorising_the_Complexity_of_Intercultural_Encounters https://hal.science/hal-00441666/file/culture_interculturality_frame.pdf
Fred Dervin, Professor of Multicultural Education, Helsinki University on multiculturalism in education Anglais : https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261550749_Multicultural_Education_in_Finland_Renewed_Intercultural_Competences_to_the_Rescue_In_International_Journal_of_Multicultural_Education_14_3_pp_1-13
