Tensions between equity and elitism for local scholarship students in an international school

ABSTRACT

Intercultural competence (IC), a desired outcome in many international schools, comprises the necessary knowledge, skills, and attitudes to effectively navigate intercultural situations. However, international schools are often elite institutions catering to affluent expatriates and host country nationals, thus aligning the development of IC to elite norms. This study explored the perspectives of six local scholarship students in a Central American international school, finding that these students have internalised this elitism as part of their IC development. This suggests that international schools could better serve the broader community by incorporating a critical stance towards IC that promotes equity without reinforcing elitism.

KEYWORDS:

• Intercultural competence
• low-income students
• equity
• international schools
• dual language
• critical consciousness

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Brigham Young University with a Small MSE Research Grant.