Choreography of a Homecoming: A Narrative Exploration of Cross-Cultural Experience in Third Place/Space

Authors

  • Alison Crump

Abstract

This article recounts a curricular journey that walks me from childhood to adulthood.  As I pull memories forward, I seek to understand how my conception of culture drew me towards the cross-cultural experience of teaching English in Japan. Interweaving Grandpa Stories, feminist discourse, and narratives of arrival and entrance into a new cultural landscape, I explore the ever-changing relationship between my inner and outer cultures.  I find that the words of my outer culture do not fit my inner experiences. This tension is critically explored within a third place/ space theoretical framework that invites both security and freedom. By dwelling in a third place/ space, I become the author of my own words and I discover a home for my cross-cultural self. 

Author Biography

Alison Crump

Alison Crump is a PhD student in the Department of Integrated Studies in Education at McGill University. Her current research focuses on multilingual and mixed heritage children in Montreal and their transition into public schools that are shaped by monolingual language policies and practices.

 

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Published

2010-09-12