Speaker
Description
In tertiary-level English language classrooms, students are often required to engage with texts
and discussions that explore controversial or emotionally charged issues such as religion, race,
gender, war, identity, and trauma. While the inclusion of such themes is intended to promote
critical thinking and intercultural awareness, these materials can also lead to discomfort or
disengagement among international students, who bring diverse cultural and emotional
perspectives into the learning environment. This paper presents initial findings from an
exploratory study that investigates how international students respond to sensitive content in
English curricula. The study involved eight students from the middle east and African countries
who were pursuing their studies at a Malaysian university. Drawing on early interview data,
the study examined the emotional and communicative strategies students adopted when
classroom topics challenge their personal or cultural values. Their responses ranged from
silence and withdrawal to curiosity and critical engagement, depending on how the materials
were introduced and discussed. Reflective to these findings, the paper recommends more
culturally responsive curriculum design. It also calls for greater sensitivity to the affective
dimensions of language learning when introducing potentially sensitive themes. In addition,
the results suggest that creating a respectful and open classroom environment is important for
helping students remain engaged and learn from different cultural perspectives. Overall, these
insights point to the need for ongoing reflection in how educators approach sensitive content
in increasingly diverse language learning settings.
