Journal of Business and Technical Communication Oct 1999

Beyond Internationalization: Multicultural Education in the Professional Writing Contact Zone

Laurie Grobman Pennsylvania State University

Abstract

To bridge the gap between composition and professional communication studies, we should add multiculturalism to the widely accepted international perspective in professional communication instruction, thus transforming the classroom into a contact zone (Pratt). The practical necessity of intercultural communication in a global marketplace necessitates internationalization. The international perspective, accounting for the heterogeneity of the technical communication audience, focuses on audience analysis and leads us to encourage students to learn about the multiple, cultural layers of audience. A multicultural perspective, however, can teach students of professional communication about the complex relationship between language and ideology and the underlying forces that shape and reflect the ways we use language. Multiculturalism's critical component provides insights into the structures and ideologies of domination/subordination and provides students with the linguistic, intellectual, and moral tools for resisting fear and prejudices. Likewise, the international perspective in professional communication can inform issues of audience analysis in composition.

Journal
Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Published
1999-10-01
DOI
10.1177/105065199901300403
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Open Access
Closed
Topics
technical communication professional writing race and writing
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (14)

  1. Haas (2012)
    Race, Rhetoric, and Technology: A Case Study of Decolonial Technical Communicat…
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  2. Sidler et al. (2008)
    Genetics Interfaces: Representing Science and Enacting Public Discourse in Onli…
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  3. Goby (2007)
    Business Communication Needs: A Multicultural Perspective
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  4. Spigelman et al. (2006)
    Why We Chose Rhetoric: Necessity, Ethics, and the (Re)Making of a Professional …
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  5. Knievel (2006)
    Technology Artifacts, Instrumentalism, and the Humanist Manifestos: Toward an I…
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Show all 14 →
  1. Starke-Meyerring (2005)
    Meeting the Challenges of Globalization: A Framework for Global Literacies in P…
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  2. Ding (2004)
    Context-Driven: How is Traditional Chinese Medicine Labeling Developed?
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  3. Ding (2003)
    The Emergence of Technical Communication in China—Yi Jing (I Ching): The Buddin…
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  4. Swales et al. (2001)
    Academic Communications and the Graduate Student
    Pedagogy
  5. Lim (2001)
    English-Language Creative Writing in Hong Kong: Colonial Stereotype and Process
    Pedagogy
  6. Fleckenstein (2001)
    When No Answer Might Be the Best Answer
    Pedagogy
  7. Blackburn-Brockman (2001)
    Editor's Introduction
    Pedagogy
  8. Adair et al. (2001)
    Cutting Class in the Multicultural Literature Classroom
    Pedagogy
  9. Rentz (2001)
    A Flare from the Margins: The Place of Professional Writing in English Departments
    Pedagogy

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CrossRef global citation count: 16 View in citation network → Build reading path →

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