As educators in international schools, we work with a truly unique population. Our students are global nomads, navigating different cultures, educational systems, and social landscapes. They are often described by their mobility and diversity, but beneath these labels lies a complex interplay of language and identity that profoundly shapes their experiences. To truly understand and support these students, we can turn to the insights of critical thinkers like Michel Foucault, Chris Weedon, and Stephen Castles.
These scholars, working from poststructuralist and sociological perspectives, challenge the idea that language is simply a tool for communication or that identity is a fixed entity. Instead, they offer a powerful framework for understanding how language actively constructs our social world and our sense of self within it, and how this process is intensified for those who live across borders.
Language, Power, and the Construction of Who We Are
Drawing on Foucault, language is not seen as a neutral vehicle for expressing pre-existing thoughts, but as a system of discourses that shape what can be known, said, and understood. These discourses are embedded in social practices and are always linked to power. They define norms, create categories, and influence how we perceive ourselves and others.
Weedon builds on this, arguing that our subjectivity – our conscious and unconscious sense of self – is constructed through our engagement with these discourses. We come to understand who we are by internalizing and negotiating the various ways language positions us in the world (e.g., as a student, a son/daughter, a member of a nationality, or a speaker of a particular language).
Stephen Castles adds the crucial dimension of migration to this picture. He shows how the experience of moving across borders profoundly impacts identity, making it a particularly dynamic and often contested process for migrants as they navigate new social landscapes.
The International School as a Crucible for Identity
For teenagers studying away from their home countries in international schools, these theories resonate deeply. Their lived experience is a constant negotiation of language, identity, and power:

• Navigating Multiple Discourses: International school students are immersed in a multiplicity of discourses. There are the academic discourses of the classroom, the social discourses among peers from diverse backgrounds, the cultural discourses of the host country, and the familiar discourses of their home culture maintained through family and online connections. These discourses may contain conflicting values, expectations, and ways of being. Students must constantly switch between these “language games,” which requires significant cognitive and identity work.
• Subjectivity in Flux: As Weedon highlights, subjectivity is constructed through language and discourse. For mobile students, this construction is particularly active. They are exposed to different subject positions within the various linguistic and cultural contexts they inhabit. They might experiment with different ways of speaking, behaving, or presenting themselves as they try to find where they fit in and who they want to be in this international setting. Their sense of self is not just evolving with adolescence, but is being actively shaped by their cross-cultural encounters.
• Language as a Site of Power and Belonging: Foucault reminds us that power operates through language. In international schools, the dominance of English (or another lingua franca) can create power hierarchies. Students’ proficiency levels, accents, and ability to navigate academic or social English can impact their confidence, their social status among peers, and how their intelligence or capabilities are perceived. Their mother tongues, while vital to their identity and connection to home, may hold a different status within the school environment. Language proficiency becomes intertwined with belonging and social inclusion.
• Hybrid Identities and Transnational Lives: Castles’ work on hybridity and transnationalism is essential here. These students are not simply adopting a new identity; they are often developing layered or blended identities that incorporate elements from their home culture, the host culture, and the unique “international school culture.” They maintain strong transnational ties through technology and visits home, meaning their sense of self and belonging often spans multiple countries. This can be a source of great strength and global mindedness, but also occasionally lead to feelings of being “third culture kids” – not fully belonging in any single place.
  Why Understanding This Matters for Educators
  Applying the theories of Foucault, Weedon, and Castles offers crucial insights for international school educators:
• Increased Empathy: Recognizing the complex identity work and linguistic navigation students undertake fosters deeper empathy for their challenges and triumphs. Behaviors that might seem like simple shyness or resistance could be rooted in the difficult process of negotiating identity across cultures.
• Creating Inclusive Environments: Understanding how power operates through language and discourse allows us to build more equitable classrooms and school communities. We can actively value linguistic diversity, challenge stereotypes, and create spaces where all students feel safe to express themselves and have their identities affirmed.
• Supporting Well-being: Students struggling with identity negotiation or feelings of being “in-between” may experience anxiety or isolation. Acknowledging and discussing these complexities can help normalize their experiences and provide them with the language to articulate their feelings.
• Fostering Critical Awareness: We can empower students by helping them understand how language and discourse work to shape perceptions and construct reality. This critical language awareness equips them to navigate diverse social contexts more effectively and to challenge limiting or prejudiced discourses they may encounter.
  By looking beyond the surface and engaging with the powerful theories of Foucault, Weedon, and Castles, we gain a more profound understanding of the intricate relationship between language and identity for our international school students. This deeper understanding allows us to provide more targeted support, cultivate a truly inclusive environment, and celebrate the unique, complex, and dynamic identities of the young global citizens in our care.
  Dive Deeper: Resources for Educators
• Feminist Practice and Poststructuralist Theory by Chris Weedon (A clear introduction to poststructuralism, language, and subjectivity).
• The Age of Migration: International Population Movements in the Modern World by Stephen Castles and Mark J. Miller (A foundational text on the sociology of migration).
• Michel Foucault: Explore introductory texts or articles on his concepts of Discourse and Power. Many academic resources are available online.
• Research on Third Culture Kids and Transnational Youth: Look for contemporary research applying sociological or poststructuralist lenses to the experiences of mobile youth in international schools.