Identities in Flux: English as Cultural Capital and a Rationale for Investment in a Pakistani University Classroom

Abstract

This study investigates the connection between access to English during early schooling (Urdu-medium public schools and English-medium private schools), the impetus of investing in a graduate classroom, and their role in shaping learners' habitus, and identities. Using cultural capital and investment as the conceptual lens and students' interviews as the data, collected from a Pakistani university graduate classroom, the study explores access to English (cultural capital) and sees whether it symbolizes a privileged position in an all-English milieu classroom setting. Grounded in a phenomenological design, the thematic analysis of the data demonstrates that English is not only perceived as invested capital but is also instrumental in (re)shaping the learners' self. The extent of access to learning English in schools not only facilitates (dis)advantaged positions but also defines symbolic power and the sense of (not)belonging to the classroom setting. The findings also exhibit that the learners' perceived positioning has a direct relationship with their investment in English and the potential returns in the form of capital valued in the social market. Having socioeconomic prestige associated with access to English, it is essential to revisit education policies, train teachers, and introduce inclusive curricula for promoting equitable access to learning English—the dominant language in Pakistan. This study suggests that English has considerable social consequences for learners in Pakistan, the degree of convergences with and divergences from this study's findings in other contexts may also be explored.