From Local Contexts to Global Communication: Advancing Culturally Responsive English Teaching in Vocational Education

Abstract

Vocational education is experiencing significant transformation such as globalization, digitalization, and artificial intelligence (AI) to reshape the competencies expected of graduates. Today vocational high school (VHS) students are no longer prepared solely for local employment; they are expected to communicate effectively across cultures, collaborate in multilingual workplaces, and adapt to rapidly changing industrial environments. Consequently, English has evolved from being merely a school subject into an essential employability skill that enables graduates to participate in the global workforce (OECD, 2024; UNESCO, 2021). Recent scholarship in English language teaching (ELT) also argues that the purpose of learning English has shifted from imitating native-speaker norms to developing the ability to communicate successfully in diverse international contexts (Rose et al., 2021).