Global Citizenship: An Interview with Professor Shyam Sharma
Conducted by: Naomi Vingron & Adrienne Blaser
Interview with Professor Shyam Sharma
Thursday, October 9, 2014
As part of the Center of Multilingualism and Intercultural Communication’s Spotlight feature we interviewed Dr. Shyam Sharma of the Program of Writing and Rhetoric at Stony Brook University who serves on the Campus Advisory board for the center:
Growing up in a multicultural society in India, Professor Sharma grew up speaking
English, several Indian and Nepalese local dialects. He was never attached to one
particular culture or language. Professor Sharma explained, “I was never convinced
that your identity is just one thing, with one language, with one culture,” and he
never developed a good understanding of what culture is and the way people seem to
use it as a straightforward word for identity. Instead he believes that multiculturalism
and multilingualism is the norm rather than the exception in our society.
In his early twenties, Dr. Sharma became an English teacher in Nepal and while he
was surrounded by scholars it was not until he came to the US that he found multilingualism
as discourse. Teaching literature, linguistics, and critical theory in Nepal, Sharma
found that the content of it (to learn, take exams, get grades) showed no relationship
between what was taught in school, his life, the students’, professors’, or even society’s
life for that matter. The gap between learning knowledge and life was precisely the
reason he left to study composition studies, writing and rhetoric between the ages
of twenty-five and thirty years old in the US. In the US, Sharma found that the field
of writing studies was just beginning to value multilingualism and what they now call
trans-lingualism. Building on this discovery, Dr. Sharma started reading literature,
taking courses in that area, and naturally built on the personal and the social aspects
of multilingualism.
Today, Dr. Sharma teaches scientists and engineers how to communicate to the public
at Stony Brook University. He teaches students how to develop their research skills
before they go into the profession and translate academic writing skills into professional
writing skills. Dr. Sharma believes in the notion that there is academic discourse
that everyone needs to learn. There is a distinct danger of disconnect between learning
and life that looms over everyone. It runs the risk that learning knowledge and learning
life will each remain an isolated world. Of utmost importance, Dr. Sharma’s mindset
is that there is a constant need to rethink the relationship, relevance, and significance
of learning to life. The notions of global citizenship through multilingualism brings
a person out of their comfort zone, relates them to other peoples and cultures, and
broaden horizons.
In regards to his experience at SBU, Sharma pronounces, “the reality of your life,
even here at Stony Brook, if you go to any class you will see multilingualism and
multiculturalism in at least half the people there. That is the phenomenon here at
Stony Brook University.” Multilingualism and the idea of global citizenship are not
exotic ideas for scholars to research. Sharma believes that these are the realities
of the classroom and student identity here at Stony Brook and we shouldn’t make these
things feels like they are fancy new topics.
Interview Question and Answer (Q&A)
The idea of global citizenship is defined very differently but the essence of it is the sense of belonging, feeling responsible, and having the competency survive and succeed in an increasingly globalized world. The topic is becoming more important in US higher education because there are both intellectual and pragmatic reasons for students to be "global citizens." In particular, it is gaining traction because educators increasingly recognize its pragmatic and professional value.