Abstract
<jats:p>English language teaching (ELT) is examined through critical sociocultural perspectives emphasizing the interconnectedness of multilingualism, identity, and ideology in increasingly globalized contexts. The entry traces theoretical developments from Vygotskyan sociocultural theory to critical applied linguistics, translanguaging, and posthumanism. Drawing on studies in Brazil, Canada, and Japan, it explores how English education intersects with heritage language maintenance, national ideologies, and multilingual identities. This entry proposes distinct underlying proficiency (DUP), extending Jim Cummins's common underlying proficiency (CUP), to describe interconnected yet distinct linguistic repertoires that offer a more nuanced account of complex multilingual realities. Finally, it offers pedagogical suggestions informed by this perspective.</jats:p>