Whitewashed Cosmopolitanism: Making of Cosmopolitan Identity in International Schools in Asia

International schools in Asia claim to offer cosmopolitan education to their students. The representative ideological goal of international schools is to cultivate “cosmopolitan elites,” who appreciate cultural differences and diversity and share concerns over global issues such as human rights and environmental protections as global citizens. However, this study shows that students who attended international schools maintain racialized sentiments that are far from the ideological goal that international schools claim to offer. This study showcases how Asians from privileged backgrounds become active agents in reproducing a cultural hierarchy to privilege Western- oriented cultural dispositions and Whiteness. Drawing from the 35 in-depth interviews with participants who attended international schools, this study examines how pedagogical approaches in international schools unintentionally reinforce and reproduce the racialized cultural hierarchy. The participants from 10 nationalities attended 37 international schools across 10 East and Southeast Asian countries/ regions during their K-12 education. The findings highlight that 1) the cosmopolitan teachings of international schools are Whitewashed and indoctrinated by Westernized ideology, and 2) the internalization of the racialized cultural hierarchy among international school students becomes a strategy to signal their privileged family background.