Teaching English as a lingua franca in China

English Today ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Xia Yu ◽  
Chengyu Liu

The last decade has witnessed a significant increase of research on English as a lingua franca (ELF) as today's world becomes progressively more globalized (Lei & Liu, 2018). However, studies on ELF in the Chinese contexts remain sparse although linguistic research in China has kept pace with the development of international linguistic academia. Moreover, many researchers studying ELF-informed teaching in China are either non-Chinese scholars or researchers working in countries other than China (Si, 2019). In other words, this newly emerged field of research has not yet been widely embraced by Chinese scholars, nor its paradigm has been promoted in English education while traditional native-English-based teaching has been challenged and initiatives have been taken to promote English education within the ELF paradigm in many countries in the expanding circle (see e.g., Sifakis & Tsantila, 2019). In this paper, we address the issue through identifying various hindrances to teaching ELF in Chinese classroom and analyzing the factors leading to the difficulties and problems with implementing the ELF-informed teaching in Chinese context. Following this, we explore the prospects for taking advantage of the pedagogical value of ELF research in the foreseeable future.

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 82
Author(s):  
Amal Alasmari

This paper aims to explore two approaches to English language: the world Englishes approach and English as a lingua franca approach, focusing on the advantages and limitations of each approach. A brief introduction on the global spread of English language is provided; as well as a thorough examination of the current status of English language in kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The paper also explores the possible future adoption of either World Englishes or English as a Lingua Franca approach in teaching English language to Saudi EFL learners. The examination of the nature of English used by Saudi EFL learners reveals a number of issues. While it is clear that a localized variety is emerging in KSA which is acknowledged by some Saudi researchers, resistance to adopting a Saudi variety in teaching strongly exists among the majority of researchers and decision makers in Saudi Education. The reason behind this reluctance to acknowledge a Saudi variety of English might be the idea that this localized variety of English in KSA is not viewed as equal to varieties of outer circle countries where English language plays far more significant roles than in expanding circle countries. In addition, decisions on adopting one of the two approaches in teaching English language in KSA are not easy; more data must be obtained before making any major pedagogical decisions.


2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 238-270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paola Vettorel ◽  
Valeria Franceschi

The study of the linguistic landscape has seen a growing interest in recent years, focusing on written information publicly available in a given territory, city or area (Landry & Bourhis 1997). English is widely present in the linguistic landscape worldwide (e.g. Cenoz & Gorter 2006, 2008; Shohamy & Gorter 2009; Shohamy et al. 2010), often in its lingua franca role (Bruyèl-Olmedo & Juan-Garau 2009), and Italy appears to be no exception (Ross 1997; Schlick 2003; Griffin 2004; Gorter 2007; Coluzzi 2009).This paper investigates examples of lexical inventiveness involving English in a set of data gathered in the linguistic landscape of some cities and towns in Veneto (Northern Italy), each with different though complementary contextual characteristics. Signs containing English, either monolingually or in combination with Italian, were selected and analysed as to lexical creativity, as well as semantic shifts/extensions. The data shows that English is often employed both in monolingual and in hybrid/bilingual processes at several linguistic levels, from orthography to word-formation (Huebner 2006), testifying to its pervasive presence in expanding circle contexts, either as a (globalized) symbol of modernity or in appropriating linguistic practices. Keywords: English in the linguistic landscape; lexical inventiveness; word-formation; English and local languages; English as a Lingua Franca


Paideusis ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-34
Author(s):  
Peter Kovacs

Since the end of World War II, English has become the virtual lingua franca of the planet. However, this development carries significant ethical and educational questions: What are the consequences of the worldwide dominance of the English language? How has it affected and how will it affect the fortunes of other languages? What can and should we as educators to do to minimize or eliminate the harmful effects on some of the endangered languages of the world? This paper will invite educators into a philosophical discussion of the ethical complexities of teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language.


2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-62
Author(s):  
Ninuk Sholikhah Akhiroh

ABSTRACT English Language Teaching (ELT) in non-English majors already has its “home” but not its “host”. It means that the parties involved in the teaching have not been able to manage an effective ELT yet. There could be many aspects related to this, yet this paper prefers to propose a solution to improve the effectiveness of English teaching in non-English majors by empowering the English language lecturer. This paper refers to the results of research conducted on the teaching of English in the Faculty of Social Sciences that use lecturers and students as the main informant, as well as interviews, observation and document analysis as data collection techniques. The results showed that some important improvement in ELT for non-English majors can be initiated by the lecturers. There are some necessary steps to do to reinforce the role of lecturers in ELT implementation. They are involving the lecturer in designing or revising the curriculum, building connection with fellow ESP lecturers and lecturers of relevant field of study, and activating Focus Group Discussion among teaching team. These steps hopefully will be complemented by the improvement of other aspects in ELT for non-English departments to build an effective teaching.   ABSTRAK Pengajaran bahasa Inggris di jurusan non-bahasa Inggris baru memiliki “rumah” saja, belum “tuan rumah”nya. Ini berarti bahwa pihak-pihak yang terlibat dalam pembelajaran belum dapat menata sebuah pengajaran bahasa Inggris yang efektif. Ada banyak hal yang dapat dilakukan, namun tulisan ini memilih untuk mengajukan sebuah solusi perbaikan pengajaran bahasa Inggris di jurusan non-bahasa Inggris dengan cara memberdayakan dosen pengampu matakuliah. Tulisan ini  merujuk pada hasil penelitian yang dilakukan terhadap pengajaran bahasa Inggris di Fakultas Ilmu Sosial dengan menggunakan dosen dan mahasiswa sebagai informan utama, serta wawancara, observasi dan analisis dokumen sebagai teknik pengumpulan data. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa beberapa perbaikan penting dalam penegajaran bahasa Inggris dapat difasilitasi oleh dosen pengampu matakuliah. Langkah-langkah yang dapat dilakukan adalah: melibatkan dosen dalam menyusun kurikulum pengajaran bahasa Inggris; membangun hubungan dengan sesama dosen pengajar ESP dan dosen ahli bidang ilmu tertentu; mengaktifkan forum diskusi antar anggota tim pengajar. Langkah-langkah ini diharapkan dapat dilengkapi dengan perbaikan dari aspek-aspek lain guna mewujudkan pembelajaran yang efektif. How to Cite: Akhiroh, N. S. . (2017). Teaching English in Non-English Departments: Empowering Teacher Towards Improvement. IJEE (Indonesian Journal of English Education), 4(1), 49-62. doi:10.15408/ijee.v4i1.5341  


2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 33
Author(s):  
Acep Haryudin ◽  
Trisnendri Syhrizal

The the purposes of this resaearch was to find out students dificulty in mastering Grammar, and to find out the suitable method in improving students’ grammar mastery. The method of this research was Action Research as the application of fact finding to practical problem solving in social situation by involving the collaboration and cooperation of researcher and practitioners. The research took place at IKIP Siliwangi, focused on class A2 year 2016. Subjects of the research was 45 students of English Education Study Program. The finding and disscussion of this research was that Problem Based Learning (PBL) jo with Puzzle media could improve students’ grmammar mastery and students of English Education Study Program could 


RELC Journal ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seran Dogancay-Aktuna ◽  
Joel Hardman

Despite the proliferation of publications on teaching English as an international language (EIL) or a Lingua Franca (ELF), the diffusion of these concepts into the world of English Language Teaching has been slow and incomplete. There is some wariness among educators about the teaching of ELF and EIL, with no consensus regarding appropriate pedagogy. In this article we look at some of the research on the integration of global Englishes into English language classrooms and discuss issues concerning a model of language to guide pedagogy when there are multiple Englishes. We maintain that it is by relying on theoretical understandings of concepts underlying the development and use of global Englishes and basing pedagogical decisions on contextual needs, rather than on prescriptions for practice, that teachers can make realistic decisions about integrating Englishes into their own classroom pedagogy. We refer to a model of teaching English that is based on a vision of situated teacher praxis and show how one component of this model, meta-culture, can be used to teach language-culture connection in the era of global Englishes.


Author(s):  
Jennifer Jenkins

This article discusses English in terms of its role as a contact language among expanding circle users of English from different first languages. It begins by observing both similarities between English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) and other lingua francas, and the difference in scale between them, with ELF involving a far higher number of people and first languages. The article goes on to explore empirical research into ELF, and its key findings: on the one hand, that certain “nonstandard” English forms are regularly preferred to “standard” (i.e. native) ones, and on the other, that ELF is far more affected by context and accommodation processes, and, therefore, far more diverse, than native Englishes. The notion of “community of practice,” it is argued, is, thus, more appropriate to ELF than that of “speech community.” The article concludes by considering three key areas of ELF research that need to be tackled.


English Today ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 16-21
Author(s):  
Zhenhui Rao ◽  
Ping Yu

With the spread of economic globalization and the accelerating demand for English, governments in East Asian countries have been updating their English-in-education policies so as to enhance the quality of English education in the region (Hu & McKay, 2012). Of all these policies, the introduction of English as a compulsory subject at younger and younger ages is ‘possibly the world's biggest policy development in education’ (Johnstone, 2009: 33). It is widely believed that those who start learning English at an earlier age can utilize their ‘critical period’ to learn English more efficiently (Nunan, 2003; Y. Hu, 2007). However, the expansion of teaching English to young learners has not been unanimously supported and there is no conclusive evidence for the benefits of early exposure to a new language (Copland, Garton & Burns, 2014). Some researchers point out ‘the advantages of postponing formal teaching in specific contexts’ (Hyltenstam & Abrahamsson, 2001: 163).


2021 ◽  
Vol 94 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-56
Author(s):  
Denghua Zhang

China has substantially increased its engagement with Pacific Island countries since 2006, driving heightened geostrategic competition between traditional powers and China in the region. Research on Pacific Island countries by Chinese scholars has grown rapidly in recent years, but this development and its relationship with policy needs are little-known outside China. By analyzing the 129 journal articles published by Chinese scholars on Pacific studies between 2006–2019, with supporting interviews, this research aims to expand the debate on the policy-research nexus, especially in the Chinese context, by introducing Pacific studies in China. It argues that official policy needs have largely shaped Pacific studies in China, and that researchers who seek to influence policy-making tend to find the process slow and indirect. This research will also improve our understanding of Chinese scholars’ intellectual support of China’s Pacific diplomacy on certain topics.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document