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This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned:
english as a Global LanguageEnglish as a global lingua Franca is becoming increasingly apparent. There is more demand now than ever before for english teachers in every corner of the world. While this expansion of the english speaking world is not in itself a negative thing, I believe that there are unnoticed and detrimental side effects to the fetish for english language aptitude. One of these problems is embodied in the strict requirements for TOEFL and other similar english language aptitude examinations that many tertiary level students of non-english speaking countries will no doubt encounter at some point. High marks on such english language tests are generally the first step toward enrollment in the world's best universities, foreign exchange opportunities, and post-graduate work. Much of academic, technological, medical, and other such literature are in english, which justifies the existence of examinations to gauge a student's ability to work in a predominantly english language environment. However, the reach of english does not stop here at education. The service industry around the world demands english as a skill. From flight attendants to hotel bellhops, everyone needs at least a basic command of english in order to expand their job prospects. Due to nature of english as a gatekeeper for future career success, the demand for english instruction has skyrocketed as has the pressure for students to perform well on standardized english aptitude tests. But what of those that do not perform well or simply do not have the opportunity to learn english? Is it the case that these people will simply be shut out from participation in the world economy? Will they have no chance to engage in cutting edge research or enrolling in the educational institution on their dreams? I believe that this is indeed the case. Education in many parts of the world such as Asia hold english important enough to be included in primary school education. I must conclude that if english is truly so powerful a gatekeeper of career success for people the world over, then citizens of english speaking countries must surely have a distinct advantage over citizens of other countries. This is the problem of english as a global language. The spread of english puts speakers of other languages at a disadvantage at birth. Tests such as TOEFL provide an extra layer of filtering to exclude those that try but fail to master english to a certain acceptable level. What will the world have lost if truly brilliant minds are blocked from progressing in their fields or talents because they did not know english? We must remember that english is not a prerequisite to intelligence, aptitude, or pure talent. I am not necessarily against having a global language or that english should be that language. What I am opposed to is that english should stand as a barrier to so many people of the world, to deprive people who may have the potential to change the world of the opportunity to do so. The acquisition of language helps to bring the world closer together. To use language to pull it apart would be a travesty.
