Universites TEFL Diploma

english as a Global LanguageThe use of english globally has many repercussions on its teaching and learning. english is the lingua franca of the world and as such it has multiple uses. english television and english movies are the standard for entertainment. english literature gains popularity across the world. The computer and internet are more accessible through knowledge of english. Professional standards and manuals are first published in english and then translated to other languages. To have updated knowledge about new research, new publications in one’s professional field, knowledge of english is almost necessary. The internationalization of economies means that to move to top positions in companies or just to engage in adequate workplace communication requires one to know english english teachers have the option of working anywhere in the world. The wide use of english entails that there is a demand for teachers in countries where english is not the first language. The ease with which modern transportation allows for immigration whether they be legal or illegal, refugees or working class, means that migrants have to learn english in their adopted countries (Canada, u.s.A., England, Australia). What, then, are the effects of this demand of english on teaching and learning? Students, specifically, adult students, come to class with high levels of motivation. They have a fairly significant interaction with english which makes it easier to teach. Furthermore, there are a wide variety of interesting authentic and inauthentic english materials to learn from. However, one can come into contact with more poorly spoken/written english than properly spoken/written english. Thus, perhaps the main work of english teachers is going to be english enrichment rather than teaching english to beginners. The ability to teach someone a language with its expressions, its metaphors and its cultural and historical context is not only a large proposition but also somewhat problematic. With the pervasiveness of english, has also come various critiques. english will rout out other smaller languages. It will reduce the incentive and opportunities for people to learn other languages. english words are replacing words in local languages which seem to be fading away. english and its speakers, owing to their advantage, are going to dominate societies. If members of the elite class in countries where english is not the spoken language, live their lives almost exclusively or dominantly with english where, then, does that leave them with regards their interaction with other classes. Will the spread of english, due to its association with British colonialism and now American imperialism, also mean a spread of the cultural values of its original native speakers? A theory of linguistic relativity claims that one’s view of the world or cognitive process is affected by the language spoken. Are other cultures and languages truly threatened by english as a global language? english films, television and music, advertisements and media in english, as well as, english in education and for research can be seen to pose a challenge to national languages and local dialects. Thomas Babington Macaulay had said once that a single shelf of english books possessed more worth than libraries of books in native indian tongues. This may have been a racist and imperialist notion. In today’s worlds, literature and film from dialects and languages around the world have been translated into english. The knowledge of english opens the doors to learn about other cultures, to visit other countries, to participate in the world community. Certainly, english cannot be disentangled from its imperial history but english culture is now a form of global culture. It is in english that we can properly explore colonial history or imperialist present, the modes of inequality and disparity in power structures. People are more than capable of switching dialects based on situation and children, especially, are remarkably good at learning more than one language. Thus, english learning, once a tool for colonial domination, and english culture, seen as a threat around the world should not be deemed so anymore. The process of evolving languages is as old as human existence and, though power structures obviously participate in determining which languages stay alive, very natural . english is now not only a means for professional success but has also been appropriated by cultures for local uses. There are many “english”-es. When teaching english, local history and culture should be utilized and local uses should be accepted as colloquial forms.