Reflection 4

ELF on a mushroom: the overnight growth in English as a Lingua Franca

By COLIN SOWDEN

English as a Lingua Franca: concepts, use, and implications

By ALESSIA COGO

            The debate between Colin Sowden and Alessia Cogo on the topic of English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) provoked some questions to think over: what to teach? what kind of language is to be specified for the subject to fulfill its educational objective? I assume the answer is the consideration of what is appropriate for particular uses in communication, and for particular users in different communities. 

The fact is that English has become the language of international communication which is primarily the result of two factors: the expansion of British colonial power, which peaked toward the end of the 19^th century, and the emergence of the US as the leading economic power of the 20^th century. The point is that English is international to the extent that it is not only the native speakers’ language, otherwise the international status of English would be undermined. The countries where English is a foreign language have also developed their varieties of English that are now recognized as varieties in their own right. All this variety of varieties considerably complicates the choice for practical teachers and for the people in authority who are responsible for structuring the language education in a particular country.

Ideally, the variety to be chosen depends on actual student needs. We, language teachers, have to choose between the British and the American varieties, as they represent the international role and usage of the English language. Whichever variety we choose, we should help our students to recognize the diversity of the language, which will help them as learners of the language in making judgments about it. We should be giving them the tools to achieve what they want in and with the language.