English As An International Language: Perspectives And Pedago

Description:
Collectively, the chapters in this volume make a significant contribution to the emerging paradigm of English as an International Language (EIL) by exploring various aspects of the English language and its pedagogy in the context of the globalization of this language. The volume shows great deal of promise in terms of expanding the paradigm and also establishing new grounds for thinking, research, and practice.

Review:
The volume English as an International Language presents an inspired inquiry into the multifaceted role of Englishes for global communication. It builds on and goes beyond the existing knowledge on a wide range of topics related to the use, attitudes, pedagogy, and conceptualization of Englishes in the world. The strength of the book lies in the insightful discussions from multiple vantage points and unique critical perspectives. Ryuko Kubota, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill This carefully selected volume of essays makes a valuable contribution to the study of the contemporary sociolinguistics of English and English teaching across cultures. It brings together multiple theoretical and methodological approaches underscoring the richness of its subject. In doing so, it offers an overview of some of the competing paradigms that guide research on English in multilingual settings, suggesting theoretical continuities in and methodological challenges to the field. The collection provides insight into teaching practitioners' pedagogical engagement by illustrating their search for equity in the workplace, their linguistic self-representation in the field and classroom, and the preparation they gain in EIL in higher education institutions. The book provides much evidence of the interdisciplinarity of EIL research, particularly how various disciplines can offer new ways of understanding major processes within it such as English indigenization, cross-cultural communication, and language use. The volume is a very valuable resource for researchers and students in English studies, second language acquisition, and English language pedagogy. Janina Brutt-Griffler, The State University of New York, Buffalo

Table of Contents:
English as an International Language: An overview; Native/Non-native divide: Politics, policies, and practices; English as a lingua franca, 'non-native speakers', and cosmopolitan realities; Teaching English as an International Language (EIL) in the GCC countries: The Brown Man's Burden; EIL, Nativespeakerism, and the failure of European ELT; EIL, attitudes, and identity(ies); Researching NNSs' views toward intelligibility and identity; Attitudes towards English as an International Language; EIL migrant teacher identities; EIL, teacher education, and language testing: Gaps and challenges; Global warning? West-Based TESOL, class-blindness and the challenge for critical pedagogies; The place of World Englishes and English as an international language in English teacher preparation programs in Japan; Imperialism of international tests; The scope of EIL: Widening, tightening, and emerging themes; Broadening the ELF Paradigm: spoken English in an international encounter; Pragmatics and EIL Pedagogy; Cultural conceptualisations in English as an International Language; English as the international language of scholarship; Local or international standards: Indigenised Varieties of English at the crossorads.

Author Biography:
Farzad Sharifian is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Languages, Cultures, and Linguistics, Monash University, Melbourne. He has a wide range of research interests including cultural linguistics, pragmatics, English as an International Language, World Englishes, language and politics, and intercultural communication. He is the editor (with Gary B. Palmer) of Applied Cultural Linguistics (2007, John Benjamins) and the editor (with Rene Dirven, Ning Yu and Susanne Niemeier) of Culture, Body and Language (2008, Mouton de Gruyter). He has published numerous articles in international journals such as World Englishes; Language Sciences; Language & Education; Language, Culture, & Curriculum, Language and Intercultural Communication, Journal of Politeness Research, Pragmatics & Cognition, and Journal of Psycholinguistic Research.