Post #14

            The last chapter in the book by McKay acts as an overall summary of the entire book. It discusses how L2 classrooms are affected by many of the topics that have been discussed in the earlier chapters (multilingualism, linguistic variation, standards, etc.). One of the first ideas that are discussed is that English is usually used for very specific purposes: “to access and contribute to the vast amount of information available in English, to assess the economic, political, and social benefits that come with English language proficiency” (181).  In my opinion, this stated purpose does not seem very specific to me, but instead seems to include a wide variety of things. Since English is seen as an international language, an international way of communication for business purposes, etc., there is no clear or specific use of the language but rather, many beneficial reasons and uses. What I have learned about the most and been the most surprised about during the course of this class, is the idea of just how huge the use of English is. Before reading these two books and all of the other separate articles, I never knew just how much the use of English has been steadily growing and how it continues to grow. The documentary that we watched last week in class said that in the future years to come, it is expected that there will be more non-native English speakers than there are native English speakers. This statement surprised me and made me think how difficult it is to imagine this idea actually occurring. I wonder how much it would affect all of us native English Speakers.

            The final chapter also, overall, discusses other topics that were introduced in previous chapters such as the idea of World Englishes, and how these types of English need to be seen as their own language. It is also important that English pedagogy “encourages the awareness of the variation that exists in English today” (183). One topic that was interesting to me was the questioning of the roles that culture should play in the teaching of English. This is something else that I never thought of before, which is funny since I have always thought about the importance of teaching students about the Spanish culture, but never about teaching our culture (Western culture). One problem that I see is that the “English culture” includes many different parts and variations, just like the language itself. The Spanish culture varies as well; depending on the country and dialect you are talking about, but there are many more variations of English that there are Spanish and are therefore more variations of the culture. I do still think that it is incredibly important for students who are learning English to learn about the culture as well. Knowing how to speak the language and all of the grammar rules will only get you so far. Since English is the language most commonly used for business purposes, it is important that non-native English speakers also learn the social part of the English culture, knowing what is appropriate and what isn’t since each culture differs. Suzuki wrote an entire book that argued how the English language and Western culture should be separate, but I obviously disagree. But, on the other hand, I think that it is important for people who are learning English as a second language to not put the English language itself, or the Western culture up on a pedestal. A common theme that I have noticed in many of the articles and chapters we have read over the semester is that people seem to think that learning English will give them many benefits, and it will, but only to a certain extent. It is important that non-native English speakers see the learning of English as a choice and not as something that they have to do, even if it may seem that way.

Post #13

            The article by Kubota discusses the idea of globalization and the effects it has on language teaching in Japan. The author states how the idea of globalization “implies increased local diversity influenced by human contact across cultural boundaries,” and also the idea of “cultural homogenization.” The term ‘Americanization,’ a term I never knew existed until reading this article, is defined as the “diffusion of American values, consumer goods, and lifestyles.” The American franchise stores and fast food restaurants in Japan are examples of globalization and Americanization. The idea of Americanization/globalization also demonstrates people’s desire to identify themselves with Americans. I’m not sure if I agree with what this statement is saying. I don’t think that people have a choice as to what different American chains are started in their country, nor do I believe that they secretly want to be American. The article includes a quote from the CEO of the McDonald’s in Japan that I thought to be very interesting: “'If we eat McDonald's hamburgers and potatoes for a thousand years, we will become taller, our ·skin will become white, and our hair blonde.” I know that this quote isn’t actually saying that the Japanese believe that eating McDonald’s will make them physically look American, but is the only reason they eat the fast food because they want to seem more American? I find that to be sad. Another part of globalization is increased nationalism. The article gives the example of how there are more Japanese flags displayed in public places. So to me, it seems that there is a fear that the Japanese will begin to become too wrapped in all of the parts of the American culture that are being placed in their country. The author goes on to discuss the discourse of kokusaika, which “aims to understand people and cultures in their international communities.” This discourse includes many different ideas, some of which are: the preoccupation with western nations (the US in particular) and emphasize teaching and learning a foreign language (English). I thought it was interesting that the premises of the discourse of kokusaika determine the North American and British varieties of English as being the standard/model. There were many other points that were discussed in this article that I found to be interesting. Another is the ‘native speaker myth,’ which is the “idealization of a native speaker as someone who has perfect, innate knowledge and culture and thus is the best teacher of English.” As we have discussed earlier in class, this idea is very limiting as to who will be allowed to teach. Furthermore is the idea that learning English “enables understanding of the world and cultural diversity” since it is considered the international language. I have seen this point of view come up in other readings that we have read during the semester and I find this view to be very problematic and incorrect. Just because someone is able to speak and communicate in English doesn’t necessarily mean that they are capable of understanding diversity.

            The article by Matsuda discusses a completely different idea, how world Englishes affect the teaching of writing. Some of the topics in the article reminded me of that short documentary we watched in class called Writing Across Boarders. When grading writing assignments written by non-native English speakers, it is difficult to know what to correct, what not to correct, and what to deduct points for. I think that an overall rule to live by when grading papers is to make sure that you are able to understand and comprehend what the person is trying to say. And that even if there are mistakes, the mistakes don’t interrupt being able to understand what is being said.

Post # 12

            Chapter five in the textbook by McKay discusses the linguistic diversity in the use of present-day English and the development of world Englishes. McKay also argues that language contact leads to linguistic variation, and that this variation can be related to issues of power. Macroacquisition, a term defined by Brutt-Griffler, is the process of language acquisition by speech communities in their own local context (124). This is one of the reasons why the use of English is growing so much, creating more varieties and hybrids of English. The textbook describes all the different varieties of Nigerian English, which all contain different characteristics. I never knew how many varieties of one type of English there were! The author then describes the different features of variation such as the variation in the different parts of grammar (nouns, verbs, etc.) and differences in the pronunciation of words. I enjoyed reading all of the differences in the features of the variations of English. I liked the examples that the textbook gave as well. But many of the examples, I don’t think I would understand what was trying to be said if someone were to speak to me using those variations. An example that stuck out to me was under the heading of the differences in discourse style. Apparently, in West African English, the expression “wonderful” can “express the speaker’s amazement, whether the event is good or bad” (135). The example that is given is: “He died yesterday morning,” and the other person’s reaction is: “Wonderful!” It’s so strange for me to think that this type of variation in the English language has occurred since we as native English speakers only use this expression as a reaction to good things. I would be so confused if someone were to respond with “wonderful” after I had just told them something bad.

            The other main idea that is discussed in this chapter is the idea of a standard language, which is defined as the variety of a certain language that is considered the norm. This variety of the standard language is used for many purposes since it is seen as the ideal. It is used for education, to measure other varieties compared to this norm, and there are also language standards for the standard language. These language standards are language rules of that standard that are taught in schools. Since the idea of having a Standard English is so controversial, what I found most interesting about this section was the idea that the term Standard English refers to grammar and vocabulary but not pronunciation. When I first think of a standard form of English, I always first think of pronunciation, but until now I never knew that pronunciation was not part of that standard variety, even though I believe it should be since pronunciation is a large part of knowing how to speak a language. In the article by Lippie-Green, the author argues how “standard language need not be understood as any specific language, but as an idea in the mind rather than a reality - a set of abstract norms to which· actual usage may conform to a greater or lesser extent" (41). What I understand from what she is saying is that there will never be a standard variety of English and that it is an idea.

Post # 11

            Chapter four in the book by McKay was overall about how determining an official language can have consequences for language learning and teaching. There is a section about the English-only movement that I found very interesting. The movement included the idea that the only time languages other than English could be used was “as a transitional method of making students who use a language other than English proficient in English.” It also says that bilingual ballots were not going to be allowed and that there could not be bilingual education programs that were dedicated to maintaining the native language. This bill obviously was never carried through with and actually died in its first stages, but I didn’t even know that something like this was ever created. I find it funny though because even though that bill didn’t pass, there are currently so many things that are in two languages, like signs, menus, etc. I also enjoyed the quote by Donahue, “a common language benefits a country and its people. In our country this common bond is more important than in most because Americans continue to be diverse in origin, ethnicity, religion, and native culture.” I find this quote to be true. I find it sad that the United States doesn’t have an official language, but I don’t think that if an official language is established, that there should be no other languages allowed. I think that is a very unrealistic idea. Even though the US is a mixture of so many different cultures and religions just like the quote says, I think that an official language should at least be determined. I remember a few years ago when I first found out that English isn’t the official language of the United States, I was so confused, and I didn’t understand why it wasn’t considered the official language. I didn’t realize how much more complicated it is to determine an official language. I don’t think that determining an official language for our country would have an obvious positive impact, but I think it would be a much more indirect influence, but still very beneficial. Another controversial topic that the chapter discusses is the idea of bilingual education. I never knew how many people disagreed with it. The book states that the controversial part of bilingual education is the “role of the minority language.” It then goes on to say how some people view the goal of bilingualism to be monolingualism.” This is also a very sad idea in my opinion. I wonder if one of the reasons that I view bilingual education as a good thing is because I speak another language. I think that some people who only speak English may not fully understand the concept of bilingual education, and may see it as a bad thing that students are learning English while maintaining their native language. If this is true, this view needs to be changed. The article by Farr and Song talks about how most people think that when someone is bilingual, it means that they have “two linguistic systems,” seeing them as “double monolinguals with ideally equal competence in each language.” But a lot of times the two languages are mixed, and they tend to code-switch between the two languages.