I attended a David Graddol presentation back in July and wrote up a posting on the stats he presented on the world learning English:
http://kalinago.blogspot.com/2009/10/gl ... glish.html
Also-- our role as TEFL Teachers in globalization:
http://kalinago.blogspot.com/2009/09/wh ... acher.html
Enjoy!
Karenne
The Globality of English
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woodcutter
- Posts: 1303
- Joined: Sat Jun 19, 2004 6:14 am
- Location: London
I will switch to the main enemy if I ever get the chance and teach Chinese. If the top dog ever changes the global language will change accordingly, by the way, after a while, "tough language" or not. (though no need for anglo-saxania to tremble yet).
One of the main attractions is that my skills will be fairly obvious without this kind of cheerleading talk, which is needed because most people think ESL teachers are basically unskilled and low on the food chain, there is some truth in that in some cases, and it isn't going to change. More importantly perhaps, about 80%? of the jobs going out there require tolerance of/fondness for the particular conditions as much as anything.
Isn't this style of writing essentially counter-productive? Who is actually going to read it and decide that ESL teachers are super-skilled wonders rather than people who feel the need to write such stuff? Who is not going to read it and worry that the snoring students in the back row of the 3.30 class are a product of their own lack of "passion"?
(and is it so great to force English down the throats of the planet anyway?)
One thing that is true about ESL, unfortunately, is that a teacher who routinely pours one hour of hard creative work into a ten minute class activity is going to do pretty well and get a shot at having a soap box. Only the stakhanovites need apply for teaching these days, and no room left for you to educate yourself.
It's funny though cos I personally try and minimize the work load as far as possible and yet I still seem to get called "well-prepared" compared to the other wondrous ESL warriors who get assessed at the same time.
One of the main attractions is that my skills will be fairly obvious without this kind of cheerleading talk, which is needed because most people think ESL teachers are basically unskilled and low on the food chain, there is some truth in that in some cases, and it isn't going to change. More importantly perhaps, about 80%? of the jobs going out there require tolerance of/fondness for the particular conditions as much as anything.
Isn't this style of writing essentially counter-productive? Who is actually going to read it and decide that ESL teachers are super-skilled wonders rather than people who feel the need to write such stuff? Who is not going to read it and worry that the snoring students in the back row of the 3.30 class are a product of their own lack of "passion"?
(and is it so great to force English down the throats of the planet anyway?)
One thing that is true about ESL, unfortunately, is that a teacher who routinely pours one hour of hard creative work into a ten minute class activity is going to do pretty well and get a shot at having a soap box. Only the stakhanovites need apply for teaching these days, and no room left for you to educate yourself.
It's funny though cos I personally try and minimize the work load as far as possible and yet I still seem to get called "well-prepared" compared to the other wondrous ESL warriors who get assessed at the same time.
Re: The Globality of English
This is a bit amateurish, don't you think?Karenne wrote:
Also-- our role as TEFL Teachers in globalization:
http://kalinago.blogspot.com/2009/09/wh ... acher.html
Enjoy!
Karenne
Really..?
Not quite what the comments would read or the twitterites...
If you don't need to be prompted into accepting a bit of professionalism about your profession but instead hide behind initials waiting to criticize those who enjoy this sort of thing... well horses for courses.
In the meantime, I'll continue on blogging for those that do.
And woodcutter - really, you actually question why bloggers are on their blogs and not in forums... perhaps because forums are too filled with too much random and anonymous negativity?
Karenne
Not quite what the comments would read or the twitterites...
If you don't need to be prompted into accepting a bit of professionalism about your profession but instead hide behind initials waiting to criticize those who enjoy this sort of thing... well horses for courses.
In the meantime, I'll continue on blogging for those that do.
And woodcutter - really, you actually question why bloggers are on their blogs and not in forums... perhaps because forums are too filled with too much random and anonymous negativity?
Karenne
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woodcutter
- Posts: 1303
- Joined: Sat Jun 19, 2004 6:14 am
- Location: London
Well, we can all slap each other on the back and say "everything works in the end" and say cheery things, or we can try and attempt serious conversations about language where assumptions are allowed to be challenged. This is where that ought to be done, and this forum has other sections where practical ideas are exchanged without too much of that, as you know.
Don't you think it is a bit much to intertwine the imperial master plan of English expansion with feel good messages about how fab English teachers are? Haven't you heard the term "killer language"?
Don't you think it is a bit much to intertwine the imperial master plan of English expansion with feel good messages about how fab English teachers are? Haven't you heard the term "killer language"?
No, we can do that and we can provide positive messages as well.
There are more than enough people walking around saying how crap everything is but doing jack about it.
http://www.tefl.net/alexcase/teaching/t ... e-on-tefl/
At the end of the day our destinies are in our own hands and I, for one, am totally sick of "talk, talk" and "whinge, whinge"
If you're serious about these issues, woodcutter, then start blogging abou them or join the Marxist ELF group - who want to create an alternate TEFL conference.
http://marxistelf.wordpress.com/
Regards,
Karenne
There are more than enough people walking around saying how crap everything is but doing jack about it.
http://www.tefl.net/alexcase/teaching/t ... e-on-tefl/
At the end of the day our destinies are in our own hands and I, for one, am totally sick of "talk, talk" and "whinge, whinge"
If you're serious about these issues, woodcutter, then start blogging abou them or join the Marxist ELF group - who want to create an alternate TEFL conference.
http://marxistelf.wordpress.com/
Regards,
Karenne
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woodcutter
- Posts: 1303
- Joined: Sat Jun 19, 2004 6:14 am
- Location: London
Marxism?!
I just think it is good to have an essentially neutral forum where people can whinge, praise or criticize as they see fit, and you get the views of the people who don't agree with you. There is plenty of all of that here. ESL literature is generally very positive about the status quo while the troops on the ground sing very different tunes, so I think a more realistic approach in the literature would be better.
I'm pretty happy to get roasted myself, since I more often run on about my pet issues until I get ignored. I wish more people liked proper discussions a bit more than they seem to, but as dead as this forum is now, I'm not sure I have ever seen a better environment in which I don't have to dance to the master's tune. English forums maybe, but the "guru" thing gets on my nerves, for one thing.
Anyway, again, my point is that English expansion has a down side and it shouldn't be written about in that way. Defend that or not here, as you see fit.
I just think it is good to have an essentially neutral forum where people can whinge, praise or criticize as they see fit, and you get the views of the people who don't agree with you. There is plenty of all of that here. ESL literature is generally very positive about the status quo while the troops on the ground sing very different tunes, so I think a more realistic approach in the literature would be better.
I'm pretty happy to get roasted myself, since I more often run on about my pet issues until I get ignored. I wish more people liked proper discussions a bit more than they seem to, but as dead as this forum is now, I'm not sure I have ever seen a better environment in which I don't have to dance to the master's tune. English forums maybe, but the "guru" thing gets on my nerves, for one thing.
Anyway, again, my point is that English expansion has a down side and it shouldn't be written about in that way. Defend that or not here, as you see fit.
While on the topic of ELF, EAL, and when the LF changes...
Just out of curiosity, does anyone else wonder why we keep coming up with new terms to describe the teaching of English?
From TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) and ESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) to ELT (English Language Teaching) and TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages), to the new buzz-words (or should I say buzz-acronyms) of EAL (English as an Additional Language) and ELF (English as a Lingua France). Although, I've never seen them with a T component. Is TEAL or TELF okay?
Um, anyway, so there are people who clearly don't think that 'EFL' or 'ESL' are suitable enough terms, and they're always trying to come up with more politically correct terms. What I'm wondering is, why haven't people realised that the political correctness is probably more inherent in the 'E' than in all the other letters.
As professional teachers are we limited to teaching English? As part of teacher training sessions, in order to demonstrate various techniques, I have taught spoken Hungarian, written Persian/Iranian/Farsi (which term is more correct?), and Mandarin Chinese. And I don't actually even speak/know any Hungarian or Persian/Iranian/Farsi. I probably pronounce the Hungarian way wrongly, but if my aims were really to teach it then I could use audio and audio-visual equipment and/or phonemic scripts to do it properly.
On top of that, there are millions and millions of language teachers out their right now teaching languages that are not English.
Wouldn't it be best to, instead of worrying about the PCness of the reasons for English teaching, instead worry about the PCness of the language being taught?
I vote for a new term, just to confuse new teachers even more. Which acronym sounds better?
TALAL - Teaching an Additional Language as an Additional Language
TALLF - Teaching an Additional Language as a Lingua Franca
ALT - Additional Language Teaching
From TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) and ESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) to ELT (English Language Teaching) and TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages), to the new buzz-words (or should I say buzz-acronyms) of EAL (English as an Additional Language) and ELF (English as a Lingua France). Although, I've never seen them with a T component. Is TEAL or TELF okay?
Um, anyway, so there are people who clearly don't think that 'EFL' or 'ESL' are suitable enough terms, and they're always trying to come up with more politically correct terms. What I'm wondering is, why haven't people realised that the political correctness is probably more inherent in the 'E' than in all the other letters.
As professional teachers are we limited to teaching English? As part of teacher training sessions, in order to demonstrate various techniques, I have taught spoken Hungarian, written Persian/Iranian/Farsi (which term is more correct?), and Mandarin Chinese. And I don't actually even speak/know any Hungarian or Persian/Iranian/Farsi. I probably pronounce the Hungarian way wrongly, but if my aims were really to teach it then I could use audio and audio-visual equipment and/or phonemic scripts to do it properly.
On top of that, there are millions and millions of language teachers out their right now teaching languages that are not English.
Wouldn't it be best to, instead of worrying about the PCness of the reasons for English teaching, instead worry about the PCness of the language being taught?
I vote for a new term, just to confuse new teachers even more. Which acronym sounds better?
TALAL - Teaching an Additional Language as an Additional Language
TALLF - Teaching an Additional Language as a Lingua Franca
ALT - Additional Language Teaching
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woodcutter
- Posts: 1303
- Joined: Sat Jun 19, 2004 6:14 am
- Location: London
The isolated vacuum in which English teaching exists is indeed absurd. Comparisons with the practices in other cultures are not idiot friendly though, since you have to discuss how the languages vary, and the masks would have to come off as the culturally arrogant communicationistas grappled with real victorian-style teaching values prescribed by real-live people, sometimes by people of colour from cute little countries.
The terms are generally supposed to be for accuracy in context, I suppose. But since I have spent 80% of my career doing EFL with an ESL book you have to wonder how much people really care about it deep down.
The terms are generally supposed to be for accuracy in context, I suppose. But since I have spent 80% of my career doing EFL with an ESL book you have to wonder how much people really care about it deep down.