Autoethonography in ELT: Transnational identities, pedagogies, and practices (original) (raw)

2021, The Journal of AsiaTEFL

The paradigm of English as an international language (EIL) has emerged in the field of English language teaching (ELT) (Marlina, 2018; Matsuda & Matsuda, 2018; McKay, 2003). While teaching EIL is considered a crucial component of English educational practices, little is known about English language teachers' reflections on teaching EIL, particularly in the Asian context. Hence, any relevant book examining EIL related pedagogical implications in Asia is highly welcome. The book The place of English as an International Language in English Language Teaching, Teachers' reflections edited by Phan Ngan Le Hai presents a thorough examination of EIL disciplines by exploring how English teachers perceive the teaching of EIL with a focus on Vietnam. It provides an insightful and updated overview of the emerging English teaching paradigm based on front-line English language teachers' reflections. The book is organised into six parts. In Part I (Chapters 1-2), the author presents an overview of English history and establishes its relevancy to the current status of English. Chapter 1 brings to the fore the need for a discussion of significant changes in English. Chapter 2 provides a discussion of English globally through multi-facet changes ranging from demographic, geographic to structural changes of English. The author reviews previous studies on teachers' and students' perceptions of English worldwide. Deriving from those findings, it is evident that English language teachers and learners need to raise their awareness of English varieties and recognise all varieties of English as equal. It is worthwhile for readers to understand how previous studies develop the various strands of scholarship on EIL concerning teachers' and students' perceptions of English. Part II (Chapters 3-4) adopts Sharifian's (2009) definition of EIL that does not refer to a single variety of English but emphasises that "English, with its many varieties, is a language of international, and therefore, intercultural communication" (p. 2) as the framework, and critically points out issues relating to teaching EIL, such as teaching models, the teaching of culture(s) and teaching materials. In Chapter 3, as a Vietnamese scholar, the author reconstructs EIL pedagogical approaches in the context of what Kachru (1985) terms as "Expanding Circle countries" and proposes that teaching EIL should make learners communicate with people from diverse lingual-cultural backgrounds, other than with English native speakers. Therefore, language teachers should be responsible for introducing varieties of English to learners. Chapter 4 presents the historical, cultural and sociolinguistic context of Vietnam, along with English development and current challenges ELT in Vietnam faces.