From EFL to ELF: In the Need to Incorporate Principles of English as a Lingua Franca in Colombian ELT (original) (raw)
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From EFL to ELF - Reflective Article
Enletawa Journal, 2022
English as a lingua franca is a phenomenon that has been gaining importance in the last few years. In the international scenario, scholarly literature has already explored the possible benefits of incorporating ELF in the ELT field. In Colombia, however, the empirical and conceptual studies on this area are scarce. Keeping this in mind, this reflective article discusses the possibility of progressively incorporating ELF in the Colombian ELT. In the first place, what ELF is, is analyzed, and this and other terms that have been used to refer to this linguistic phenomenon are differentiated. Second, some of the areas that need to take into consideration (materials design, assessment practices, to mention a few) are presented if we want to integrate ELF in Colombian ELT. Finally, some conclusions are presented, as well as potential research scenarios regarding ELF
The socio-linguistic consequences of the current role of English in the world are reflected in the most recent research studies in the field of English as a Lingua Franca and of World Englishes. These studies bear significant implications for English language teaching and require both a careful rethinking and a new design in language planning, particularly in foreign/second language curricula, course-book and classroom materials and language tasks. The teaching of English should be oriented at fostering language and (inter)cultural awareness, as well as the use of effective communicative strategies in the classroom, in order to develop effective communicators in today’s world, where English is increasingly employed as a LF among speakers of different linguacultures. This contribution illustrates the shift in perspective required within a new WE and ELF aware approach in the ELT classroom and in teacher education courses. Exemplifications of teaching activities devised by ELT teachers in an in-service WE and ELF aware training course will also be described and discussed.
Language and Teaching Materials in ELT: An EIL Approach
e-Teals, 2013
| The current cultural, functional and linguistic multiplicity associated with the English language has led to the pressing need not only to reassess essential notions in English Language Teaching (ELT), but also to reconsider traditional pedagogical practices.
Reform is not an easy process. It is by and large slow and painful. As English proves to be an efficient tool in the international arena, it is essential that the significance of ELF (English as a Lingua Franca) awareness be reconsidered with particular reference to language policy development, syllabus design, and teacher development. It is essentially the skill that L2 learners should acquire to adapt into diverse situations. When the students who learn English as a foreign language in Turkey are considered, it could be seen that the real problem is not the different pronunciations and the different usages of the words but the different varieties of English that they are not aware of. Mostly, L2 learners have a strong desire to speak like a native speaker thus neglect the different usages, dialects and cultural norms of other Englishes. In addition to all these, a strong initiative for an extensive ELF curriculum including the application methods and techniques has yet to be introduced. Language teaching activities are carried out by using either American or British based course books that contain few local elements such as pictures and dialogues sprinkled throughout the chapters for marketing purposes. Sociocultural, local, historical and international aspects of English are mainly neglected. Taking all these into consideration, this study focused on ELF awareness in EFL (English as a Foreign Language) context in terms of language policy development, syllabus design, and teacher development. For this purpose, the study aimed to investigate what Turkish EFL teachers understand about ELF and how ELF-aware they are by means of a cross-sectional survey conducted with 19 participants. Semi-structured follow-up interviews were carried out with four instructors for the purpose of obtaining content analysis and thus bolstering the quantitative results to reach more precise conclusions pertaining to ELF awareness. On the whole, the results of the study revealed that although the transition from EFL teacher to ELF practitioner is not an easy task and clearly necessitates time and encouragement, making teachers aware of the 'plurality of Englishes' and the importance of multiculturalism proved to be valuable in encouraging them to revise their teaching practices within the new developments in English language teaching.
This article analyzes the importance of the L1 use in EFL classrooms and seeks answers to the question of when and how to use the mother tongue in EFL classrooms in Vietnam and all over the world. The paper begins with a glimpse in the historical sequence of the six most-recognized ELT approaches and methods, which will highlight periodic changes in the role of L1 in the L2 teaching. The article then looks at some interesting current trends in English language teaching methodology with reference to the context of Vietnam. Finally, the paper clarifies some benefits as well as disadvantages of using the L1 in the L2 classroom before coming up with the conclusion and recommendations in terms of how and when to use (or to allow the use of) the students' native language in the EFL classroom.
The main theme of the 50th ASOCOPI Conference held in 2015, was an opportunity to celebrate not only its accomplishments, but also to reflect on the situation of the English as a foreign language teaching and learning process in Colombia. The purpose of this article is to share with the readers the results of a study entitled “The History of Teaching English in Colombian High Schools: 1962-1994.” The report is based on a documentary analysis and on testimonies of key informants about such topics as: teaching planning, objectives, syllabi, methods, and materials, and their impact on the history of teaching English as a foreign language. Conclusions will be drawn at the end of the article.
CHALLENGING THE INTERLANGUAGE HYPOTHESIS The convergence of EFL and ELF in the English classroom
Lingue e Linguaggi, 2020
University presented the findings of their three-year study in a panel session entitled: English as a Lingua Franca: challenges and new paradigms for native and non-native teachers, insights from the language classrooms and implications for teacher education. 1 One of the main aims of this article is to show how possible it is to find a convergence between English as a foreign language (EFL) and English as a lingua franca (ELF) in second language education, by means of the learner's performance. This assumption is based on the author's critical analysis of the interlanguage hypothesis in English language teaching (ELT), seen through the lens of ELF theory. One of the fundamental tenets of this study is that today's plurilithic dimension of English as a global language entails a reconceptualization of the second-language learner's 'errors', which challenges the prescriptive role of standard English. Given the dynamics of English as a contact language, it is assumed that a more effective pedagogical approach should take into consideration the sociocognitive processes connected to language variability and the learner's linguacultural identity.