Week 12: Multilingual Practices

Chapter 2 from the McKay book identified issues in English teaching and learning in the Inner, Outer and Expanding Circles. The main problem in the Inner Circle is that language minority students are positioned as outsiders. Inner Circle countries view language diversity as a problem. To help their "problem" they have programs that are focusing on the acquisition of English with little emphasis on devloping the student's first language. This is a turn in the monolinguistic direction. This is causing students to lose their cultural identity and where they came from. In the Outer Circle, the need for English proficiency is growing and becoming more necessary for tertiary education. However there are practical problems arising from trying to develop academic literacy in both English and the national language. Since these students need English to receive higher education they are putting all of their effort into the English language. Lastly in the Expanding Circle, the fact that educators sometimes do not have sufficient proficiency in the English language which then causes a lack of teacher confidence. These educators also have a hard time motivating the students who do not see the purpose in learning the English language. I think that those teachers need to focus on the reason why TESOL classes exist and all of the benefits that comes from being biligual. As we talked about in previous weeks, the globalization of English continues to grow and raise issues about native and second languages.

In Chapter 3, it moves on to talk about multilingual countries characterized by diglossia. What I found most interesting was the fact that providing English education, alongside mother tongue languages is seen as an important feature of nationalist policy. There has also been growth in those who believe in monolingualism. I don't know how anyone can see the benefits of losing ethnic, cultural and linguistic diversity. This once again goes back to the idea of cultural identity. How could one want to lose their identity? What would the world be like if it were monolinguistic? Would any of the ethnic and cultural diversity still exist? Every  ethnicity is rich in culture and language. I am all for people learning two languages. But if they are going to take on a second language, I strongly suggest that they preserve their mother tongue, their native language. That is the benefit of speaking two languages, you can broaden the type of people you talk while expanding your cultural identity. Learning a language includes learning a culture as well. We need to learn to appreciate all that a language is. As English continues to spread, one of the major incentives of learning the lanague is for the purposes of citizenship and social and economic integration. I believe that the globalization of English is a good thing but can also be contributing to the death of languages.