Abstract
Although language is codified by grammar and style books, it is not bound by these books. However, many tend to conceptualize languages as bound systems, typically defined by national and state boundaries. Yet language is a fluid, living thing; therefore, a global lens embraces a heteroglossic ideology, where languages aren’t seen as bound systems belonging to nation states. This paper considers how institutions, such as education, can adopt a global perspective on the English language. We share data collected on the topics of Global Englishes and English as a Lingua Franca delivered in a 10th-grade classroom at an International School in the U.S. The data illustrate how this curriculum productively complicated students’ understanding of global language standards and the use of English in global spaces. Our results show an increase in student recognition of the negative impacts of standard English on global languages and cultures; and yet, curiously, we also observed a parallel increase in students’ desire for everyone to use a standard lingua franca in their daily and professional lives. After exploring the multidimensional spaces of Global Englishes, we argue that critical empathy needs to play a larger role in understanding the spread of English, even outside of educational contexts. Rather than using a lens of traditional empathy, which may be uncritical and unconscious, we will consider empathy as translation. Such empathy examines the social, political, and historical contexts in which English moves through the world.
Presenters
Michelle DevereauxAssociate Professor of English and English Education, English Department, Kennesaw State University, Georgia, United States Chris Palmer
Professor, English, Kennesaw State University, Georgia, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Vectors of Society and Culture
KEYWORDS
Global Englishes, Lingua Franca, Standardization, Education, Critical Empathy
