Search

The current research draws on the pragmatic approach to ELF initiated by Kecskes (2019), who proposes that temporary norms and routines are created during intercultural encounters and interactions. Based on the qualitative and quantitative analysis of collocate tokens that are strongly associated with the verb phrases of see, look, hear, listen, watch, and feel, retrieved from Asian and European ELF corpora, this study demonstrates the tendency to use similar lexical associative patterns among ELF interlocutors despite their distinct linguacultural backgrounds. An analysis of the lexical associations of the verb phrases in ELF and English Native Language (ENL) corpora further confirms that ELF speakers do not conform to ENL conventions; instead, they start to develop their own norms that are characterized by specific lexical associations and formulaic expressions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With its growing global visibility and usage, Chinese has evolved into a regional and emerging global lingua franca, spoken by a significant population of L1/L2 speakers. This study expanded world Englishes/English as a lingua franca research to explore language attitudes and identity across diverse English and Chinese varieties. It compared educated stakeholders' (university students/professionals) (N = 1481) attitudes towards different L1/L2 varieties of English and Putonghua/Mandarin in Hong Kong, where both languages play an essential role under its ‘biliterate, trilingual' language policy. Findings derived from the verbal-guise technique suggest a hierarchy exists in the status of these language varieties, with L1 English at the top. A further evaluation of these varieties in the status/solidarity dimension indicates that Hongkongers' identity construction may involve proficient/L1-based English and a Putonghua variety, including Hong Kong Putonghua. Furthermore, the findings underscore the dynamic nature of language attitudes depending on contexts, pointing to a greater acceptance of L2 English and Putonghua/Mandarin varieties in less formal/more interactional L2-L2 communication. They also show a potential relationship between language attitudes and one's working experience/awareness. The paper argues that adopting a pluricentric framework to (re)conceptualise Chinese can provide valuable insights into its role in multilingual societies, identity construction, and Chinese language education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the representation of cultures across three sets of national English textbooks currently used in China by conducting a synchronic content analysis to explore what and how cultures are represented in the textbooks. Data analysis was conducted based on a newly constructed framework focusing on the content (countries and categories) and forms of cultural representation. Our findings mainly indicated that American and British culture dominated in the culture of inner circle countries and international culture was represented the least in all three textbooks, while Chinese culture was represented more than the cultures of inner circle countries in two sets of textbooks. As for cultural categories, the representation of cultural products was the most, and cultural perspectives and cultural communities were represented the least in all three sets of textbooks. Regarding the form of cultural representation, the cultural representation in implicit forms was, to varying degrees, more than that in explicit forms. Based on the findings, suggestions for English as a foreign language (EFL) textbook writers, EFL teachers and textbook researchers are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contributes to our conceptualization of linguistic identities in English as a lingua franca (ELF) communication by analyzing a group of multilingual international students' narrativized accounts of their ELF communication experiences in an international university in Hong Kong. The findings of the study indicate that despite their status as L2 speakers, the participants considered themselves as legitimate speakers of English when interacting with others through ELF. Moreover, they oriented to their national cultural identities and personal identities indexed through their accents in ELF communication. Their frequent use of ELF with other students from diverse linguacultural backgrounds also prompted them to identify positively with a local ELF-using community and envision their imagined identities as members of a global ELF-using community. The findings further reveal that the participants' ELF communication experiences opened up a space for them to take on new and alternative L2-speaking personal identities which they perceived to be markedly different from and more desirable than their L1-based selves. Overall, the analysis provides empirical support for applying a tripartite model of linguistic identity for understanding ELF communication experiences and calls attention to the multidimensional nature of linguistic identities and the interrelatedness between different dimensions of linguistic identities in ELF communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the speech act of refusals in the context of English as a lingua franca (ELF), with a focus on the strategies, internal modifications, and preference organization of refusals. Fifteen Chinese speakers of English and 15 Indonesian English speakers engaged in dyadic role-plays involving requests and refusals. Results show that when rejecting requests proposed by the Indonesian participants, Chinese English speakers heavily used indirect refusal strategies, such as explanations, alternatives, and apologies. These refusals often included internal modifications, particularly linguistic downgraders, to mitigate the force of their refusals. Sequentially, Chinese English speakers commonly organized their refusals as dispreferred, deferring the refusals via a cluster of interactional devices, including inter-turn gaps, turn-initial delays, anticipatory accounts, and pro forma agreements. The findings suggest that ELF refusals and ELF interactions are not necessarily direct with minimal mitigation as claimed in previous research (e.g., House, 2008; Murray, 2012), and ELF speakers, at least for Chinese English speakers, do linguistically and interactionally engage with interpersonal work despite the generally preferred communicative style of transparency and directness in ELF interactions. Based on the findings, pedagogical implications on ELF pragmatics instruction are also discussed. • Refusals by Chinese English speakers in ELF interactions are usually indirect with internal modifications. • Refusals by Chinese English speakers in ELF interactions are structured as dispreferred with deferred refusal head acts. • ELF refusals and ELF interactions are not necessarily direct and less mitigated. • ELF speakers do engage in interpersonal management work via linguistic and interactional meanings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Brazilian higher education institutions, English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) courses and workshops play a key role in helping professors to rethink their methodology and their concepts of language, especially regarding English conceived as a lingua franca. In an attempt to bring a local perspective for EMI, this paper examines university professors' representations on an online EMI course for professors from nine public universities in Paraná. It is grounded on the concept of representation from critical discourse analysis. The results reveal the beliefs and motivations of the participants concerning EMI in Brazil. The motivations for EMI were related to language use/practice; the status of English in the world and in the scientific scenario or field of study; and internationalization reasons. On the other hand, the challenges were associated with language aspects and students' participation. In relation to the online course, results indicated that there were more potentialities than limitations and that the course had an impact on the resignification of concepts, especially related to English as a Lingua Franca as this perspective has the potential to transform professors' views on language conception and use of Portuguese in the classes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Language choice or preference, that is the deliberate selection of language(s) for different purposes in different contexts, situations and domains, is a complex sociolinguistic phenomenon as it is usually motivated by numerous sociolinguistic factors. This study investigates language choice between Arabic and English during automated teller machine (ATM) transactions in Dubai, a cosmopolitan city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and aims at exploring the factors influencing these preferences. The data were collected, using a survey questionnaire, from 566 ATM users in Dubai. The findings reveal that nearly all non-Arab participants favor English over Arabic for ATM transactions, irrespective of their length of stay in the country and their proficiency level in English and Arabic, given that Dubai ATMs offer only these two languages. On the other hand, Arab participants, including UAE nationals and Arab expatriates, tend to use Arabic more frequently than English. However, those residing in Dubai show a greater preference for English compared to those living outside Dubai. Additional factors such as age, gender, level of education, occupation, and comfort with technology were also investigated. This research illuminates the prevalent use and elevated status of English in Dubai, affirming its significance among both native and non-native Arabic speakers. Furthermore, it offers insight into the linguistic resources employed by individuals in transactional exchanges, contributing to our understanding of the complex relationship between language contact, language attitudes, language choice, and technology adoption within a multilingual urban setting. The findings underscore the importance of examining linguistic preferences within specific subdomains of multilingual communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses a study conducted in Japan on Japanese first-year tertiary learners' attitudes towards English language learning models. The study found that participants had a strong preference for native English speakers and negative views of localized Englishes. However, they were more likely to choose Japanese people as their ideal speaking models, with perceived personality being a major factor in their attitudes. The study also highlighted the importance of Japanese teachers' confidence in their own Englishes. The article provides insights into Japanese learners' perceptions of English and their preferences for language models. [Extracted from the article]

This classroom study evaluates the effectiveness of pre-teaching communication strategies before learners undertake an information-gap speaking task. A convenience sample of 67 first-year students taking mandatory English classes at a private Japanese university was subject to one of two instructional approaches. The experimental group (n=37) undertook a pre-task communication strategy awareness activity coupled with a video modeling the ensuing information-gap task and communication strategies, while the control group (n=30) received no pre-task training. An analysis of speaking times, task worksheets and audio recordings of conversations indicated that the experimental group significantly outperformed the control group in task accuracy and communicative efficiency. In addition, a review of experimental group conversations indicated that most participants implemented the six targeted communicative strategies multiple times throughout the speaking task. Major implications for foreign language teachers include the value of pre-task modeling and communication strategies awareness-raising to help learners overcome disconnects in communicative tasks. Further, this study demonstrates the utility of information-gap speaking tasks for: (a) practicing communicative strategies; and (b) developing learners' communicative competencies for real-world English as a lingua franca contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last few decades, the English language has become prevalent throughout the world in the domains of international diplomacy, business, research, and technology and is becoming increasingly important in many other areas. Much research into the use of English as a lingua franca has focused on its role in fostering communication across linguistic and cultural boundaries. Recently, however, concerns have been raised about the additional cognitive load that having to function in a non-native language can place on interlocutors. In an international survey, 883 professional language mediators (i.e., translators, conference interpreters, and community interpreters) provided details about their experiences dealing with the English produced by native vs. non-native speakers and identified features and difficulties associated with processing the respective input as well as their coping strategies. Although they acknowledged that both native and non-native speakers produce English that is difficult to deal with, the language mediators largely agreed that the latter were much more likely to do so, with vocabulary use, word choices, and sentence structures identified as particularly problematic. The main coping strategies for all three groups were to really concentrate on the message being conveyed, try to improve the formulation of it for the target audience, and intervene in the communication situation for clarification if possible. Self-regulation and reliance on information external to the situation were also mentioned as very important. Although almost half of the participants said that they preferred to work with native speaker produced output, many expressed no preference. The study results have important implications for various situations involving nonnative speakers of the language being used for communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores, through narrative inquiry, the acquisition and use of English as a lingua franca in the careers of three transnationally mobile managers in the global hotel and hospitality industry. The narratives presented here are interwoven with the context in which the multinational participants were situated at the time of the study: the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which is diversifying economically and socially in preparation for the post-fossil fuel era. In a country where the temporary immigrant population outumbers national citizens, participants' situated language practices are explored through narratives of their multilingual and translingual repertoires, while focusing on English as a key resource for their self-initiated transnational mobility. These personal stories of the acquisition and use of English as a global language weave a linguacultural web that connects the Gulf region across global space, people, and time. Participants tell of the utility of English for their careers, their multilingual repertoires, and their enjoyment of their temporary working lives in the Emirates. Such voices are seldom heard in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractGlobalisation and internationalisation have significantly shaped the global status of English as a lingua franca (ELF). Recently, it has been argued that ELF should be understood from a multilingual perspective in English-medium instruction (EMI) education. Although EMI policy and practice have been examined and discussed in scholarship, an examination of ELF in relation to EMI is essential for bridging the gap between the policy and practice level of EMI. This qualitative study unpacked the study-abroad ELF experiences and needs for support of Chinese pre-service English language teachers after their first month of postgraduate teacher education study at a Scottish university. After thematic analysis of the focus group data, the findings revealed participants’ negativity in their daily and academic ELF experiences, though limited positive ELF experiences existed. Participants called for extra-curricular activities, a more engaging and communicative pedagogy in EMI classroom, and international student diversification and engagements with peer support in international universities. They urged curriculum innovation in English and intercultural communication education. This study sheds light on the development of curriculum, language policy, and student support in international universities. The paper ends with further insights into ELF experiences in a broader context where ELF is intertwined with EMI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there is a body of research on the teacher first language (L1) use in English-medium-instruction (EMI) classrooms, very little research has probed into how international students perceive local teacher L1 use and their learning practices in the English as a lingua franca (ELF) context. To address the gap, the present case study explored a cohort of Chinese international students' attitudes toward German-native teacher's L1 use in EMI classes at two universities in Germany. A mixed-methods approach was adopted through a student questionnaire and semi-structured interviews with Chinese postgraduate students from different majors. Results of quantitative and qualitative analyses revealed the attitudinal complexities of participants toward local teachers switching to German in EMI. Besides, Chinese students employed different learning strategies to deal with language-related challenges. Notably, participants highlight English as the most effective lingua franca. Nonetheless, they allow German to be conditionally used in certain circumstances without causing comprehensibility problems, such as telling German jokes, chatting with German students, or talking about trivial topics. Furthermore, the multifaceted understanding of language uses by Chinese international students offers insights to conceptualisations of language and EMI policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Functional Load (FL) principle predicts that a high FL phonemic substitution lowers the intelligbility more than a low FL phonemic substitution. However, as yet no study has comprehensively investigated whether contextual information could attenuate any loss of intelligibility due to FL phonemic substitutions. As such, this study investigates the triangular relationship among the FL principle, word level intelligibility, and contextual information within a sentence. A Chinese speaker of English recorded sentences with more and with less contextual information that also had words with no FL substitutions, low FL substitutions, and high FL substitutions. Japanese university students transcribed the missing words from each sentence. The central hypothesis of this study is that missing words with more contextual information within their sentences will be more intelligible than missing words with less contextual information, regardless of any FL substitution. The results supported some of the hypotheses of this study, but not all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a systematic review of studies investigating teachers' and learners' beliefs about English varieties, World Englishes, English as an international language (EIL), and English as a lingua franca (ELF). A total of 122 empirical studies published in international peer-reviewed journals from 2000 to 2023 were selected and analyzed. Results revealed that the majority of the studies (n = 93) were conducted in Expanding Circle countries. Moreover, 48% of the selected studies utilized mixed-methods research as their research design and used interviews and questionnaires as their main data collection methods. Regarding participants, learners' beliefs were probed in 69 studies while 44 of the studies explored teachers' beliefs, and only nine studies investigated the beliefs of both groups. Finally, more than 90% of the participants in these studies showed strong preferences for native varieties of English, especially American English. The findings bear implications for policies, materials, and teaching practices to represent different English varieties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated non-English major students' (N = 322) perceptions of non-standard lexico-grammatical features of English often considered to be acceptable when those without a common first language use English as a lingua franca to facilitate communication. The participants were recruited from diverse national origins (n = 18) studying in various majors (n= 31). A five-point Likert scale questionnaire was administered to students, asking them to rate the items according to how acceptable or unacceptable they considered them to be. According to the results, the students found just two of the items unacceptable; for the remaining items (n = 11) they expressed no strong opinion. This would seem to suggest a degree of ambivalence: on one hand the students in this study were reasonably tolerant of most of the targeted features, but on the other they held back from being openly accepting. Implications of these findings for teaching practice will be discussed with suggestions for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores three multilingual strategies to bridge the lack of a shared first language as they are used during performance appraisal interviews, namely English as a business lingua franca, receptive multilingualism, and a lay interpreter. The study is based on authentic video-recorded performance appraisal interviews at a globally active Belgian company, and follow-up interviews with the managers. The analysis focuses on how the company deals with multilingualism from a management perspective, how the managers perceive these multilingual strategies from a language ideological perspective, and how these language ideological beliefs shape the language practices of the performance appraisal interviews. We conclude that this study provides novel insights into how globalized companies deal with multilingualism in the highstakes and potentially sensitive interactional context of a performance appraisal interview by underlining the intertwined nature of language ideological beliefs and language practices as part of a broader multilingual language management strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This qualitative case study examines factors affecting ELT teachers' culture teaching practices in an English language classroom of a private school in Bangkok, Thailand. The data were collected within five months through classroom observations, pre- and post-interviews and document archives, with the participation of six Thai teachers and one South African teacher teaching at the lower secondary level. The research shows that teachers' pedagogical practices are affected by both internal and external factors, including the influence of Standard English ideology among Thai people on the school's administration and policy. Nonetheless, teachers themselves are the most decisive factor in implementing intercultural education. Their cognition primarily dictates what culture should be taught as well as how to teach culture. Therefore, the study demonstrates the way ELT teachers integrate culture into their classroom, and explains how their teaching and learning experience, especially within teacher education and professional development contexts, profoundly impact their practices in teaching culture and intercultural communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The previous decades have witnessed an increased level of mobility and subsequently a great exchange of communication and contacts among citizens of the world. The impact of increased interaction due to globalization has become evident in the field of education where the need for educators to prepare students as future global citizens is greater than ever before. Academic interest has been seen in relation to the relevance of global identity and language teaching and learning which coincides with the rise of English as a Lingua Franca. This paper examines students' attitudes towards the use of English in and out of the classroom context and their perceptions on global citizenship and global identity notions. The data collection tool was focus group discussions. The data were collected after online meetings with three focus groups consisting of high school students in the periphery of Serres, Greece. The results reveal an important differentiation between the use of English in and out of the school setting while the presence of students' different forms of global identities in their everyday life strongly suggests a need to take them into serious consideration in the English language classroom. Finally, the connection revealed between global identities and ELF constitutes the former a promising perspective towards a more ELF-aware teaching through materials adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents insights from two interview studies with the aim of shedding light on the learning potential of studying abroad in an area where English is used as a lingua franca. The majority of previous research on study abroad focuses on students' experiences of studying abroad in target-language regions, for example learners of English studying abroad in English-speaking countries. To date, the learning potential of spending time in English as a lingua franca (ELF) contexts remains an under-researched area. The present paper draws on two separate interview studies that have been conducted with five Turkish and five Swiss study abroad students that stayed in different European ELF contexts as part of their studies at higher education institutions. The data suggests that even though the participants still partially adhere to native speaker norms, they also discuss a number of characteristics of English as a lingua franca study abroad (ELFSA) contexts that they deem conducive to learning English and enhancing their plurilingual competences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the relationship between study abroad through the Erasmus Programme, European identity, and the role of English as a Lingua Franca in identification processes with Europe. It focuses on three groups of European higher-education students (N = 155) from different nationalities (N = 26) that participated in a sojourn abroad in three European contexts which are thought to represent Northern (Oulu, Finland); Eastern (Bucharest, Romania); and Southern (Lleida, Catalonia) Europe. The study follows a PRE–POST design, corresponding to the beginning and end of the participants’ experience abroad and it analyses quantitative data collected through questionnaires. The results of the study indicate that contrary to what is claimed by the European Commission, studying abroad through the Erasmus programme does not have a substantial impact on the development of an alleged European identity. These results contrast with those on the value that the participants allocated to the English language, which is perceived as a means that unifies European youth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing use of English in higher education around the world has prompted a large amount of research into the causes, effects and perceptions of this phenomenon, particularly relating to the introduction of English-medium instruction. While most previous research has focussed on institutions that have effectively 'added' English to existing teaching programmes, this paper investigates attitudes towards and experience of the presence and use of English in a somewhat different context: the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano (unibz), which, since its creation in 1997, has offered teaching in English alongside the two local languages, German and Italian. This plurilingual approach, enshrined in the university statue, is explored through a thematic analysis of oral interviews with members of the unibz community (both staff and students). While some of the themes identified in the analysis mirror issues raised in studies of institutions elsewhere, a number of novel themes are also discussed and the overall picture to emerge is of a university whose language policy is relatively stable in terms of both acceptance and implementation, perhaps by virtue of the fact that a plurilingual approach has been adopted and supported since the university's creation and has always been a key part of its identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates Asian exchange students’ friendship development in European countries where English functions as a lingua franca. It offers an in-depth analysis of the experiences of three Taiwanese university students who exhibited varying degrees of success in friendship formation during their study exchanges there: one was successful, another was not, and the third experienced moderate success. Data were collected through pre-, during-, and post-sojourn interviews, supplemented by online correspondence between interviews. Analyzing the data using Coleman’s concentric circles model of study abroad social networks and Bourdieu’s concepts of habitus and capital, this study delineates the differing trajectories of the students’ friendship development and identifies the factors contributing to these diverse outcomes. The findings underscore the importance of possessing personal dispositions that resonate with those of peers, and also effectively utilising linguistic and cultural resources, for fostering intercultural friendships. These insights have implications for educational institutions involved in sending and hosting exchange students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study reports bilingual international students' communicative strategies to preempt and resolve English as a lingua franca (ELF) miscommunication in an English-medium virtual learning program offered by an international university in times of the global pandemic. Drawing upon 18 hours of Zoom recordings and supplementary ethnographic data, this study follows a spatial orientation [Canagarajah, S. 2018a. "The Unit and Focus of Analysis in Lingua Franca English Interactions: In Search of a Method." International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism 21 (7): 805–824. doi:10.1080/13670050.2018.1474850] to analyze international students' polysemiotic meaning-making practices for virtual communicative effectiveness. Key findings highlight the students' explicitness-raising strategic moves such as indexing and reflexive pointing, repetitive highlighting, visual contrasting mediated by the mouse cursor and screen-based resources while navigating moments of (potential) miscommunication. To remedy and preempt understanding problems, they coordinate and align polysemiotic spatial repertoires across expansive spatiotemporal scales to enhance the clarity of potentially ambiguous referents, communicative topics, and key information. This study advances current understanding of bi/multilinguals' polysemiotic translingual pragmatic ability for communicative success in lingua franca scenarios, and provides implications that help prepare international higher education for effective virtual communication, teaching, and learning in the post-pandemic digital era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Language & Intercultural Communication is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The teaching practicum, a psychologically demanding phase of professional development, yields diverse self-efficacy outcomes for pre-service teachers. While it is crucial to view the practicum as a cornerstone for shaping teaching beliefs, there exists a research gap in understanding its influence on the self-efficacy of pre-service English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) teachers in East Asia and delving into the cognitive processes during this period. This mixed-methods study (n = 18) aimed to address this gap. The quantitative results revealed an overall increase in participants' self-efficacy, notably in classroom management. The qualitative findings uncovered challenges faced by those with lower self-efficacy, particularly when discrepancies arose with mentor teachers over teaching English through a communicative approach. Conversely, individuals with linguistically and culturally diverse pre-practicum experiences exhibited resilience while maintaining robust beliefs about their own teaching. The findings suggest the necessity for tailored teacher preparation programs aiming at nurturing a multilingual perspective through interaction in English as a lingua franca. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines L2 speakers' accent attitudes in relation to their linguistic profile and current practices, recruiting 107 multilingual postgraduate students of 34 different nationalities enrolled in leading research universities in Japan. The participants completed a survey regarding their perceptions of different English varieties in English as a lingua franca (ELF) contexts. Interviews were additionally conducted to solicit in-depth perspectives on their accent attitudes and contextual accent variation. Factor analysis of the survey data generally supported the thematic trends observed during the interviews, in which three-quarters of the interviewees expressed a wish to attain native-like English accents. However, those who aspire to native-like pronunciation do not necessarily maintain negative attitudes towards others who speak with foreign accents. Rather, they appear indifferent to others' accents and varieties of World Englishes, and they do not associate their accents with nationhood or cultural identity. Thematic analysis of the interview data revealed that participants' pressing need to sound native-like stems from not only pragmatic considerations such as better intelligibility but also their context specificities, which entail frequent high-stakes ELF interaction and arrangements for professional entry in the imminent future. These observations imply that a linguistic hierarchy still lingers in the World Englishes paradigm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

European Union (EU) institutions are highly multilingual environments where international communication is very goal-oriented, as they produce and define policies and regulations applied to all member states. This paper aims at exploring how disagreements and conflicting opinions are conveyed in such contexts through the qualitative analysis of debates in recorded meetings of the European Parliament Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety. Two meetings from two different parliamentary terms (2014–2019 and 2019–2024) will be analyzed. The study will adopt a pragma-rhetorical approach, drawing on studies on politeness and conversation analysis techniques and focusing especially on the management of Face Threatening Acts in English turns. Attention will also be paid to language choice, codeswitching, and to the international use of English. Results show that conflict and overt disagreements in the data are very rare, with speakers displaying instead careful mitigation of the language used, especially when English is employed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Erasmus+ experiences are shown to impact students' beliefs and values, offering exposure to English in daily life. This qualitative exploratory case study investigates how Erasmus+ mobility affects Turkish English as a foreign language (EFL) high school students' conceptualization of English learning and use in other EFL contexts in Europe between 2020 and 2022 by encompassing the English as a lingua franca (ELF) perspective. The theoretical framework in the study is sociocultural theory. The data, collected via semi-structured interviews and reflective journals, were analyzed via grounded theory. The findings revealed that three students out of four favored ELF with the emerging themes of criticality, intercultural awareness and competence, glocalization, and communicative competence, while one student persisted in keeping the normative EFL mindset. Pedagogical implications are discussed in the light of Erasmus+ mobilities and ELF intersection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes the development of an instrument designed to measure language learners' attitudes toward native and non-native speakers, and localized Englishes, which may have been shaped by the continued prevalence of the native speaker model of English (NSM) in their learning context. After reviewing the literature regarding the NSM in relation to both teachers and learners, the article describes the development process, including two large administrations, to first-year tertiary students in Japan. Principal component analysis was used with data from a large pilot study (N = 610) to reduce the number of items, providing a shorter instrument that was administered to a separate group of 568 learners. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted on the resulting data to create an instrument containing three factors describing different aspects of learners' attitudes. Finally, these factors were analyzed for reliability with Cronbach's alpha and inter-item correlation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Language choice or preference, that is the deliberate selection of language(s) for different purposes in different contexts, situations and domains, is a complex sociolinguistic phenomenon as it is usually motivated by numerous sociolinguistic factors. This study investigates language choice between Arabic and English during automated teller machine (ATM) transactions in Dubai, a cosmopolitan city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and aims at exploring the factors influencing these preferences. The data were collected, using a survey questionnaire, from 566 ATM users in Dubai. The findings reveal that nearly all non-Arab participants favor English over Arabic for ATM transactions, irrespective of their length of stay in the country and their proficiency level in English and Arabic, given that Dubai ATMs offer only these two languages. On the other hand, Arab participants, including UAE nationals and Arab expatriates, tend to use Arabic more frequently than English. However, those residing in Dubai show a greater preference for English compared to those living outside Dubai. Additional factors such as age, gender, level of education, occupation, and comfort with technology were also investigated. This research illuminates the prevalent use and elevated status of English in Dubai, affirming its significance among both native and non-native Arabic speakers. Furthermore, it offers insight into the linguistic resources employed by individuals in transactional exchanges, contributing to our understanding of the complex relationship between language contact, language attitudes, language choice, and technology adoption within a multilingual urban setting. The findings underscore the importance of examining linguistic preferences within specific subdomains of multilingual communities.

This study explores the public perception of Chinese fansubbers in an English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) world. The analysis draws from a survey gathering both quantitative and qualitative data from 327 respondents. In an ELF world, Chinese audiences have demonstrated increasing linguistic competence in their appreciation of fansubbing, which has in turn enhanced their language acquisition. While fansubbers are often seen as amateur translators when compared with their professional counterparts, this study suggests that this distinction, already somewhat blurred within academic discourse, is of little concern to the public. In addition to their role as translators, fansubbers are perceived as cultural brokers and language educators who not only teach but also inspire a new generation of viewers to engage with foreign languages, cultures and translation. The public perception of Chinese fansubbers extends beyond translation quality to include broader and more positive attributes. The findings lead to a new understanding of the social impact of fansubbers.

The purpose of this article is to show how English teachers have integrated the concept of interculturality and how they have affected the teaching of English in an intercultural university in southeastern Mexico. Based on the contributions of the ELF approach, biographical interviews with five English teachers were analyzed to explore their discourses on the educational model and its relationship with the sociocultural context of the Yucatan Peninsula. Interviews were analyzed through discourse analysis and three categories were obtained by which teachers make sense of their current professional practice: (1) the creation of intercultural relationships, (2) the interculturalization of ELT, and (3) discursive tensions towards an intercultural approach. Different positions and definitions about interculturality and its implications in the English classroom were found. Through an ELF approach, emphasis is placed on taking advantage of the diversity present in the classroom to develop intercultural awareness. It also explores the need to pay attention to communicative needs rather than continuing with traditional communication patterns and developing critical thinking in their students.

Over the last few decades, the English language has become prevalent throughout the world in the domains of international diplomacy, business, research, and technology and is becoming increasingly important in many other areas. Much research into the use of English as a lingua franca has focused on its role in fostering communication across linguistic and cultural boundaries. Recently, however, concerns have been raised about the additional cognitive load that having to function in a non-native language can place on interlocutors. In an international survey, 883 professional language mediators (i.e., translators, conference interpreters, and community interpreters) provided details about their experiences dealing with the English produced by native vs. non-native speakers and identified features and difficulties associated with processing the respective input as well as their coping strategies. Although they acknowledged that both native and non-native speakers produce English that is difficult to deal with, the language mediators largely agreed that the latter were much more likely to do so, with vocabulary use, word choices, and sentence structures identified as particularly problematic. The main coping strategies for all three groups were to really concentrate on the message being conveyed, try to improve the formulation of it for the target audience, and intervene in the communication situation for clarification if possible. Self-regulation and reliance on information external to the situation were also mentioned as very important. Although almost half of the participants said that they preferred to work with native speaker produced output, many expressed no preference. The study results have important implications for various situations involving non-native speakers of the language being used for communication.

This paper explores, through narrative inquiry, the acquisition and use of English as a lingua franca in the careers of three transnationally mobile managers in the global hotel and hospitality industry. The narratives presented here are interwoven with the context in which the multinational participants were situated at the time of the study: the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which is diversifying economically and socially in preparation for the post-fossil fuel era. In a country where the temporary immigrant population outumbers national citizens, participants’ situated language practices are explored through narratives of their multilingual and translingual repertoires, while focusing on English as a key resource for their self-initiated transnational mobility. These personal stories of the acquisition and use of English as a global language weave a linguacultural web that connects the Gulf region across global space, people, and time. Participants tell of the utility of English for their careers, their multilingual repertoires, and their enjoyment of their temporary working lives in the Emirates. Such voices are seldom heard in the literature.

This paper presents insights from two interview studies with the aim of shedding light on the learning potential of studying abroad in an area where English is used as a lingua franca. The majority of previous research on study abroad focuses on students’ experiences of studying abroad in target-language regions, for example learners of English studying abroad in English-speaking countries. To date, the learning potential of spending time in English as a lingua franca (ELF) contexts remains an under-researched area. The present paper draws on two separate interview studies that have been conducted with five Turkish and five Swiss study abroad students that stayed in different European ELF contexts as part of their studies at higher education institutions. The data suggests that even though the participants still partially adhere to native speaker norms, they also discuss a number of characteristics of English as a lingua franca study abroad (ELFSA) contexts that they deem conducive to learning English and enhancing their plurilingual competences.

English textbooks are the major learning resources for Taiwanese students to gain access to the target language. This study examines the English textbooks used in senior high schools (Grade 10 to Grade 12) in Taiwan from the perspective of English as a lingua franca (ELF). To prepare students to use English for international communication, it is worthwhile to examine how English textbooks incorporate an ELF orientation. Through textbook analysis, I investigated the following questions: (1) how the English textbooks used in senior high schools in Taiwan integrate an ELF perspective, and (2) how ELF attributes are manifested in the textbooks through various subject matter, exercises, and activities. The study finds that the examined textbooks partially incorporated an ELF orientation, and the ELF attributes were manifested to different extents. The main ELF attributes in the textbooks were helping learners understand the use of ELF and encouraging English use in relation to learners’ experiences and localities. Additionally, the study reveals that the ELF attributes were displayed in various types of activities and exercises, while the subject matter of the textbook units covered a wide range of topics. In light of the findings, I make suggestions for the development of ELF-oriented textbooks at the senior high school level, such as helping English learners to understand the use of ELF by introducing English varieties, encouraging the use of intercultural communication strategies, taking into account of learners’ experience in learning English, and promoting learners’ awareness of ELF.

The practice of Corrective Feedback (CF), which is situated within a Second Language Acquisition (SLA) Paradigm, is currently positioned towards an accuracy-orientated delivery based on native speaker norms. This is despite the recognition in different areas of linguistic research that there is considerable variation in the way that English is spoken around the world. This paper argues that the epistemological assumptions and methodological approaches to investigate CF within an SLA paradigm have various underlying weaknesses that undermine research findings. These findings purport to provide support for an accuracy-orientated CF in the English classroom. However, it is suggested in this paper that a meaning-orientated CF would be more reflective and beneficial for students given the transformative changes that have occurred to English over the past 30 years. This perspective is discussed in relation to one teacher's approach to CF who participated in a larger project which examined CF conducted in a British-Sino University. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rise of English as a lingua franca (ELF), a means of communication between people who do not share the same mother tongue, has prompted a shift from traditional teaching to ELF-aware teaching. For teachers to act as potential agents of change, their self-efficacy beliefs become a determining variable for the successful implementation of change in class. This paper aims to address the role that teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs play in determining their decision-making to adopt ELF-aware teaching practices. A total of 951 Greek teachers of English responded to a questionnaire whose purpose was twofold: (i) to check if English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers incorporate practices that are compatible with the ELF perspective, and (ii) to uncover if higher-level self-efficacy beliefs on classroom management, student engagement, and instructional strategies would entice them to adopt ELF-aware practices in their classes. With the help of statistical tools, we found 10 items that form an ELF index, a unidimensional scale that is associated with ELF-aware teaching approaches. Our analysis shows that higher levels of teachers’ self-efficacy are indeed associated with higher values on the ELF index. However, it seems that significant variations emerge when emphasis is placed on the extent to which each of the three dimensions of self-efficacy affects the ELF index. This finding bears implications for the steps needed to be taken towards enhancing teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs that would lead to the implementation of ELF-aware teaching approaches in their EFL classes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of pre-service English Language Teacher Education is crucial to help the new generation of English teachers bridge the gap between theoretical discussions in the field of ELF and classroom practice. With this in mind, the aim of this paper is to present some findings from two ongoing PhD research studies on ELF awareness in teacher education. The investigations were carried out in two different public universities in the state of Bahia, Brazil. They both aim at identifying the way future English teachers perceive the teaching of English under an ELF perspective. The literature used to support and direct both studies is based on works of researchers affiliated with recent ELF studies, such as Sifakis et al. (2018); Bayyurt and Sifakis (2015, 2017), Gimenez et al. (2015a, 2015b, 2018), among others. One investigation is action research and the other one is an ethnographic study. Data came from both micro-teaching conducted by participants with their peers and presentation of teaching sequences in which they had the opportunity to integrate their evolving understanding of ELF and its implications into practical teaching activities. The way the student teachers translated ELF theories into teaching steps suggested signs of critical reorientation of their beliefs toward ELT and English use, demonstrating that they are open to integrate ELF into their future experiences both in the classroom and in real-life contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an era where English is the global lingua franca, academic writing has transformed significantly. This manuscript explores academic writing in English as a lingua franca (ELF) contexts, tracing the journey of English from colonization to lingua franca status and contextualizing it within evolving paradigms of English and language teaching worldwide. We delve into ELF research, where English plays a multifaceted role as a resource for multilingual communication. Our examination encompasses ELF’s definitions, diverse users, and English as a multilingual franca. Our focus shifts to academic writing practices within ELF contexts, scrutinizing unique challenges and opportunities arising from linguistic diversity, cultural nuances, and communication strategies. Through a review of existing studies on academic writing in ELF contexts, we offer practical insights for educators, researchers, and students navigating this realm. This manuscript guides readers through the intricate world of academic writing in the globalized domain of English as a lingua franca. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article points out that what have become conventional, 'standard', multilingual, public signs do not seem to be appropriate for establishing Japan as a tourism nation in the long run, as the current model indicates a preference for visitors from specific countries -- namely China and South Korea, which could make visitors from other countries feel put off. Instead, we propose a simplified and more neutral example of multilingual public signs, for which only English as a lingua franca is used in addition to Japanese. However, problems with the English translations used in such signs are also discussed. English translations need to be carefully considered not only from a systemic linguistic perspective, such as grammar and vocabulary, but also from cognitive and sociolinguistic perspectives, to avoid misleading foreign visitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purposes of this study were to 1) develop an English communication mobile application based on emergency medical service situations to meet efficiency criterion E1/E2 = 80/80; 2) compare the students' English communication skills before and after implementing the mobile application; and 3) examine the students' attitudes toward the use of the mobile application. The participants were 14 second-year students enrolled in an English for Specific Purposes course. The instruments were 1) a mobile application for English communication, 2) lesson plans, 3) Process E1 and Product E2 tests, 4) a role-play pretest and a posttest, and 5) an attitude questionnaire. The mobile application included videos featuring speakers with different English accents who used English as their lingua franca. Data were analyzed through Means, Standard Deviation, and the efficiency criterion of E1/E2. The findings revealed that the efficiency of the mobile application was 82.50/82.38 higher than the standard criteria (80/80). The students' English communication skills improved significantly following the use of the mobile application. The students held positive attitudes towards all aspects of the mobile application. The mobile application could prove valuable not only to paramedics but also to other medical professionals dealing with patients from different linguistic backgrounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global prevalence of English as a lingua franca (ELF) across diverse linguacultural communities within the three circles invites an in-depth analysis of its phonological and lexicogrammatical features, especially among non-native English speakers. This qualitative study investigated these features among 30 Thai students from English and non-English programs, emphasizing natural occurrences in academic settings. Participants were directed to record audio and video during collaborative activities with peers and lecturers inside and outside the classroom. Through Conversation Analysis, findings revealed a significant divergence in the phonological and lexicogrammatical features of ELF participants compared to speakers of standard British English (BrE) and American English (AmE). Specifically, nonstandard lexicogrammatical features concerning verb, noun, article, word choice, tense, and preposition emerged predominantly. Furthermore, common phonological deviations included omission of final consonant sounds, mispronunciation of the schwa sound, confusion in pronouncing the article 'the,' mispronunciation of words ending with '-ine,' and substitution of/v/with/c/. The data suggests widespread use of non-standard English norms, indicating linguistic adaptation beyond traditional boundaries in various environments. Significantly, this study contributes by highlighting how ELF participants reshape language for effective communication, prioritizing intelligibility over nativelike proficiency, with insights extending beyond the Thai context, valuable for educators, linguists, and intercultural communication practitioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing learners' intercultural communicative competence is considered to be one of the responsibilities of English language teaching professionals. This responsibility has become ever more challenging in today's globalized world, in which most intercultural communication occurs in English as a lingua franca (ELF) contexts, where a target culture often does not exist. To address this challenge, the current paper showcases an innovation that utilized practitioner-produced materials to teach intercultural communication in ELF settings as part of a General English course at a Taiwanese university. The project sought to achieve the dual purpose of raising the learners' intercultural and ELF awareness by engaging them in a sequence of activities that involved experienced ELF users from various countries, from video-viewing and online forum discussions to face-to-face interactions. The effectiveness of the innovation was evaluated through questionnaires and participants' written reflections on the activities, which indicated that the project was generally successful in both cultural and language attitude domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spread of English as a global language has led to discussions and debates about English language teaching and whether language teacher education should prepare pre- and in-service teachers to teach English from the global Englishes (GE) perspective. This thematic review first addresses the need to move from traditional assumptions about native speakerism in language teaching and then links it to individual cognition in GE-informed teacher education. The review then presents cases of GE teacher education in various contexts and addresses challenges in and future directions for GE-aware teacher education. The implications for GE language teacher education from the perspectives of "looking inward," "looking around," and "looking forward" are discussed at the end of this review. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]