The colonial legacy of English instruction has become especially relevant within the field of TESOL. While it is promising that increasing attention is being paid to the issue of colonialism and its historical and contemporary impact on the teaching of English, educators might be left without a clear sense of how to traverse the precarious path of…

This volume brings together research carried out in a variety of geographic and linguistic contexts including Africa, Asia, Australia, Canada, the Caribbean, Europe and the United States and explores efforts to incorporate linguistic diversity into education and to "harness" this diversity for learners' benefit. It challenges the largely…

The literary anthology is intended for non-native speakers of English, including stories written in regional and social dialects to give readers an appreciation of how images and meaning can be conveyed effectively through non-standard forms of the language. Linguistic and cultural notes are provided to make the language more accessible to…

In response to the description of CANCODE, a new English-language corpus designed to reflect current English usage, it is argued that although a corpus my be an accurate record of language behavior, it is limited and must not be assumed to be complete or to prescribe for English-as-a-Second-Language teaching. (MSE)

In response to his article describing a new English-language corpus designed to reflect current usage, the author agrees that extreme forms of corpus-driven language teaching are inappropriate but also that more corpus-based language instruction is needed, and that the language teaching can only benefit from better language description. (MSE)

With the growth of world English, what learners of English as a Second Language (ESL) need most is not a native-like accent but ability to communicate with other non-native speakers. The role of English pronunciation, its aims within the ESL curriculum, and which norms and models are most appropriate for such instruction should be rethought.…

Current practices and materials for teaching English as a second language (ESL) contain oversimplifications about English based on the assumption of a uniform language type and standard of usage, presented to foreign learners for pedagogical clarity. ESL teachers may be aware of the language's diversity but are not prepared to provide…

Two broad issues in the international teaching of English as a second language are discussed: the language standard to be taught (i.e., British, North American, Canadian, Australian, or some other native form), and mutual intelligibility as a principle by which to teach English. It is proposed that while language models are necessary for the…

Voice quality settings (physiological configurations contributing to phonetic production) can be used to characterize ESL students' accents and help improve pronunciation. Settings of one variety of North American English and those in other languages are identified. Suggestions are given for making students aware of their own settings. (MSE)

This study sought to determine whether there is a variety of Nigerian English acceptable as a teaching model to prospective Nigerian primary school teachers of different ethnic groups. Results indicate that: (1) contrary to common belief, there are Nigerians of different ethnic groups who speak a variety of English acceptable to other Nigerians of…

Examines the nature of interlanguage as it affects second-language learning and teaching, focusing on the language transfer phenomenon, fossilization, how error analysis and error correction can be improved through understanding of interlanguage, native speaker norms, international varieties of English, and the contribution of interlanguage to…

A study investigated cultural variations in the ways groups of speakers reach consensus in the face of disagreement or suggestion. Subjects were six graduate students in each of five groups: one composed of native speakers of American English, two of Taiwanese Chinese, and two of mainland Chinese. Each group performed a desert survival exercise,…

Four aspects of English pragmatics that are often puzzling to students of English as a Second Language (ESL) are discussed and exemplified: certain mechanics (ellipsis; blended words; a-grammaticality); vague superordinates (generic verbs such as "get,""let,""do,""be,""have"; preposition with metaphoric extension such as "up,""in,""off,""through";…

A study investigated how four anglophone Caribbean students enrolled in an American college perceive their own language and writing in standard English, the morphosyntactic and semantic features that emerge when they write in standard English, and the extent to which discourse features revealed in their writing are attributable to Creole…

The study contrasts Acadian English (Cajun) spoken in Louisiana with the local standard English, describing the linguistic features (pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary) of the dialect in non-technical language. The objective is to inform elementary and secondary school teachers and others involved in education and curriculum development for a…