Uses three addresses given at a mid-term International Federation for the Teaching of English at the University of Witwatersrand to outline workplace realities for South African teachers. Summarizes the addresses which deal with (1) the role of intellectuals in Africa; (2) the problems of school and social reconstruction; and (3) the political…

Provides a general overview of two books--"The Second Time Around: Minimalism and Second Language Acquisition" and "Second Language Syntax: A Generative Introduction--and shows how the respond to key issues in second language acquisition, including the process of second language acquisition, access to universal grammar, the role of…

States that a yearbook has the potential of doing good in its school and community, but can also violate good taste and do damage to individuals. Advises the use of "common sense" when writing captions and thoughtfulness and informed action when dealing with what could be legal complications. (PA)

Describes the lack of importance ascribed to English as a language in Elizabethan times and points out that the popularity of any language resides in its perceived cultural and economic capitol. Draws distinctions between instrumental and integrative motivations and discusses the place of favorable attitudes and positive motivations in language…

Introduces this special issue of the journal. Examines why there is a focus on Sweden, perspectives on the role of first languages in Sweden, historical perspective on historical and territorial minority language policy in Sweden, and the debate on the role of English. (Author/VWL)

Discusses the consequences of the dominance of English for a small language like Swedish and a small country like Sweden. Presents a survey of contrastive studies, which reveal that texts and writing in the mother tongue differ between cultures. Discusses studies of the current situation in Sweden, which reveal a serious threat towards certain…

A concern with the role of the 'Other' in geography in higher education has led to work on the incorporation of marginalized social groups into learning contexts. Recently some authors have discussed the role of language in teaching, and in particular the dominant role of the English language in marginalizing non-Anglophonic students and subject…

Various risks involved in teaching Standard English and the role that a dialect could play while teaching it more effectively are discussed. Some of the general principles and specific strategies are given for respecting the language of students' homes while helping them gain a mastery in Standard English and participate in the democratic…

This article will provide an overview of current research focussing on the use of English as a "lingua franca" in international business contexts. It selectively reviews research investigating the role of written and spoken communication in English and the work that has been done on specific text genres used by the international business…

This article presents a qualitative case study of a seven-year-old Mexican American student and his family. Using Critical Discourse Analysis, we examine both the child's emergent ideas about language, as expressed in bilingual literature discussions, and his parents' ideological discourses about the use of a minority language in public schools.…

A discussion of globalization is presented that focuses on the pros and cons of English spread. The postcolonial theoretical basis for promoting the status of second-language varieties of English, and how this impacts on the foreign-language speaker of English in the European Union, is investigated. Three primary factors, linguistic…

This paper sets out to review current approaches to world Englishes from a range of perspectives, from English studies to sociolinguistics, applied linguistics, lexicography, popularizers and critical linguistics. It then proceeds to consider current debates on English worldwide and world Englishes, noting the recent criticisms of the world…

The paper investigates the perspectives of Greek origin people as regards their intention to maintain their ancestral culture within the Australian context of social values. This qualitative research study, influenced by Humanistic Sociology, analyses data collected through questionnaires from first and second generation parents and teachers of…

In the study reported here, Japanese-speaking children aged 3-6 were confronted with making choices based on conflicting input from speakers who varied in the degree of certainty and the quality of evidence they possessed for their opinions. Certainty and evidentiality are encoded in Japanese both in high-frequency, closed-class, sentence-final…

The current political debates in England highlight the role of language in citizenship, social exclusion, and discrimination. Similar debates can also be found around the world. Correspondingly, research addressing different language communities is burgeoning. Service providers and academics are increasingly employing bilingual community…