浙江广播电视大学 开放教育本科英语专业 《变化中的英语》参考资料6 English in a Changing World Unit 7 and Unit 8 You may still remember the terms created by Braj Kachru.They are the Inner Circle. the Outer Circle and the Expanding Circle.Inner Circle refers to the places where English is the official language,and the mother tongue of most people.The Outer Circle refers to places where English is one among several official languages and is widely used.And the Expanding Circle indicates the places where English is also widely taught though it may not be an official language,or is one of several.It is used by groups that have no other language in common,and for all sorts of intemational purposes too.This circle is still developing and getting larger. It is true that English is taught and leamned in all 3 circles,but,not in the same way. For people in the Inner Circle,English is studied as LI,namely.they can leam it formally at school and informally outside school.It is a medium of'leaming.In the case of the Outer Circle,English is taught and leamed as ESL (English as a Second Language)or L2.Students in this circle have to leam it and there are opportunities in their environment of additional and informal leaming.There is also an EFL (English as a Foreign Language)environment in which students leam English as an additional language and English is only available in classroom.Opportunities have to be invented for leamners to hear,speak or use it. Table 1 (P.314)&Table 2 (p.315) Now let's go over the 3 terms:LI (refers to people's mother tongue or first language which is used for virtually all purposes):L2 or ESL (people's second or additional language,used as a medium of some leaming);EFL (people's foreign language,only taught in the classroom). As we have talked before,there are variations of English (different groups use the language differently at different times for different purposes).However,there are what we call new or emerging Englishes (eg.HK English,Singapore English,ete.)in the world now.By this,we mean that they are new standards with rules.They are understood locally but not easily understood or accepted in other places Besides,they change more rapidly than Standard English. 1
1 浙 江 广 播 电 视 大 学 开放教育本科英语专业 《变化中的英语》参考资料 6 English in a Changing World Unit 7 and Unit 8 You may still remember the terms created by Braj Kachru. They are the Inner Circle, the Outer Circle and the Expanding Circle. Inner Circle refers to the places where English is the official language, and the mother tongue of most people. The Outer Circle refers to places where English is one among several official languages and is widely used. And the Expanding Circle indicates the places where English is also widely taught though it may not be an official language, or is one of several. It is used by groups that have no other language in common, and for all sorts of international purposes too. This circle is still developing and getting larger. It is true that English is taught and learned in all 3 circles, but, not in the same way. For people in the Inner Circle, English is studied as L1, namely, they can learn it formally at school and informally outside school. It is a medium of learning. In the case of the Outer Circle, English is taught and learned as ESL (English as a Second Language) or L2. Students in this circle have to learn it and there are opportunities in their environment of additional and informal learning. There is also an EFL (English as a Foreign Language) environment in which students learn English as an additional language and English is only available in classroom. Opportunities have to be invented for learners to hear, speak or use it. Table 1 (P.314) & Table 2 (p.315) Now let’s go over the 3 terms: L1 (refers to people’s mother tongue or first language which is used for virtually all purposes); L2 or ESL (people’s second or additional language, used as a medium of some learning); EFL (people’s foreign language, only taught in the classroom). As we have talked before, there are variations of English (different groups use the language differently at different times for different purposes). However, there are what we call new or emerging Englishes (e.g. HK English, Singapore English, etc.) in the world now. By this, we mean that they are new standards with rules. They are understood locally but not easily understood or accepted in other places. Besides, they change more rapidly than Standard English
So,it is important for us to decide what English toteach or leam--the local standard or intemational standard English.There are both advantages and disadvantages of teaching a local standard English.On the one hand.they are easier and quicker to leam:they are useful where there are many languages in use in a country and no common language;and,only the minority of people needs a language for intemational use.On the other hand,such a practice creates problems too.For instance,local Standards change quickly and are not well regarded intemationally,If they are used intemnationally.they don"t do justice to the users of Standard English:Local Standards are emerging and changing.for this reason there may not be enough suitable teachers or teaching materials.In the case of Standard English,it is stable and has prestige worldwide,and it opens up an immense quantity of literature on all topics and increasingly,it makes electronically stored material available. Do you still remember Tok Pisin,Creole and Pidgin?They are all variants of English and regional.Due to this reason.these variants might not be understood by people outside the region where they are used,nor are they respected by people competent in English.Thus,the term Emerging Englishes is designed to avoid disrespect.also. there exists a view that Emerging Englishes should be taught in educational institutions and receive some kind of status.Such a view is sometimes referred to as the Liberation view of the debate. Well,we may need to take a look at the two opposing views on the issue.One is the Quirk view (or deficit view)and the other,the Kachru view (also liberation view). p.343). Briefly speaking.the differences between these two views can be summarized as follows The Quirk view is that the term Standard English applies only to Standard British English.This Standard is what leamers of English as an intemational language want to leam,and this is what should be taught.Teachers who are not native speakers need to keep in constant touch with this Standard.They should correct their students when differences from this Standard appear in their writing.That is what students respect and want.It is the only way they can move steadily nearer their goal,which is intemationally acceptable English The Kachru view is that New Englishes are now developing in parts of the world where the most important use of English is for communication in multi-lingual communities.Each has its own standards,which could and should be the English taught in schools.These new Standards are different from Standard British and American English.They are easier.quicker and cheaper for people in those countries to leam.They should be taught in schools by local teachers.They should be respected as Emerging Standards.They"re not evidence that the educational systems are failing their stud ents 2
2 So, it is important for us to decide what English to teach or learn --- the local standard or international standard English. There are both advantages and disadvantages of teaching a local standard English. On the one hand, they are easier and quicker to learn; they are useful where there are many languages in use in a country and no common language; and, only the minority of people needs a language for international use. On the other hand, such a practice creates problems too. For instance, local Standards change quickly and are not well regarded internationally; If they are used internationally, they don"t do justice to the users of Standard English; Local Standards are emerging and changing, for this reason there may not be enough suitable teachers or teaching materials. In the case of Standard English, it is stable and has prestige worldwide, and it opens up an immense quantity of literature on all topics and increasingly, it makes electronically stored material available. Do you still remember Tok Pisin, Creole and Pidgin? They are all variants of English and regional. Due to this reason, these variants might not be understood by people outside the region where they are used, nor are they respected by people competent in English. Thus, the term Emerging Englishes is designed to avoid disrespect, also, there exists a view that Emerging Englishes should be taught in educational institutions and receive some kind of status. Such a view is sometimes referred to as the Liberation view of the debate. Well, we may need to take a look at the two opposing views on the issue. One is the Quirk view (or deficit view) and the other, the Kachru view (also liberation view). (p.343). Briefly speaking, the differences between these two views can be summarized as follows: The Quirk view is that the term Standard English applies only to Standard British English. This Standard is what learners of English as an international language want to learn, and this is what should be taught. Teachers who are not native speakers need to keep in constant touch with this Standard. They should correct their students when differences from this Standard appear in their writing. That is what students respect and want. It is the only way they can move steadily nearer their goal, which is internationally acceptable English. The Kachru view is that New Englishes are now developing in parts of the world where the most important use of English is for communication in multi-lingual communities. Each has its own standards, which could and should be the English taught in schools. These new Standards are different from Standard British and American English. They are easier, quicker and cheaper for people in those countries to learn. They should be taught in schools by local teachers. They should be respected as Emerging Standards. They"re not evidence that the educational systems are failing their students
Nobody doubts that Standard English (British and American)can be spoken with many accents Nobody doubts that they are needed for a range of intemational uses. Nobody doubts that languages on which safety depends like that of Air Traffic Control have to be standard worldwide. One thing we need to mention here is that the Quirk view is also called deficit view, and the Kachru view is labeled as liberation view.In Quirk view,English is for interational use while in Kachru view,English is for regional use or used as a local lingual franca.When we refer to deficit,we may mean a serious lack of something that we need.In other words,something like failure.And the term liberation means setting free,or can be associated with something like freedom.When a word has too much meaning like this,we would sary it is "loaded".(But the term is not in general use.) English serves as a good means for different ethnic groups to communicate with each other in some countries like India and Singapore.But in countries like China and Japan,it is not the case.For instance,in Singapore,a speaker may have English for Regional Use and English for Intemational Use.What's more,the latter is more highly valued than the former,and so are its speakers.(We covered the reason for this before.) What was mainly discussed just now can be summed up as follows Emerging Englishes,having their own Standards,and different from those of Standards British or American English are the subject of continuing debate. The debate is presented by two major statements of opposing views:Professor Randolph Quirk's view and Braj Kachru's view. We can say that the world needs an intemational language for global use and English is the only candidate for the job!It is the language of the present though it might not be so in the past or in the future either.Its written standard isa major reason why it is so widely useful now. As we already know that language changes as language use is a creative process.Do you still remember Pidgin,Creole and interlanguage?They are all good examples The advantages of using local standards are that local standards are easier forteachers and leamers due to various reasons (familiar sentence structure,opportunities to practise outside the classroom;standards more relaxed,ete.).The disadvantages are: Local standards are useful only within the region.they offer limited access to written materials and are unstable and are not well respected outside the local community An important practical application of academic debate is it can and should inform policy making.In the debate between Quirk and Kachru,both sides are concemed about satisfactory leaming experience.And the term opportunity cost means that all leaming is associated with an opportunity cost:investment of time and effort by individuals and by the society of which they are part
3 Nobody doubts that Standard English (British and American) can be spoken with many accents. Nobody doubts that they are needed for a range of international uses. Nobody doubts that languages on which safety depends like that of Air Traffic Control have to be standard worldwide. One thing we need to mention here is that the Quirk view is also called deficit view, and the Kachru view is labeled as liberation view. In Quirk view, English is for international use while in Kachru view, English is for regional use or used as a local lingual franca. When we refer to deficit, we may mean a serious lack of something that we need. In other words, something like failure. And the term liberation means setting free, or can be associated with something like freedom. When a word has too much meaning like this, we would say it is "loaded". (But the term is not in general use.) English serves as a good means for different ethnic groups to communicate with each other in some countries like India and Singapore. But in countries like China and Japan, it is not the case. For instance, in Singapore, a speaker may have English for Regional Use and English for International Use. What’s more, the latter is more highly valued than the former, and so are its speakers. (We covered the reason for this before.) What was mainly discussed just now can be summed up as follows: Emerging Englishes, having their own Standards, and different from those of Standards British or American English are the subject of continuing debate. The debate is presented by two major statements of opposing views: Professor Randolph Quirk’s view and Braj Kachru’s view. We can say that the world needs an international language for global use and English is the only candidate for the job! It is the language of the present though it might not be so in the past or in the future either. Its written standard is a major reason why it is so widely useful now. As we already know that language changes as language use is a creative process. Do you still remember Pidgin, Creole and interlanguage? They are all good examples. The advantages of using local standards are that local standards are easier for teachers and learners due to various reasons (familiar sentence structure, opportunities to practise outside the classroom; standards more relaxed, etc.). The disadvantages are: Local standards are useful only within the region; they offer limited access to written materials and are unstable and are not well respected outside the local community. An important practical application of academic debate is it can and should inform policy making. In the debate between Quirk and Kachru, both sides are concerned about satisfactory learning experience. And the term opportunity cost means that all learning is associated with an opportunity cost: investment of time and effort by individuals and by the society of which they are part
Finally we will talk about English in a shrinking world.By shrinking we are using a metaphor again.With the start of industrialization,rapid transport make travel, communication easier and faster for people.That's why we say the world is shrinking even though such a shrinking is not even in the world. The story on p.365 shows us that a common language was needed for a common task. And the English word Babel means a loud confused noise.Can you imagine a world without a common language?What would it be like then? The following are the points we need to keep in mind when talking about the topic of the shrinking world.I.Some ideas associated with recent developments in communication have a very long history.2.Rapid communication and everything that it makes possible,is unevenly distributed.3.Most of what its development offers is available to rich and privileged individuals and societies.4.The number of those who have access to at least some sorts of rapid communication is increasing all the time.5. The development of rapid communication brings benefits,but it creates problems and difficulties,too. Then,what is the position of English in a shrinking worl?For historical reasons English has gained its dominant position since the 16th century.We covered in the Ist unit that English belongs to the Germanic group of Indo-European languages.It was the national language of England then.Later,it was taken to the United States by the early explorers and settlers.After the US became independent from the British rule, English was made the national language for the new country and the expansion of British rule in the following centuries made it a language of administration across the world.English was the language of power,privilege and opportunity under British rule.As a result,English has become a language of science technology,of intemational business,and of many enterprises across national borders since WWII. Some people think that English is an easy language to leam.Why?They give reasons for this:it has natural gender,it has fairly regular plurals;it has few inflections,etc. However,some other people may not agree.(e.g In the dialogue on p.372-373,Song Qin's view is that English is well suited to intemational use because it is a beautiful language.And Li Yan thinks that it is well suited to intemational use because it allows people access to a fine culture).I guess everybody has his/her own judgement on the issue.What is yours,then? No matter what viewpoint one may hold,the fact is that there is extremely large amount of materials in English on a vast range of subjects in the world,which,seems to be increasing all the time.This might be a powerful reason why English should be taught and leamed widely.For this reason,English is also seen as a threat to the languages of other countries.For some people,if a language is used intemationally.it tends to spread the culture of its country of origin (e.g we can find Macdonald's and Kentucky Fried Chicken,Coca Cola.etc.in many countries now).This process is sometimes called cultural imperialism
4 Finally we will talk about English in a shrinking world. By shrinking we are using a metaphor again. With the start of industrialization, rapid transport make travel, communication easier and faster for people. That’s why we say the world is shrinking even though such a shrinking is not even in the world. The story on p.365 shows us that a common language was needed for a common task. And the English word Babel means a loud confused noise. Can you imagine a world without a common language? What would it be like then? The following are the points we need to keep in mind when talking about the topic of the shrinking world. 1. Some ideas associated with recent developments in communication have a very long history. 2. Rapid communication and everything that it makes possible, is unevenly distributed. 3. Most of what its development offers is available to rich and privileged individuals and societies. 4. The number of those who have access to at least some sorts of rapid communication is increasing all the time. 5. The development of rapid communication brings benefits, but it creates problems and difficulties, too. Then, what is the position of English in a shrinking world? For historical reasons English has gained its dominant position since the 16th century. We covered in the 1st unit that English belongs to the Germanic group of Indo-European languages. It was the national language of England then. Later, it was taken to the United States by the early explorers and settlers. After the US became independent from the British rule, English was made the national language for the new country and the expansion of British rule in the following centuries made it a language of administration across the world. English was the language of power, privilege and opportunity under British rule. As a result, English has become a language of science & technology, of international business, and of many enterprises across national borders since WWII. Some people think that English is an easy language to learn. Why? They give reasons for this: it has natural gender; it has fairly regular plurals; it has few inflections, etc. However, some other people may not agree. (e.g. In the dialogue on p.372-373, Song Qin’s view is that English is well suited to international use because it is a beautiful language. And Li Yan thinks that it is well suited to international use because it allows people access to a fine culture). I guess everybody has his/her own judgement on the issue. What is yours, then? No matter what viewpoint one may hold, the fact is that there is extremely large amount of materials in English on a vast range of subjects in the world, which, seems to be increasing all the time. This might be a powerful reason why English should be taught and learned widely. For this reason, English is also seen as a threat to the languages of other countries. For some people, if a language is used internationally, it tends to spread the culture of its country of origin (e.g. we can find Macdonald’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken, Coca Cola, etc. in many countries now). This process is sometimes called cultural imperialism
English is sometimes thought to be an especially suitable language for intemational use on linguistic grounds.The three reasons are:(1)It is easier than other languages to leam.(2)It is musical and exact enough to make people want to leamn it.(3)It opens up an especially rich and various culture.2.English is seen as a threat to a national language and so to something of value to national identity.3.By cultural imperialism it means the spread to other places of products and cultural ideas that are associated with English. Now I guess you have had some information about your own repertoire of English language so far.You may be able to describe your four skills (listening.speaking, reading writing)by using the range below: slight-good--working-native: or in a more detailed way:slight-fair-good-very good-excellent Take one of them for example,"slight"means you can survive in daily life with basic English.Namely,you can greet people,ask the way,order a meal,etc.However."native"indicates that you can do almost everything in English like a native speaker.(e.g.understand English lectures,write English reports,and even write a book in that language,ete.) Only by knowing your language repertoire well,can you decide what is the suitable target for your English study.Sometimes,a target may have been set for you by your teacher or somebody else.But,it does not mean the target is a sound or reasonable one.Therefore,you have to know clearly what your skills are and what your English level is,and also,what the requirements are as far as your English study is concemed, and what the opportunity cost might be,etc.Then,try to make a wise decision accordingly on how you are going to leam the language. As a serious leamer of English,you need to ask yourself'some questions:What have I leamed after taking this course?What difference does the leaming make?What am I going to do next? In short,we have leamed that English is an abstraction form the reality and the reality is mamy varieties,regional,historical,social,and much variation too with use.Of these varieties,one-Standard English-is of special importance.Its relative stability makes the global uses of English possible.That is itself subject to change and even now,is a subject for disagreement and debate.The overall direction of the book, however,is that the study of English is a good investment,offering very large numbers of leamers at every stage of proficiency,substantial retum for rather little risk Finally,you may need to prepare for the examination on what you have leamed from this course as well.The advice for you here would be:choose one of the sections you remember least well to begin with and write the title of one activity on paper,then find the points we have covered conceming this topic (in your book notebook). look at the summary.Or,just listen to the dialogue.Alo,you need to set questions as a way of revising by selecting the topic.For instance,you can choose Unit 5 "Trade 5
5 English is sometimes thought to be an especially suitable language for international use on linguistic grounds. The three reasons are: (1) It is easier than other languages to learn. (2) It is musical and exact enough to make people want to learn it. (3) It opens up an especially rich and various culture. 2. English is seen as a threat to a national language and so to something of value to national identity. 3. By cultural imperialism it means the spread to other places of products and cultural ideas that are associated with English. Now I guess you have had some information about your own repertoire of English language so far. You may be able to describe your four skills (listening, speaking, reading & writing) by using the range below: slight-good-- working-- native; or in a more detailed way: slight-fair-good-very good-excellent Take one of them for example, "slight" means you can survive in daily life with basic English. Namely, you can greet people, ask the way, order a meal, etc. However, "native" indicates that you can do almost everything in English like a native speaker. (e.g. understand English lectures, write English reports, and even write a book in that language, etc.) Only by knowing your language repertoire well, can you decide what is the suitable target for your English study. Sometimes, a target may have been set for you by your teacher or somebody else. But, it does not mean the target is a sound or reasonable one. Therefore, you have to know clearly what your skills are and what your English level is, and also, what the requirements are as far as your English study is concerned, and what the opportunity cost might be, etc. Then, try to make a wise decision accordingly on how you are going to learn the language. As a serious learner of English, you need to ask yourself some questions: What have I learned after taking this course? What difference does the learning make? What am I going to do next? In short, we have learned that English is an abstraction form the reality and the reality is many varieties, regional, historical, social, and much variation too with use. Of these varieties, one-Standard English-is of special importance. Its relative stability makes the global uses of English possible. That is itself subject to change and even now, is a subject for disagreement and debate. The overall direction of the book, however, is that the study of English is a good investment, offering very large numbers of learners at every stage of proficiency, substantial return for rather little risk. Finally, you may need to prepare for the examination on what you have learned from this course as well. The advice for you here would be: choose one of the sections you remember least well to begin with and write the title of one activity on paper, then find the points we have covered concerning this topic (in your book & notebook), look at the summary. Or, just listen to the dialogue. Also, you need to set questions as a way of revising by selecting the topic. For instance, you can choose Unit 5 "Trade
within and across Language Barriers"and set questions on the important points in the unit.Let's look at one of the questions:What is meant by a pidgin and by a creole? There are two answers listed to this question:1.Both are trade languages.Creoles, unlike pidgins,are used for the whole range of language functions 2.Pidgins and creoles are both mixed languages.They are the effect of languages in contact.Pidgins have only some,but creoles the whole range of language functions.The Ist answer is a little too general while the 2nd one is more specific,and thus,more desirable.To get a good grade in the exam,you have to find out what is the good answer to each question. 2008年3月
6 within and across Language Barriers" and set questions on the important points in the unit. Let’s look at one of the questions: What is meant by a pidgin and by a creole? There are two answers listed to this question: 1. Both are trade languages. Creoles, unlike pidgins, are used for the whole range of language functions. 2. Pidgins and creoles are both mixed languages. They are the effect of languages in contact. Pidgins have only some, but creoles the whole range of language functions. The 1st answer is a little too general while the 2nd one is more specific, and thus, more desirable. To get a good grade in the exam, you have to find out what is the good answer to each question. 2008 年 3 月