language use and language education

[Snow Lau]

Hello!!

"English in the future" by David Graddol have the following arguments:

1. A single world standard for English will not develop.
2. English will not give Britain a special economic advantage.
3. No languages may rival English as a world lingua franca in the 21st century.
4. Economic and demographic factors give a language global influence and makes it a "world language"
5. The demand for English in the world continue to rise at its present rate.
6. English will continue to be associated with leading-edge technology.
7. Economic modernisation will not continue to require English for technology and skills transfer.
8. The growth of local communication on the Internet will lead to the Internet have on the global use of English.
9. The need for an ethical framework for ELT

As a English teacher or ESL, Can you consider the arguments against your own experiences of both language use and language education .

[Tdol]

2- The market for English runs into billions a year, so, while it doesn't mean that an English speaking company has an economic advantage, it is a serious economic player in it own right. You could also argue that other countries have to invest heavily in language, which is a cost they have to carry to compete, so there are weaknesses in this argument.

4- Demographic factors can be over-rated; it is of little importance which language is spoken is garment factories- the only language that matters is the one used for transactions between manufacturers and buyers, etc.

5- I'm not sure the rate can be predicted so confidently- the boom areas are probably examples of over-expansion.

9- Who is going to lay out the ethical framework? there is no representative body worth talking about- there are many bodies, but no international standards. Plus vast areas of the ESL masrket are bandit territory with no wish to cincern themselves with anything other than money. I think this is a topic that will be more discussed than actually put into effect.

The others, I broadly agree with.

[safya]

sorry but i cant understand how your teaching sorry again i need to explain .