Kubota

I thoroughly enjoyed today's presentations, in particular the one about Kubota. Nawwaf presented some interesting discussion questions, one of which made me think critically about my personal life.

Nawwaaf posed a question about whether or not we should implement activities to raise awareness about WE at an earlier age, such as elementary school. The class seemed to agree that yes, it would be a good idea. However, I am curious how it would play out in terms of explicit or implicit learning.

For example, my daughter (age 3) is currently in a school where most of her classmates (perhaps 50%) are Dutch. The language of instruction in the school is English - the curriculum is British, and her teacher is Jamaican. We live in Qatar, where the local languages are Arabic and English. As far as I know, there is no explicit instruction about World Englishes in her class, but it is incredibly pervasive as all these international children work together in the same classroom. I am curious to see how this plays out in the coming year(s) and how this might present a response to Kubota's research.

"Lost in translation or a threat of terror?"

A friend of mine, also in the TESOL profession and living in Bejing) just sent me this article. I found it interesting and relevant so I am posting here:

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2010-05/28/content_9902790.htm

Draft proposal - feedback welcome!

HERE IS MY DRAFT PROPOSAL. I'D LOVE ANY FEEDBACK ABOUT HOW TO IMPROVE IT! THIS WOULD BE SUBMITTED FOR A 90-MINUTE WORKSHOP FOR A CONFERENCE.



This session will highlight the importance and relevance of World Englishes in the Middle East, in particular in Qatar. The impact of globalization has made the
growth of World Englishes a critical issue in the field of TESOL both within the classroom and in teacher education programs.

It is critical to incorporate an understanding and acceptance of the different varieties, dialects, and accents around the world. The presentation and discussion will aim to attract and educate teachers as to how they can incorporate some practical activities into the classroom (e.g. dissecting local newspapers through examination of different vocabulary, grammatical structures, etc. that may vary from standard native speaker usage) to raise awareness about the different varieties of English. The discussion will involve active participation from attendees.

The ideas presented have their genesis in a PhD-level course that I took on World Englishes during summer 2010. In addition to the presentation and discussion, I will provide a handout with the scholarly underpinnings of this field of study. I will also include information to attendees as to how they can get further information and become further involved in World Englishes scholarship.

Codes

Code mixing, code meshing, code switching - ahhhh!

I love the theoretical framework behind these ideas that promotes the incorporation of students' L1 and personal experiences. Canagarajah's writing and the other research we have read seem to start a great dialogue about how code meshing can be incorporated into the classroom. However, I also agree with Robin's skepticism surrounding the contributions of code meshing to the field. I think much more research needs to be done in this regard to help us, as scholars and teachers, understand these concepts, differentiate between them, and incorporate them successfully into the classroom.

Who Owns Language?

I really enjoyed the documentary about who owns language. I think Paule's segments were the most resonating for me because of the emotional appeal. However, I also appreciated the comment one of the students made about "Nobody owns language but people are very possessive of language." How true! It is quite shocking how some people, whether scholars or lay people, feel they "own" a language and can dictate how people use it.

More on hotlines...

I didn't do an extensive search but this was what my most basic research yielded. I'd love to know what happens if any of you try calling!

http://alt-usage-english.org/excerpts/fxwhat03.html

Hotlines??

I think my favorite part of class today was hearing about grammar hotlines in the U.S. What are these? Who uses them (besides the White House, as cited in the documentary)? Who monitors them and give the answers? I would love to know more about this resource.

I was also incredibly impressed with the "Academic English Mastery Program" implemented in California. I could not believe that the grade 5 students were using such advanced metalinguitic language to describe their classroom activities.

I look forward to viewing the rest of the documentary at some point.