Hello E participants
The world is still devided on the issue of language. There are irrefutable arguments from both sides. English as a foreign langauge should be used as medium of instruction for better understanding of the current global trends or the Non-English speaking countries must not use it as medium of instruction as the children develop concepts in mother tongue. This issue has become very complicated in countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, Even Taiwan, Japan etc. As English is dominant language of the present global civilization and must be grasped but from where it may commence and how to use it , that is , as a subject or medium of instruction? As an English teacher, I keep on thinking on this issue but still it is hard to come to a conclusion.
The present course is helping me to improve teaching skills through technology and it is really enjoyable here to communicate with E colleagues from all over the world. I would also like to suggest all here to see
"kidsclick" and "googlescholar" as a big source for material on EFL.
Athar
Hello Athar,
ReplyDeleteI feel the same way like you. “Why should we study English even though it is not used in our own country?” That’s a question some of my students ask every year. Japan (especially Okinawa) is a country of islands, where we sometimes cannot see the connection to the rest of the world though we import and export a lot of things from abroad.
No language is superior to others and your mother tongue is the most important for you, so I’d like to teach English as a tool in order for my students to communicate with people in foreign countries, with Asian students, in particular.
Makiko
Okinawa, JP
Hi Athar,
ReplyDeleteI agree with Makiko. I teach English as a contact language because English enables us to communicate with people in foreign countries.
And also, learning foreign language can enhance understanding our own language and culture including the way of thinking, the sense of value and so on.
Actually, language issue includes many perspectives, for example, identity and human right. But I believe teaching English to children at school is not harmful for their development of the mother tongue.
I teach English in both English and Japanese. I think it is important for teacher to be a model who is not native English speaker but can use English, especially in EFL context, because it shows how English is used in real world. But it is also important to explain about English using Japanese because it is easy for the students to understand. Moreover, I use Japanese to lower affective filter and motivate them.
Tomoko