Studying the Awareness of Iranian University Students about the International Policies for the Spread of English

Document Type : research article

Authors

1 Associate Professor, Department of English, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran

2 Department of English, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

The English language has been increasingly embraced worldwide as a global means of communication and, apart from the instrumental applications of English as a communicative tool, the sociocultural aspects of (teaching and learning) English has also been increasingly debated. Within these debates, the awareness of language leaerners about the cultural functioning of English is a significant concern. Therefore, this study is an attept to examine the awareness of university students in Tehran about the specific policies of English-speaking countries in this regard. The analysis of the responses of 656 male and female studnets in different fields of study at five major universities in Tehran to a questionnaire, along with interviews with 28 of these studetns, indicates meager awareness on the part of these studetns about the transnational plans for the spread of English as a means of cultural influence. Some aspects of the sociocultural implications of this condition for the language education discourse community and for the wider society are discussed. The analysis of the responses of 656 male and female students in different fields of study at five major universities in Tehran to a questionnaire, along with interviews with 28 of these studetns, indicates meager awareness on the part of these studetns about the transnational plans for the spread of English as a means of cultural influence. Some aspects of the sociocultural implications of this condition for the language education discourse community and for the wider society are discussed.

Keywords

References

Abdollahzadeh, E. and Baniasad, S. (2010). Ideologies in the imported English textbooks: EFL learners and teachers’ awareness and attitude. Journal of English Language Teaching and Learning, 53 (217), 1-17.
Aryankhah, Z. (2020). The role of promotional discourse in (re)producing social cognition regarding ELT in Iran. Unpublished MA Thesis, Alzahra Univerity, Terhan, Iran.
Babu, S. (2018). American policies of teaching the English language worldwide. Unpublished MA Thesis, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran.
Borjian, M. (2013). English in post-revolutionary Iran: From indigenization to internationalization. Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Cameron, D. (2012). The commodification of language: English as a global commodity. In T. Nevalainen and E. C. Traugott (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of the history of English (pp. 352-361). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Charmaz, K. (2006). Constructing grounded theory: A practical guide through qualitative analysis. London: Sage.
Choudhury, M. (2013). Teaching culture in EFL: Implications, challenges and strategies. Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 13(1), 20-24.
Dewey, M. (2007). English as a lingua franca and globalization: An interconnected perspective. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 17(3), 332-354.
Floris, F. D. (2014). Learning subject matter through English as the medium of instruction: Students’ and teachers’ perspectives. Asian Englishes, 16(1), 47-59.
Haghighi, F. M. and Norton, B. (2017). The role of English language institutes in Iran. TESOL Quarterly, 51(2), 428-438.
Hinkel, E. (1999). Culture in second language teaching and learning. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Horobin, S. (2016). How English became English. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Kankaanranta, A. and Louhiala-Salminen, L. (2007). Business Communication in BELF. Business Communication Quarterly, 70(1), 55-59.
Khoshsaligheh, M., Jamali, F., and Saeedian, A. (2014). Attitude of Iranian graduate students toward English: A case study. English Language Teaching, 1(2), 108-130.
Kramsch, C. (1993). Context and culture in language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 
Lavrenteva, E. and Orland-Barak, L. (2015). The treatment of culture in the foreign language curriculum: An analysis of national curriculum documents. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 47(5), 653-684.
Mirhosseini, S. A. (2008). English and a world of diversities: confrontation, appropriation, awareness. Applied Linguistics, 29(2), 312-317.
Mirhosseini, S. A. (2015). Resisting magic waves: Ideologies of ‘English language teaching’ in Iranian newspaper advertisements. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 36(6), 932-947.
Mirhosseini, S. A. and Babu, S. (2020). Policies of English language teaching as part of the global “war of ideas”. In A. Al-Issa and S. A. Mirhosseini (Eds.), Worldwide English language education today: Ideologies, policies, and practices (pp. 18-34). London:  Routledge.
Mirhosseini, S. A. and Badri, N. (2018). Perspectives of Iranian university students on learning English: A practical need or an international policy push. Changing English: Studies in Culture and Education, 25(3), 286-299.
Mirhosseini, S. A. and Ghafar Samar, R. (2015).  Ideologies of English language teaching in Iranian academic research: Mainstream, alternative, and beyond. Critical Inquiry in Language Studies, 12(2), 110-136.
Mirhosseini, S. A., Sazvar, A., and Rashed, F. (2017). “I love foreigners’ attitudes towards life”: Reproducing lifestyles in an Iranian English language teaching context. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 47(5), 756-772.
Motezakker, S. (2019). Executive plans of the U.S. Department of State for English language teaching worldwide. Unpublished MA Thesis, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran.
Pan, L., and Block, D. (2011). English as a ‘global language’ in China: An investigation into learners’ and teachers’ language beliefs. System, 39(3), 391-402.
Parsaiyan, S. F. (2014). From roots to routes: Self-identity pedagogy in English language classrooms. Unpublished PhD Dissertation, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran.
Pennycook, A. (2010). English and globalization. In J. Maybin and J. Swann, (Eds).    The Routledge companion to English language studies (pp. 113-121). London: Routledge.
Pennycook, A. (1994). Cultural politics of English as an international language. London: Longman.
Pennycook, A. (1998). English and the discourses of colonialism. London: Routledge.
Pennycook, A. (2016). Politics, power relationships and ELT. In G. Hall (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of English language teaching (pp. 26-37(. London: Routledge.
Pennycook, A. and Coutand-Marin, S. (2003). Teaching English as a missionary language. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 24(3), 337-353.
Pennycook. A. (2007). Global Englishes and transcultural flows. London: Routledge.
Phillipson, R. (1992). Linguistic imperialism. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Phillipson, R. (2016). Promoting English: Hydras old and new. In P. Bunce, R. Phillipson, V. Rapatahana, and R. Tupas (Eds.), Why English? Confronting the Hydra (pp. 35-46). Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Rajablou, F. and Shirvan, M. E. (2017). Iranian English language learners’ attitude towards their accent in English language: An ecological approach. Englishes in Practice, 4(1), 1-30.
Sadeghi, K. and Richards, J. C. (2016). The idea of English in Iran: An example from Urmia. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 37(4), 419-434.
Scovel, T. (1994). The role of culture in second language pedagogy. System, 22(2), 205-219.
Sung, C. C. (2013). Learning English as an L2 in the global context: Changing English, Changing motivation. Changing English 20(4), 377-387.
Taki, S. (2008). International and local curricula: The question of ideology. Language Teaching Research, 12(1), 127-142.
احمدی پور، ط. (1387). لزوم اتخاذ سیاست زبانی در برابر گسترش زبان انگلیسی. فصلنامه مطالعات ملی، شماره 35، صص 134-119.
احمدی نژاد، س. و عباس نژاد، م. (۱۳۹۵). جهانی شدن و آموزش زبان انگلیسی در دانشگاه‌های ایران. ارائه شده در کنگره ملی آموزش عالی ایران، دانشگاه تربیت مدرس، تهران.
آقاگل­زاده، ف. و داوری، ح. (1389). جهانی­شدن و زوال خرده زبان­ها و گویش‌ها. مجموعه مقالات همایش بین‌المللی گویش‌های مناطق کویری ایران. دانشگاه سمنان. صص 48-35.
آقاگل­زاده، ف. و داوری، ح. (1393). جهانی­شدن و زبان فارسی: بحثی در ضرورت اتخاذ رویکردی واقع­بینانه در خصوص جایگاه زبان فارسی در عصر جهانی­شدن. نخستین همایش بین­المللی گسترش زبان و ادبیات فارسی: چشم­انداز، راهکارها و موانع. شورای گسترش زبان و ادب فارسی. وزارت علوم، پژوهشات و فناوری.
تفرشی، آ. و رمضانی، ا. (1391). نقش فرهنگ در آموزش زبان خارجی. پژوهشنامة انتقادی متون و برنامه‌های علوم انسانی، شماره 12، صص 34-15.
حسینی، م. (1395). امپریالیسم زبانی یا زبان امپریالیسم: ضرورت مواجهه با هژمونی زبان انگلیسی در کشورهای اسلامی. فصلنامه پژوهش‌های سیاسی جهان اسلام، سال 6، شماره 3، صص 75-43.
بایبوردی، ا. و کریمیان، ع. (۱۳۹۳). جهانی شدن فرهنگ و تأثیر آن بر هویت ملی ایران. فصلنامه مطالعات     روابط بین‌الملل، سال ۷، شماره ۲۸، صص 102-77.
Journal of Foreign Language Research
Volume 10, Issue 2
July 2020
Pages 300-315

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics