Languages and Literacies: Their Role in Global Futures

Languages and Literacies: Their Role in Global Futures

Damien Trezise

Chia Nan University

The Tower of Babel

What SIX languages have the most speakers? Arabic Bengali (India) Chinese (Mandarin) Chinese (Cantonese) English French

GermanGerman Hindi (India)Hindi (India) IndonesianIndonesian JapaneseJapanese SpanishSpanish

The SIX most spoken languages

1. Chinese (Mandarin) – 837,000,000

2. English – 370,000,000

3. Spanish – 300,000,000

4. Bengali (India) – 189,000,000

5. Hindi (India) – 182,000,000

6. Arabic – 175,000,000

Which language can be used by the most people?

Which language can be used by the most people?

English: 370,000,000 (Native)

+ 375,000,000 (ESL, e.g. USA)

+ 750,000,000 (EFL, e.g. Taiwan)

1,495,000,000

Why are so many people learning English?

Information

80% Internet pages 95% of scientific papers News

Travel and Communication

Spoken by one in four people in the world Language of travel and tourism industries Official language in 75 countries

Signs, documents, education Social media – Facebook, Twitter, etc.

Career

Business International trade

Email communication Exhibitions

Multinational companies Used as company language

Government departments International relations, trade, exchange

Career

Information technology Used for software development, programming

Service industries Basic requirement for employees in Tourism,

Hospitality, MICE, etc. Academia

Sharing of research – conferences, papers.

How difficult is English?

Vocabulary

How many words do average native speakers of English know?

a. 1,200 - 2000

b. 2,000 – 5,000

c. 5,000 – 10,000

d. 10,000 – 12,000

e. 12,000 – 20,000

Vocabulary

How many words do average native speakers of English know?

a. 1,200 - 2000

b. 2,000 – 5,000

c. 5,000 – 10,000

d. 10,000 – 12,000

e. 12,000 – 20,000

Vocabulary

How many words do native speakers of English use in normal conversation?

a. 1,200 - 2000

b. 2,000 – 5,000

c. 5,000 – 10,000

d. 10,000 – 12,000

e. 12,000 – 20,000

Vocabulary

How many words do native speakers of English use in normal conversation?

a. 1,200 - 2000

b. 2,000 – 5,000

c. 5,000 – 10,000

d. 10,000 – 12,000

e. 12,000 – 20,000

Vocabulary (國一、二 )

If you know 1,000 words, what percentage of vocabulary in normal English writing can you can understand?

a. 20 %

b. 50 %

c. 70%

d. 90%



a. 20 %

b. 50 %

c. 70%

d. 90%

Vocabulary (國三 )


a. 40 %

b. 60 %

c. 80%

d. 95%



a. 40 %

b. 60 %

c. 80%

d. 95%


If you know 1,000 words, what percentage of vocabulary in normal speaking can you can understand?

a. 20 %

b. 50 %

c. 70%

d. 90%


If you know 1,000 words, what percentage of vocabulary in normal speaking can you can understand?

a. 20 %

b. 50 %

c. 70%

d. 90%


If you know 2,000 words, what percentage of vocabulary in normal English speaking can you can understand?

a. 40 %

b. 60 %

c. 80%

d. 95%


If you know 2,000 words, what percentage of vocabulary in normal English speaking can you understand?

a. 40 %

b. 60 %

c. 80%

d. 95%

How about more than 5,000 words? (高三、 GEPT 中級 )

How long does it take to learn English?

Index

1. GEPT 初級、 CEF A2 、 TOEIC 3501. Vocabulary – 2000 words

2. Grammar – all basic tenses

3. Usage – communication about immediate environment

2. GEPT 中級、 CEF B1 、 TOEIC 5501. Vocabulary – 4,800 words

2. Can use basic English to communicate about topics in daily life. English ability is roughly equivalent to that of a high school graduate in Taiwan.

Index

1. GEPT 中高級、 CEF B2 、 TOEIC 7501. Vocabulary – 8000 words

2. Has a generally effective command of English. Is able to handle a broader range of topics, and although he/she makes mistakes, these do not significantly hinder his/her ability to communicate.

1. Beginner to GEPT 初級 a. 80 learning hours

b. 200 learning hours

c. 300 learning hours

d. 450 learning hours

e. 600 learning hours

f. 800 learning hours

1. Beginner to GEPT 初級 a. 80 learning hours






2. GEPT 初級 – 中級a. 80 learning hours






2. GEPT 初級 – 中級a. 80 learning hours






3. GEPT 中級 – 中高級a. 80 learning hours






3. GEPT 中級 – 中高級a. 80 learning hours






Issues for Discussion

1. What is the real status of English education in Taiwan?

2. What language and literacy abilities are important in order to participate effectively in the globalized world of the future?

3. What strategies for curriculum and pedagogy can help to cultivate these abilities?

What is the real status of English education in Taiwan? Are Taiwanese really worse at learning

English than other EFL countries? Is lack of English ability limiting our ability to

participate in the globalized markets and communities of the 21st century?

Taipei Times: Sat Nov 13, 2010

Among Asian countries, Taiwan ranked sixth in TOEIC scores last year, trailing India, the Philippines, China, Turkey and South Korea, but nevertheless ahead of Japan (7th), Thailand (8th) and Hong Kong (9th).

What is the real status of English education in Taiwan?

MYTH: Taiwanese do worse in tests like TOEFL and TOEIC than students in countries like Thailand and China.

FACT: A higher percentage of students take these tests in Taiwan than other Asian countries. We are not comparing equal samples


The time allocated for English instruction in Junior and Senior High Schools SHOULD be sufficient for students to reach a reasonable standard of proficiency.

BUT, there is a bi-nodal distribution of results in English tests – students are either very good or very bad.


Proficiency tests are the main means of determining English ability in Taiwan.

often test only listening and reading test an extremely limited range of language

use are profit driven increasingly drive the curriculum


SUMMARY Taiwanese are not worse than people from

other countries at English The education system is producing a very

unbalanced distribution of English abilities The information we have about Taiwanese

people’s English ability is not necessarily valid or reliable

Does language knowledge = language ability?

What language and literacy abilities are important in order to participate effectively in the globalized world of the future?

Characteristics of the 21st Century World

Unprecedented levels of interconnectedness More deeply divided than ever

inequities in the distribution of social and economic capital,

tensions between local and global interests.

Communicative requirements

The ability to communicate across cultural, ideological, economic and linguistic difference using modern communicative tools.

Linguistic competencies Technical competencies “Cosmopolitan” attitudes of mind – membership o

f both local and global communities

These combined competencies and attitudes have been called “21st Century Literacies” (e.g.

Hull & Stornaiuolo, 2010; Hull, Stornaiuolo & Sahni, 2010)

Defining “Literacy”

1. Cognitive view

a. Literacy is a set of skills for reading, writing

and thinking.

b. Once learned, these skills can be applied in any context

2. Social view

a. Literacy is social practice

b. There are different literacies for different domains of life

c. The cognitive view is biased

Literacy: Competing Views

Cognitive view Social view

Skills Knowledge shared

by communities

“Inside the head” “Outside the head”

21st Century Literacies in Use

Kelly (Taiwan) and Hiroshi (Japan) exchange emails about a product Kelly’s company is making for one of Hiroshi’s customers

Sharon (Taiwan) plays Happy Farm with Spiro (Turkey) on Facebook, in English.

Yang (Taiwan) sends a short documentary film he has made to an international film competition in Belgium.

Stephen (Japan) asks participants in a music forum to send donations to victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

Sample

1. No problem to provide dimension drawing for approval first (includes XXX case inside).H>>> Ok! Great!2. For Color Insert sample, is it ok if we just use color=XXXX>PC com

puter to print out for approval first? Of course, we will use good quality of paper. Because it requires USDXXX to just proceed ONE pc officially.

Do you want shiny surface?H>>> No. >The customer has requested us to change the insert design. Instead please kindly send a PRECISE DIE-LINE plan for XXXX (in ADOBE ILLUTRATOR format, "AI"). ie-line design must include the matching CUT-OUTS MATCHING THE SPONGE LINER for frame =frame is facing UP like the picture we made). Then, our designers arrange the new design on your die-line and your printer can make the insert. 3. All of the samples above (color insert + PVC box) can be done in ONE week after receiving your payment. Dec.7th can be shipped out if we receive model charge this week. Do we need to send with XXX set again? Or just to deliver Color Insert +PVC box? I hope not to ship out with XXXX set as we don't have existing sample on hand.

Lina,

I am just about to do another order we need the parts in the uk by 3rd or 4th july would it be possible to do. Also send a invoice for the 700 pieces.

regards

Jane

21st Century Literacies include:

1. Facility with language conventions – native and foreign languages

2. Competence in the technological tools through which literacy is practiced

3. Facility in employing diverse symbol systems in communication

4. The ability to recognize and empathize with ways of using literacy which are different from one’s own

5. The ability to use literacy to respectfully communicate across cultural, ideological, economic and linguistic differences

What strategies for curriculum and instruction can help cultivate the language and literacy abilities needed for the 21st Century?

Social Media in language and literacy instruction Presently an “out-of-school” phenomenon

Many schools skeptical of educational potential Wary of risks

Research findings

(Beach & Doerr-Stevens, 2009; boyd & Ellison, 2008; Greenhow &

Robelia, 2009b; Knobel & Lankshear, 2008) SM used mainly as an extension of existing social relati

onships Reinforces existing divisions of race, class and location Supports existing social stratifications, including prejudi

ces and stereotypes

Such research suggests that the potential of social media to scaffold and mediate the development new cross-cultural relationships is not currently being realized in out-of-school practices.

The Kidnet Project (Hull & Stornaiuolo, 2010; Hull, Stornaiuolo & Sahni, 2010)

Project Description

Teenage students in America, South Africa, Norway and India

Exchanged digital stories, animations, videos and artwork

Engaged in critical dialogues about common concerns in their everyday lives and respective societies.

Instruction in the use of digital communication technologies

Instructional activities to assist them negotiate dimensions of personal identity, and develop cultural knowledge

Instruction in how to “responsibly and hospitably” communicate with other youth (Appiah, 2006).

Findings

Youth in the project faced great difficulties in sustaining connections with unfamiliar others, particularly with those whose life worlds were very different to their own.

An educational framework was necessary to support the development of new understandings of themselves and others

When the students encountered issues that were important to them, a strong desire to communicate could override communicative difficulties, and lead to significant leaps in intercultural understanding

Multiliteracies (New London Group, 2006; Cop

e & Kalantzis, 2000; Lankshear & Knobel, 2003 )

An alternative paradigm which better reflects the way language and literacies are used in real life

Three dimensions Operational: tools, procedures and techniques for

handling language Cultural: competence in understanding the roles of

texts in social practices Critical: awareness that texts are socially constructed

and selective – they include some values, rules and purposes, and exclude others.

Multiliteracies Pedagogy

1. Situated Practice1. Get students to actively use language and literacy for real

purposes1. Plan a vacation2. Negotiate a transaction

2. Overt Instruction1. Teach students the language forms and technical skills they

need

3. Critical Framing1. Lead students to see social, cultural or political aspects of

texts they are working with.1. A customer enquiry – genuine? competitor? fraudster?2. Reading – Earth Day: what is behind this article?

4. Transformed Practice1. Creating new literacies

Discussion

In Taiwan EFL instruction, there is little consideration at present of cultural and critical dimensions.

Hull’s work shows the importance of these dimensions to global communication

21st Century Literacies = language proficiency + “habits of mind” that are the foundation of global citizenship

Global Citizenship

Includes recognition of obligations to others which go beyond conventional obligations to family and country

Involves the cultivation of identities that reconcile citizenship of both global and local communities Family Responsibilities Legal Responsibilities Civic Responsibilities Environmental Responsibilities Ethical Responsibilities Economic Responsibilities

Research Directions

Language education What factor is the biggest predictor of success

in foreign language learning? IQ? Age? Socio-economic status? Language-learning talent? Other?

Research Directions

The only factor consistently associated with success in foreign language learning is native language ability. Is our Chinese language education preparing

students to participate in 21st century literacies?

Technical and linguistic skills Cultural awareness Critical awareness

Research Directions

English language and literacy – from Taiwanese perspectives

What do Taiwanese people in different fields of life actually use English to do?

Discussion

What do YOU use English for in YOUR life? What kinds of “literacies” can you identify?

Examples Read textbooks / journal articles Play games Read instructions Fill in forms Read information on websites Listen to songs ?

What do you imagine you will use English for in your future professional and social life?

How well prepared do you feel to do this? How can the education system support you?

Research Topics

Professional literacies: Qualitative studies of language and literacy practices in professional settings: Companies Hospitals Hotels Schools / Universities

Interview people about their literacy practices Collect examples of documents they read and write Think about the relationship between school

instruction and real-life literacy use.

Research Topics

Out-of-school literacies: Case studies of how children use language and literacy outside of school. On-line literacy practices Recreational reading The role of literacy in everyday activities, e.g.

reading labels, instructions, signs, etc. What is the relationship between in-school

and out-of-school literacies?

Research Topics

Communication with distant others Set up an exchange activity with students in

another country. Design a program to support students in their

efforts to bridge cultural and linguistic gaps. Record and report on the successes and

failures of your program.

Conclusion

Language knowledge and technical skills are not sufficient to guarantee successful communication across cultural, linguistic, economic and social distance.

They need to be combined with “habits of mind” that facilitate participation in “global citizenship” How can we be members of “local” and

“global” communities at the same time.

Conclusion

Students need to be supported in their development of 21st century literacies Language skills Technology skills Cultural knowledge and understanding Critical perspectives Opportunities to practice

Conclusion

Language and literacy are critical in the connected world of the 21st century.

Schools and educators have a responsibility to cultivate the skills and attitudes that will allow students to participate in their global futures.

Perhaps when we rediscover a common “language”, we won’t use it to build a tower, but a bridge, to connect all the people of the world…..

Thanks for your attention!

Documents

Languages and Literacies: Their Role in Global Futures