Event

International English as a Performance Phenomenon

Sunday, June 24th, 2007, 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Speaker: Kensaku Yoshida, Sophia University, Tokyo

For the majority of people in Asia, English is an "International" language, which is not necessarily related directly to any of the so-called mother-tongue Englishes. Although it is true that there are people who need to learn the native varieties of Englishes because they are studying English/American literature, British/American studies, etc., the great majority of the people are studying English in order to communicate with people from around the world. In this presentation, Prof. Yoshida will argue for a performance-based definition of "international Englisn" -- similar to that of bilingualism. International English should be considered in the context of "real" communication between people from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds. Another way to put this is to say that international English is "created" in the process of communication. Finally, he will argue, therefore, that international English can only be acquired through communicative language learning/teaching.

Organization: Fukui Chapter of the Japan Association for Language Teaching (Fukui JALT)

Cost: JALT Members: free
Non-members: 2,000 yen (preregistration 1,500yen)

Venue: Fukui International Activities Plaza

Location: Fukui City, Fukui Prefecture, Japan

Contact Fukui JALT

Galina Hristoskova