English as a lingua franca in academic and professional settings: implications for learners, teachers and users

Description de l'atelier

The aim of this interactive presentation is to raise awareness of current changes relating to English in academic and professional settings, and the possible pedagogical implications of these changes. The concepts of English as a lingua franca (ELF), English as an International Language and World Englishes will be considered, as will mainstream approaches to ELF and controversies relating to the concept. The question of native speaker models will be explored in relation to the use of English worldwide, and considered with regard to threshold levels of competence and needs in different contexts of use. The notions of international communicative competence and socio-pragmatic competence will be introduced in relation to these points. Participants will be encouraged to consider their own stance towards change in relation to English worldwide and the notion of English as a lingua franca, and relate this to their learners’ current and possible future needs, be they in academia or professional life. Pedagogical applications, such as task-based learning and teaching, will also be reviewed.

Patricia Pullin

Patricia Pullin is Head of English at the University of Zurich and ETH Language Center. She has a BA (Hons) in English Language and Literature, and an MA in Education (TESOL) from the University of London. Her PhD in Applied Linguistics is from the University of Birmingham. She also holds a postgraduate diploma in Teaching English as a Foreign Language to Adults. She has carried out research and published in the fields of business English and English as a lingua franca. She is responsible for the English programme at the Language Center in Zurich and teaches EAP and ESP courses for undergraduates, postgraduates, researchers and administrative staff. Her current areas of interest in both research and teaching include discourse analysis, English as a lingua franca in academic and professional settings, and pragmatics in language teaching.