Week 12- Eng. in the era of globalization

There were many quotes that I found impressionable in this chapter of the book but for starters in the very first paragraph, the author states “the spread of English proceeds in a manner that supports the integrity and devotion of other languages”.  This quote really stood out to me because after reading some of the past articles about how everyone learning English could be harmful or degrading to some languages, it was nice to hear a good word about our language.  But continuing with the reading it discusses the Pennycook’s different perspectives of homogeny and heterogeny.  This portion was really interesting to me because I had never heard these terms before and I thought taking a look at his ideas was really eye opening.  After analyzing his opinions I think it shows that there is a definite imbalance between these two ideas and it makes me question how we would ever be able to attain any type of harmony.  Pennycook stated that he thinks that the ultimate effect of these two ideas is a fluid mixture of cultural heritage which I suppose is somewhat the step in the right direction.

Another idea I pulled from this week’s reading that was thought provoking was that English has been related to power even since the colonial times.  After thinking more deeply on this it makes complete sense but when I think of English as power I would relate it to current times because people around the world are learning the language since our country has become such a power figure.  When in reality, in colonial times our country was being taken over by the British power who spoke English so our primary thoughts were to correlate English with power because the settlers from Spain were over powered by their force.  The author later states, “knowing English is like possessing the fabled Aladdin’s lamp”, a very powerful statement which really sums up the viewpoint on the English language.

The chapter also mentions that there are economic, educational and mass media pressures or incentives to learning English which could all be very overwhelming to learners of the language.  I think that as teachers it is important to have all of these aspects in mind when instructing learners from other countries because along with the stresses of understanding a very complicated language, they also have all the pressures from these concepts that push them to want to have an understanding even more.  I know that when I was in Spain I felt almost overwhelmed with all of the slang and expressions that I was never taught but needed in order to effectively communicate with other peers my age that it made it stressful to learn a language that I thought I already had a good base on.

Through studies in my linguistics course we learned about how many languages that are found throughout the world and I really never understood just how many are out there until studying this subject more.  We also discussed how real it is about all of the languages that are disappearing which I think the widespread obsession of learning English definitely has impacted.  It saddens me to think of how many people are losing their native tongue but on the flip side it is also important that we are able to communicate worldwide so there is definitely a positive and negative side to this issue.

Week 10: Race, Language and identity; critical multiculturalism in TESOL

The “Becoming Black” article really caught my attention on a number of levels, within the first page the quote “where and how they saw themselves was reflected in the mirror of their society” made me want to keep reading because it can be applied to multiple races as well.  As I continued to read it was interesting to learn more about the African American vernacular, since I did not have very much previous knowledge prior to this article when the author explained the differences between BSE and BE or Black English.  He explained that BE or Black talk has its own grammar and syntax.  BSE on the other hand refers to ways of speaking that do not depend on a full mastery of the language.  I also got a good laugh about the section that they described the apparel that goes with the rap lifestyle that had such an impact on their language.  The styles have really changed since the article was written!

I had to agree with the question the author posed about the investment that Puerto Ricans would have in learning BSE.  I never got the impression that these individuals would have the need or want to learn this language but then again what gives me the right to question anyone’s desire to learn a language? They also mention in the article that rap was a very influential aspect of their language learning which could really be both negative and positive.  Rap worldwide has a variety of messages and purposes but I have hear a fair share of rap songs with extremely vulgar ideas and words and if people are using this as a reference point of how to talk to another person could display an image they may or may not mean to.  It could be positive as well though because music is an extraordinary form of education and if putting expressions to a tune helps students learn another language then I think it could be very beneficial.

 The quote used in the Ibrahim article “being is different from becoming” correlates to the ideas expressed in the Arab TESOL Students’ Experiences of Racialization and Othering in the United Kingdom because it expresses how the mindset should be before even meeting another person.  I understand the quote to mean the following: I think that a person defines themselves as their own individual with their own set of personal characteristics, thus being.  If someone “others” another individual they take their ideas towards a type of person so much that the individual becomes someone they may not even be anywhere near similar to. Understanding that every human being has their own set of characteristics ensures that they do not become someone they are not accidently in the onlooker’s eye.

Week 8: Cultural Representations

After reflecting on this week’s assigned readings, there are a number of ideas and perspectives that jumped out at me.  To start off with, I found it interesting that the article mentioned that the Dick and Jane images began around the time of World War 2 because I feel like these stereotypical images began much prior to this time period.  This thought made me reflect on where I had received these ideas since I was obviously not born during that time and I realized that any of my “knowledge” on these images really stemmed from images I picked up through movies and television.  When I think about hit television shows that have a main character that is defined through their being an English language learner, the only show that I could think of is “That 70’s Show”.  The character “Fez” is not only portrayed as dumb and perverted, but also he is the least liked character among the friends in the group.  In reality, this image being displayed doesn’t really surprise me yet it does make me feel guilty about the subliminal messages I have been receiving strictly from watching television since during a really critical time in my development.

A quote that was really influential in my reading was in Tayler-Mendes’ piece when he mentioned the necessity to raise awareness “about power inequality hidden behind taken for granted knowledge and transforming society so that the powerless become agents of changing their own world”.  I think this sentence was formed so beautifully because it really slaps you in the face and tells you that there is something that everyone can be doing to change the way stereotypes litter this earth.  Not only is it the “powerless” or minority groups that need to be reacting, its everyone that needs to start caring more about the images we portray.

Of course I have been blindly reading textbooks all of my life, but I have never taken a minute to reflect on the picture and how they are being received.  It almost sickens me to think that I have been so naïve as to not even realize that these images are being framed to display the stereotypical images that companies want us to believe at an early age. The article mentioned that body language, physical positioning and even clothing on certain racial groups broadcast the exact image that we receive in various ways throughout the media. I found it interesting that throughout their research they noticed that English as a foreign language learners had a very difficult time questioning these images when in reality it is their cultural groups who are being diminished by this unfortunate habit companies have with their advertisements. These topics are all very controversial so I think this week’s discussion will be very insightful since it is inevitable that everyone will have very different opinions and I look forward to hearing them in class.

Week 7: Culture and Spoken Discourse

After reading the assigned material, I feel like I have a different understanding of both the English language and also the differences between subcultures that appear to be very similar.  To begin with, I was primarily interested with the methods that the experimenters conducted for the Marra article.  I had never seen a study that was controlled by the volunteers that participated, this ensured that the results were unbiased and not strictly opinion based like many studies that are run by interviews and surveys. I like the method that they chose because it seemed most appropriate for determining “effective workplace talk”. Since the groups they were studying were so different there was bound to be various differences, one for example was the fact that they were expected to be modest in social circumstances.  Most people would agree on this commonality but it is especially stressed in their culture.

A quote that caught my attention from Marra’s article was when he mentioned how the minority group communication was being viewed through a mainstream lens, which I would have to agree is not beneficial for either party.  For those of us looking through a mainstream lens, the group will be seen as an almost pitied culture because of its numerous differences.  Also if the minority group was to look outward through a mainstream lens, they would see a swarm of misconstrued stereotypes that are often far from reality.

Through the Baker article, I found it completely eye opening to consider the English language as a lingua franca.  I had never dissected this word in depth prior to this reading and I realized the idea in general was very fascinating.  Once I considered the vast number of people who speak English across the globe it really hit me how much of an impact it has made in communication. The article also touched on the idea that when referring to the ELF that cultures should be considered liminal, which is somewhat upsetting since this whole class we have been stressing the importance of sharing and embracing cultures. 

Although this information was all interesting, the most trivial point in all of the readings that I found was the section referring to how English was no longer viewed as being connected to the cultures of English dominant countries.  This was somewhat upsetting to me because of how much our country and others that speak English primarily lose all sense of a prominent culture just because our language is spoken worldwide. When I was in Spain I was enthralled in all the beauty that made up their culture and wanted to share my new knowledge with everyone I knew, the thought that tourists who visit our country may not have the same experience is somewhat tragic.

Thoughts on the week 6 video

It was interesting for me to see the first woman who spoke how she felt uncomfortable criticizing how the government prepared food service because in her country she would have been punished for speaking against the government, for me that is so unthinkable because of the freedom we are given in the United States.

I enjoyed learning about how to accomodate these students, some ideas included giving take home writing projects so that they will be able to show the full potential of their efforts. Also they mentioned to avoid marking the entire paper that you return to a student and to sit down and individually discuss how they would prefer to be corrected.

Although I saw a lot of interesting points in this video, I don’t quite understand how this video is not contradicting everything that we have learned because it stated that this is how one group works and this is how another group of people write like. I feel that I make a point of making my writing different from others especially for creative writing purposes that this video does not necessarily apply to everyone.

Week 6 Blog

Before even getting to the second page of Kubotas article on “Unfinished Knowledge: the story of Barbara”, it really impacted me on how much criticism and debate have come from teaching English as a second or foreign language because in the end there is always a common goal: to achieve an understanding of another tongue.  I think that if instead of debating about how to teach it or which method or ultimate goal is most effective, and instead focusing on how to come together as one unite of teachers and share our passion for instructing others more would get done as one.  Continuing reading this article I appreciated that Kubota respected the idea of making various culture prevalent while teaching a foreign language so that it is understood that every individual and their customs are important without trying to conform to the ideas of the language they try to learn.

Although I feel like after simply eating a chicken teriyaki and hearing what a colleague deems important wouldn’t drastically change my life, I can see how Barbara finally came around with her students.  This interaction she had with Carol was really important because it opened her mind and allowed her to express “that students need not abandon their own culture-they simply need to acquire new cultural conventions in order to succeed in the academic community”.  I really love this statement because I think it expresses perfectly what we regularly discuss in the classroom and puts it in a manner that is easy to understand and applicable to more than just the language acquisition subject.

I thought that the way that David compared culture with the idea of feminism was really interesting because I had never looked at the two in a similar light prior to reading this article.  Although I can understand this thought process it also made me wonder how two ideas describing a woman could be fully explained when it seemed like it still left out so much? Can manlihood be described in the same two ideas of essentialist and constructionalism? And if not, then how can the two genders be so different that they cannot be subgrouped into the same categories?

When reflecting upon the articles I noticed that a common theme was present, how do you teach the important aspects of a culture without broadcasting a stereotypical light on each said culture? After spinning this thought through my head a number of times I think that there is no set way that can help avoid this misunderstanding because every person can take an idea and interpret it differently.  Some points that can help avoid this miscommunication can be explaining the differences between each culture but also explaining how cultures are also similar in that they all mean something unique to the person who exhibits them.  Also if you help a student understand that although a group of people from a certain region may be prone to following a certain culture, it does not mean that they have to or don’t like aspects from other cultures as well.

Week 5: Power and discourse; otherization, cultural assimilation, cultural stereotyping

When I began reading section A2.1 I found my viewpoints and explanations to be very similar to those of John’s.  If I had seen Mr. Smith listening to the radio in the car, or even having a car for that matter, I would automatically presume that he was not 100% dedicated or that he only behaved that way because he was alone and none of his family could see his actions.  I even noticed that I myself had a predetermined stereotype about a girl in one of my classes who regularly wears floor length skirts, covers her hair with a cloth and wears no makeup; whenever my teacher would ask a religion related question to the class I automatically looked to her to give a response.  Although I have never asked this fellow student’s background, I am embarrassed to have these ideas implanted in my head from the beginning because of the examples I have seen in movies and television.

Continuing with my reading of the Smith family, I did not understand how Mr. Smith could consider himself fully Amish if he indulged in some of the luxuries the outside world has until the book compared Mrs. Smith’s culture to being a woman and if she were to behave outside of this parameter that she would lose her femininity. Being only human, of course I occasionally burp out loud or spit on the sidewalk, both being unlady-like characteristics but that does not mean I must leave my subculture of being a woman.  That section slapped me right across the face and finally gave me the understanding that I needed to relate this to my own life and that although people may claim to be a part of one or numerous cultures, when behaving in some manners that don’t necessarily match the standard does not mean you must leave the group.

I think the idea of Othering is an extremely harmful behavior that most see as harmless or don’t even realize when they are doing it.  Although every person is capable of being categorized or categorizing others as well, it is an act we should all make a conscious effort to avoid in order for others to catch on and avoid it as well.