English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) in Intercultural Communication: Findings from ELF Online Projects and Implications for ELT in Taiwan

Abstract

The popularity of the internet enables people to communicate at a low cost. Moreover, as English continues to spread globally within educational systems in various countries, the language barrier between speakers of a different fist language is gradually fading. People of a different first language now use English as a lingua franca (ELF) to communicate with each other. In the past, most studies on intercultural communication involved native-speakers and non-native speakers of a language (Sharifian, 2009a, p.4). There was insufficient attention to intercultural communication in a lingua franca setting when both sides use a second language to communicate. This paper draws from the findings from five ELF intercultural projects conducted by the author to discuss how cultural frameworks in ELF settings influence students' online written communication. Students' email and forum records as well as their reflections of the experience participating in the project were qualitatively analyzed to identify communication gaps. Preconceptions derived from the students' own culture, stereotypes about their partner's culture, influence from the students' L1, and incongruent understanding of certain English words were found to play key roles in ELF intercultural communication. Issues in ELF intercultural communication and its implications for ELT in Taiwan are discussed.