Language Planning

Abstract

The spread of English as an international language (EIL) is so pervasive as to warrant consideration in the media, in business and youth culture, but especially in domestic language planning. Teaching English as an international language (TEIL) is informed by, and has implications for, the societal and educational roles played by Standard English, varieties of English, and other languages known by plurilingual learners and teachers. Tensions and conflicts related to policy makers’ and general language users’ beliefs shape (and challenge) status and acquisition planning mechanisms such as tests, programs, the medium of instruction, curriculum, pedagogical and linguistic practices, and age of entry. TEIL's relationship to norms, standards, World Englishes, English as a lingua franca, native/non‐native speaker (NS/NNS) designations, and plurilingualism fuels controversies, as do policy decisions regarding language status, corpus and acquisition planning, and teacher education. The challenge is for language planning in TEIL to account for multiple stakeholders’ beliefs, interests, and goals.