The shifting faces of English-language teaching

Abstract

The 21st century has witnessed globalization, the unprecedented movement of people, and dramatic advances in digital technologies. The intersection of these three trends has led to changes in the English language itself, in terms of both linguistic variation and the inclusion of multiple modes of communication within one text. Furthermore, it has changed, in Joshua Fishman’s words, who speaks what language, to whom, and when. To prepare English-language learners for this new linguistic landscape of multiliteracies and communication with socioculturally diverse English speakers, language teachers need to be competent interculturally and skilled in multimodalities (i.e., using more than one semiotic mode of communication). These understandings and skills, therefore, need to be explicitly taught in second-language teacher education (SLTE). To create these responsive curricula, SLTE programs need to rethink not just the content but also the process of curriculum design, and involve teacher educators from all disciplines who teach future teachers.