I. Critical Thinking and Writing (50%)
The Internet and fine transportation development have shortened the borders among nations, making multicultural communication far more common and faster than ever before. That boosts widespread phenomena of World/Global Englishes and English as a lingua franca (ELF). According to Oxford Bibliographies, ELF refers to “English used among speakers who have different first language backgrounds”. Firth (1996) defines ELF as “a ‘contact language’ between persons who share neither a common native tongue nor a common (national) culture, and for whom English is the chosen foreign language of communication” (p.240). McKay (2017) mentions that a major contribution of Firth’s definition is that it recognizes the common use of English among L2 speakers rather than that with native speakers. More importantly, it documents that manner in which less proficient speakers of English manage to interact and repair breakdowns in communication. This, McKay argues, might lead to a conclusion that, by documenting socalled core features of ELF, a somewhat limited English instead of full proficiency in the language should be the target of language learning. Do you agree or disagree with McKay’s argument? How do the statements above compare with the English learning environment in Taiwan? Write an essay of no more than 400 words to elaborate.
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