LINGUIST List 9.405

Thu Mar 19 1998

Disc: Other Englishes

Editor for this issue: Julie Wilson <julielinguistlist.org>

Directory

1. Su Xiaojun, Chinese English

Dear colleagues:

I am an EFL teacher at English Department, College of Foreign Languages,
Soochow University, P. R. China. I have been teaching English for over 10
years. Now I teach fourth-year English majors & also graduate students.

I have a graduate student who is working on her M.A. thesis. She is trying
to prove that we should have a special variety of English for our Chinese
EFL learners, which is different from Sinicized English.

The main point is that English no longer belongs to any particular country,
but is truly internationalinzed. Chinese English will better transmit our
Chinese culture, such as "iron rice bowl". Since there are Indian English,
Singaporean English & other Emglishes, why shouldn't we have our own
Chinese English?

I assigned my students to read Kachru & etc. & I have been sharing my
views with many of my Chinese friends. I hope to have your opinions on
this issue, esp. its relevance for us foreign language teachers---will
fostering Chinese English hinder international communication & what will
happen if there is no norm to refer to in EFL teaching & what should be the
norm if there should be one?

TIA.

Yours, Xiaojun