LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Volume 14:3 March 2014
ISSN 1930-2940

Managing Editor: M. S. Thirumalai, Ph.D.
Editors: B. Mallikarjun, Ph.D.
         Sam Mohanlal, Ph.D.
         B. A. Sharada, Ph.D.
         A. R. Fatihi, Ph.D.
         Lakhan Gusain, Ph.D.
         Jennifer Marie Bayer, Ph.D.
         S. M. Ravichandran, Ph.D.
         G. Baskaran, Ph.D.
         L. Ramamoorthy, Ph.D.
         C. Subburaman, Ph.D. (Economics)
Assistant Managing Editor: Swarna Thirumalai, M.A.

HOME PAGE

Click Here for Back Issues of Language in India - From 2001

BOOKS FOR YOU TO READ AND DOWNLOAD FREE!

REFERENCE MATERIAL

BACK ISSUES

  • E-mail your articles and book-length reports in Microsoft Word to languageinindiaUSA@gmail.com.

  • PLEASE READ THE GUIDELINES GIVEN IN HOME PAGE IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE LIST OF CONTENTS.

  • Your articles and book-length reports should be written following the APA, MLA, LSA, or IJDL Stylesheet.

  • The Editorial Board has the right to accept, reject, or suggest modifications to the articles submitted for publication, and to make suitable stylistic adjustments. High quality, academic integrity, ethics and morals are expected from the authors and discussants.

Copyright © 2012
M. S. Thirumalai
Custom Search

Changes and Challenges: Reviewing the Configuration of Technology, Global Trends and English Language

Sarita

Abstract

This paper deals with some key global trends which may shape the demand for English in the future – from the invention of internet to the restructuring of social and cultural inequality; from globalization to the changing communication needs; from the global spread of English to decreased use of endangered languages; from industrial revolution to consumer culture. These trends interact in complex ways and may produce unexpected social and cultural outcomes. This paper attempts to explore the challenges that English language has to face in world communications, international business, and social and cultural affairs in an ever-changing world of technology.

Status of English in Changing World

The current status of English as a world language may seem to be so entrenched and secure that agonizing over ‘the changing realities and future challenges’ might be regarded as no more than a skeptically exaggerated expression. There are reasons why we ought to take stock and reassess the place of English in the world. There are some facts, trends and ideas which may impact the present status of English language. For example, the economic dominance of English-speaking countries – which has helped circulate English in the new market economies of the world – is being eroded as Asian economies grow and become the source, rather than the recipient, of cultural and economic flows. Demographic and educational trends in many countries suggest that languages other than English are already providing significant competition in curricula.

This paper identifies such significant global trends – in technology, language use and mass culture – which may affect the future learning and use of English internationally. During this period of rapid change, it would be foolhardy to imagine that pre-eminent position of English as a world language will not be challenged in some world regions and domains of use as the global trends and attitudes are transformed due to technological advancement. The paper takes stock of the present apparently unassailable position of English in the world and asks whether we can expect its status to remain unchanged during this unprecedented global change.

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

Sarita
Research Scholar
Bhagat Phool Singh Mahila Vishwavidyalaya
Khanpur Kalan
Sonipat-131305
Haryana
India
saritamalik1985@gmail.com
Custom Search
  • Click Here to Go to Creative Writing Section

  • Send your articles
    as an attachment
    to your e-mail to
    languageinindiaUSA@gmail.com.
  • Please ensure that your name, academic degrees, institutional affiliation and institutional address, and your e-mail address are all given in the first page of your article. Also include a declaration that your article or work submitted for publication in LANGUAGE IN INDIA is an original work by you and that you have duly acknowledged the work or works of others you used in writing your articles, etc. Remember that by maintaining academic integrity we not only do the right thing but also help the growth, development and recognition of Indian/South Asian scholarship.