THE CHALLENGE OF GLOBALIZATION: CONTEMPORARY ENGLISH BETWEEN FRAGMENTATION AND INTERNATIONALIZATION

Abstract

We provide an overview of the current situation regarding the use of English worldwide, by making use of the classic explanatory model proposed by Kachru, with some necessary updates. We describe some possible models for teaching English as a second and foreign language, in particular the native-speaker model, the nativized model and the lingua franca mode. We discuss the cultural and pedagogical implications of these models and highlight the risks for communication resulting from the multiplication of local varieties. We insist on the need to safeguard intelligibility between all speakers of English in order to maintain the function of this language as a global means of communication.

Keywords

• inglese, globalizzazione, insegnamento, lingua franca