Linguistic landscape as a powerful teaching resource in English for Specific Purposes

Abstract

The study explores the integration of linguistic landscapes into English for Specific Purposes (ESP) instruction within the context of contemporary Serbia, aiming to expand language awareness, lingua-pragmatic competence, and critical thinking among learners. Against the backdrop of Anglo-globalisation, the study seeks to establish a model applicable to foreign language teaching, with a focus on language contacts and their impact on the linguistic landscape. The research employs a comprehensive sociolinguistic analysis of the linguistic landscape in Serbia, investigating the anglicisation of official names of entities such as companies, shops, and agencies. The study scrutinises the corpus of linguistic landscapes to identify patterns and socio-linguistic phenomena, developing a model for integrating these landscapes into ESP instruction. The methodology encompasses qualitative and quantitative analyses, drawing on language data and sociolinguistic observations. The key research questions concern the identification of distinctive features within the sociolinguistic landscape of contemporary Serbia, particularly in relation to English language influences, the effective utilisation of linguistic landscapes as a teaching resource in ESP courses to cultivate language awareness and lingua-pragmatic competence, and the implications that the incorporation of linguistic landscapes has on cultivating critical thinking regarding language contacts in the broader sociolinguistic context. The research has identified significant instances of anglicisation in the linguistic landscape of Serbia, having highlighted the pervasive influence of English in specialised fields and popular language culture. The model proposed for ESP instruction has demonstrated the potential of linguistic landscapes in enhancing language competencies, language awareness, and creative thinking among learners. The findings suggest that linguistic landscapes serve as a valuable resource for language educators, particularly in ESP contexts as they provide a dynamic platform for language instruction. Incorporating linguistic landscapes can contribute to preserving language standards, addressing the challenges posed by language contacts, and nurturing critical thinking skills among learners. The study’s model offers a paradigm applicable to teaching various foreign languages, promoting a better understanding of language influences in the contemporary multilingual world.

Keywords

• linguistic landscape
• anglo-globalisation
• language culture
• language contacts
• esp