English has gone global - Understanding Language - week 4 reflection/course conclusion #FLlanguage #MOOC

Global English is a major component of the MA in English Language Teaching that the University of Southampton offers in partnership with the British Council; the same MA that this MOOC has served as a brief introduction/teaser for and was very much being crammed down my throat in this final week!

The focus of week 4 of the Understanding Language MOOC was on english as a lingua franca - a language that is utilised for communication between two or more individuals who do not share a native language - and a consideration of the emergence of the controversial new Global English. 

As with weeks 2&3, I did not gain much from this fourth and final week of the MOOC. Ultimately, while it has provided some new insights, I have largely found the Understanding Language MOOC to be a huge disappointment. 

Week 4 notes, there were not many.

The week  dealt with the historical spread of the english language across the globe while considering whether this was necessarily a good thing and then used this foundation to consider the global presence of the english language today. 

In particular, it's role as a lingua franca a.k.a. a go-between language in international fields, such as academic, the UN, etc., was discussed; as was the emergence of english language variants which exist and vary precisely because english has been absorbed by so many different cultures and has been adapted accordingly. 

This area of teaching and research that is focused on english language variants has become known as Global English and it is quite controversial. Ultimately, Global English is a major component of the MA in English Language Teaching that the University of Southampton offers in partnership with the British Council; the same MA that this MOOC has served as a brief introduction/teaser for and was very much being crammed down my throat in this final week! 

Kill the tuition fee and no problem.

One of the incentives for universities to create MOOCs is so that they can advertise their institution's expertise and course catalogue in the hope that you might be persuaded to sign up for something - I have no problem with MOOCs doing this. However, if the MOOC offers you next to nothing while it is trying to win you over - as I have found to be the case with the Understanding Language MOOC - I am going to be very annoyed!

Yeah, I was not very enthralled by this final week or the way in which it did not really tie together the weeks that came before it! 

Overall, the Understanding Language MOOC has just felt too much like the University of Southampton was trying to sell me the MA in English Language Teaching, opposed to actually teaching me something new. 

I was very surprised because the University of Southampton also produced the Web Science MOOC I am quite big on and, while that was also advertising a new degree they have started at their institution, the MOOC itself offers you an awful lot on its own!

However, not long after the Understanding Language MOOC concluded, FutureLearn announced a new batch of courses and the one created by the University of Bristol caught my eye: Cultural Studies and Modern Language: An Introduction. 

I have already signed up, it sounds very promising...

"By the end of the course, you will have heard twelve examples about how language and artifacts contribute to culturation and development; collectively these examples will introduce you to a methodology on how to understand other cultures."

While the Understanding Language MOOC has been a bit of a let down, it has at least started to introduce me to the conceptual foundations of language learning, so with any luck the Cultural Studies and Modern Languages MOOC will build on those conceptual foundations and fully set me on my way to start learning another language somewhere down the line.

You can read my other posts on the Understanding Language MOOC below:

• Understanding Language: Learning and Teaching MOOC - Commencement
• Do you take my meaning? Understanding Language - Week 1 Reflection
• Classrooms and Technology - Understanding Language - Weeks 2&3 reflection

Do you take my meaning? Understanding Language - Week 1 Reflection #FLlanguage #MOOC

The emphasis of the first week of the Understanding Language MOOC has been focused on the theory behind language learning, as explored through a consideration of what comprises 'meaning'. 

'Meaning' was broken down into four subsets:

• Lexical meaning - the meaning of words
• Sentence meaning - the meaning of sentences
• Grammatical meaning - the construction and manipulation of essential meaning within sentences
• Pragmatic meaning - meaning of specificity in language transmission that relies on knowledge of the world and the discourse context

The consideration of 'meaning' is the main item I have taken from this first week, as the meaning of the english language is something that I have been increasingly considering more much minutely than my fellow peers; mainly because much of my schooling life I was largely illiterate and it was only when I approached university (about five years ago) that I decided it was time to get to grips with basic english grammar.

Notes from Understanding Language week 1.

I did this by getting my hands on various grammar books and working my way through them while testing myself. Certainly, this ongoing period of study greatly nourished my understanding of the construction of the english language, but I am still no expert on english grammar - I know enough to get by and seek out assistance when necessary.

One of the complaints of the grammar sticklers out there is that the UK's teaching on grammar in the education system is atrocious and, being mostly illiterate for much of my schooling life, I can agree with this statement. 

"To understand the rules, it is necessary to learn some of the words used in discussing grammar. Much of grammar is not taught in schools in Britain today, or is taught badly and unenthusiastically. Even those who were taught grammar at school have often forgotten most of it" 

- Bernard C. Lamp, The Queen's English, 2012:13.

This lack of understanding in regards to the english language is probably also the reason for why the UK has such an abysmal second language learning rate.

Notes from Understanding Language week 1.

Therefore, the point I am trying to make is that the only way I can apply the understanding of meaning in regards to a language is to apply that understanding to a language I already know, which is english, but If I do not fully understand the lexical, sentence, grammatical and pragmatic meaning of the english language, how can I ever hope to get my teeth into learning another language?

Notes on the Bottleneck Hypothesis from Understanding Language week 1.

Fortunately, I do mostly understand english, but if I am really serious about learning another language, then in addition to laying the theoretical groundwork of language learning in advance, I also need to be in a position where I am fully confident with my native language in both writing and the spoken word. 

Do you take my meaning?

I know how to speak english and I know english grammar - I know how to create, convey and manipulate meaning in the english language.

But I do not necessarily understand all of the mechanics behind how I am able to convey lexical, sentence, grammatical and pragmatic meaning in the english language.

"Learning the common rules of English can be very rewarding. It helps to have explained the reasons for what you may have been doing already; it can resolve doubts and uncertainties, and lead to correction of errors." 

- Bernard C. Lamb, The Queen's English, 2010:12.

Basically, I know the grammar, but I still do not know what is a 'verb' or a 'noun' or 'syntax'.

Seriously, I told you the education was pretty bad in this country!

Notes from Understanding Language week 1.

In my mind, there is an essential toolkit you need to possess when constructing your understanding of another language; it's a toolkit that you would have put together when learning your native language, but my toolkit is still incomplete.

Therefore, I have decided it is high time to fill those gaps, which is why I have started to work my through a previous grammar book I did not previously have time to intimately work my way through: The Queen's English by Bernard C. Lamb.

Regardless of what language you are utilising, its meaning is useless if your underlying knowledge does not understand how to take it or how to use it.


Up next...

Classrooms and Technology - Understanding Language - Weeks 2&3 reflection #FLlanguage #MOOC