Investigating perceptions of English as a lingua franca in Hong Kong: The case of university students

Abstract

English as a lingua franca (ELF) has received a great deal of attention in the field of applied linguistics in the last decade or so (Jenkins, 2007, 2014; Mauranen, 2012; Seidlhofer, 2011). As is currently conceptualized, ELF refers to the common language of choice among speakers from different lingua-cultural backgrounds (Jenkins, 2007; Seidlhofer, 2011). ELF does not imply a single, unified variety of English but primarily refers to language in use in contexts where multilingual speakers are involved (Cogo, 2010). In other words, ELF can be understood as social practice, with an emphasis on meaning-making processes. Much of the earlier research focused on identifying linguistic features characteristic of ELF communication (see Jenkins, 2000; Seidlhofer, 2001). But with the increased recognition of the variability and fluidity associated with the use of ELF, researchers have recently turned their attention to investigating communicative strategies which multilingual speakers employ to achieve mutual understanding and negotiate meaning in ELF interactions (see Cogo & Dewey, 2012; Jenkins, Cogo & Dewey, 2011). Furthermore, there exists a growing body of research into attitudes and perceptions of ELF communication (see Cogo, 2010; Jenkins, 2007; Kaloscai, 2009), given the impact of ELF perceptions on ELF-related communicative practices, especially with respect to issues relating to (non-) conformity to native-speaker norms.

Why are Euro ELF (English as a lingua franca) user attitudes ambivalent? Pre-service teachers from Spain and Sweden

“…On the other hand, another participant was somewhat ambivalent in his answers overall, stating 'learning' for his own English and 'sharing' for partner students' English, and 'because I use it in university' for why English is important, and somewhat agreed to want to sound like a native speaker. Thus, as their overall attitude, our participants manifested the pervasive tendency among ELF users that previous research witnesses -being ambivalent (Sung 2018;Jenkins, 2007;Takahashi, 2017;Rahatlou et al 2018;Jaramillo et al 2020;Lai, 2020).…”

“…Many citizens of the European Union (EU) countries can be typical ELF users, as they mainly use English with people from other European countries or other continents in various social milieus (Seidlhofer 2020) -from political summits to the Eurovision Song Contest. Substantial research in various geographical contexts has investigated attitudes of university students (often pre-service English teachers) and English teachers, who can be framed as 'ELF users' according to our criteria (e.g., Cogo 2010;Curran and Chern 2017;Dewey and Pineda 2020;Jenkins 2007;Sung 2018;Takahashi 2017;Rahatlou, Fazilatfar, and Allami 2018;Sung 2018;Jaramillo, Dávila, and Jarquín, 2020;Lai 2020). While some studies in this body of research found that pedagogical intervention foster positive attitudes towards English as ELF (e.g., Chacón-Beltrán 2021; Delgado-Marín 2018; Dewey and Pineda 2020), many report that ELF user attitudes are usually not straightforward but rather ambivalent, mixed, inconsistent, and often selfcontradictory.…”

“…While some studies in this body of research found that pedagogical intervention foster positive attitudes towards English as ELF (e.g., Chacón-Beltrán 2021; Delgado-Marín 2018; Dewey and Pineda 2020), many report that ELF user attitudes are usually not straightforward but rather ambivalent, mixed, inconsistent, and often selfcontradictory. Particularly, as Sung (2018) reports in a university context in Hong Kong, ELF users often note that native speakers may not need to be the model for learners; however, they also believe there should be some type of 'standard' for using English internationally.…”

EFL Islamic Elementary Students’ Anxiety in Learning English

“…The FLCAS questionnaire consisted of 33 questions validated using Pearson Correlation Coefficient from SPPS 22. The reliability of the internal consistency of the scale was measured by using Alpha Cronbach coefficient as guided the following table 1 (Sugiyono, 2011): Students' total score from the questionnaire was calculated to see the students' levels of foreign language anxiety: high, moderate, and low anxiety levels. In order to know the index of each level, the researchers used the formula below: Finally, the researcher calculated the score of the total frequency.…”

“…In this era of globalization, the need to master foreign languages is increasing. English as a lingua franca makes English become the language commonly used as a liaison between countries with different languages of instruction and speakers (Iriance, 2018;Liu, 2019;Mauranen, 2018;Sherman, 2018;Sung, 2017). Various countries in Southeast Asia have designated English as the number one foreign language taught and studied at various education system levels (Handayani, 2016;Kirkpatrick, 2018;Kirkpatrick & Liddicoat, 2017).…”