Lingua Nova: Rethinking English-Language Instruction for the 21st Century 3301-ZJ-WM-JS001
The course traces the changing status of English in the world today and the impact these changes have (or should have) on the educational scene. It redefines the goals of teaching English, examines standards of correctness, the role of native-speaker models, and explores new developments in foreign-language provision, including digital tools and adaptive learning. Given the growing role of non-native English in global communication, the course addresses the role of teaching (through) culture and, in this context, considers the possible emergence of endonormative EFL varieties.
This inevitably leads to issues of linguistic ecology, linguistic justice, and prevention of exclusion on linguistic grounds. Multilingualism, increasingly expected by stakeholders in language education —and related processes such as translanguaging and code-switching—force a reflection on national and supranational language policies, on the identity of learners, and on ways of adapting school reality to the dynamically changing needs and expectations of English-language learners/users.
Students will also be presented with concrete case studies - from the Polish Matura exam as a form of establishing local endonormative standards to the promotion of English for active citizenship in formal education.
The course is suitable for all who want to understand the changing role and functions of English in education and society as well as to explore the pedagogical, cultural and social consequences of these transformations.
List of topics
1. Evolving English: the digital turn
global spread, global village, digital English, domains of public and professional life strongly influenced by English, digital ecosystems, convergence vs. fragmentation, the multilingual scene, linguistic diversity
2. From EFL to ELF: redefining standards
varieties of English, ELF communication practices, accommodation strategies, intelligibility vs. native accuracy, endonormative vs. exonormative models, ELF research implications
3. English and ideology in global education
native speakerism; imitation paradigm; linguisticide and minority languages; linguistic ecology and justice; English as a gatekeeper – access, equity, linguistic exclusion; attitudes towards English and the cultures(s) of English-speaking countries, decolonizing English-language curricula
4. Multilingual learners in multilingual settings: cognitive, affective and pedagogical dimensions
cognitive dimensions: transfer, translanguaging, code-switching; affective dimensions: motivation, anxiety, identity, agency and multilingual identity negotiation;
pedagogical dimensions: treatment of errors, alternative assessment, feedback practices for multilingual learners
5. Developing socio-cultural competence
role and place of culture in EFL and ELF models, intercultural - multicultural - transcultural approaches, cultural mediation, cultural stereotypes and bias, critical incidents
6. Post-CLIL developments and pedagogical innovations
from ESP to EMI and EMEMUS, Pluriliteracies Teaching for Learning (PTL), learning domains: humanistic knowledge, foundational knowledge, metaknowledge, translanguaging pedagogies, multimodal literacies and meaning-making
7. The future of English-language teaching
AI-enhanced language pedagogy; adaptive learning; sustainable language education practices, green pedagogy, slow pedagogy, post-digital literacy; English in higher education – foundations of a new paradigm
Type of course
Mode
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
Knowledge
Students will demonstrate in-depth familiarity with:
K_W01 advanced terminology, theory and research methods pertaining to the global status of English and recent trends in L2 instruction, aligned with state-of-the-art developments in applied educational linguistics, in accordance with their chosen specialization (and educational path).
Abilities
Students will be able to:
- K_U01 apply the advanced terminology, theories and methods of linguistic and sociolinguistic research to solve complex and original research problems in the areas of L2 instruction and globalization in accordance with their chosen specialization (and educational path).
Social competences
Students will be ready to:
- K_K01 critically appraise their knowledge and content obtained from various sources, as related to the spread of English and to the recent developments in language-teaching methodology;
- K_K02 recognize the importance of knowledge in solving cognitive and practical problems pertaining to the spread of English as well as to the recent developments in language-teaching methodology; and will recognize the importance of consultations with experts, whenever assistance is required.
Assessment criteria
- participation in discussions (verification of outcomes: W, U, K);
- participation in polling sessions (verification of outcomes: W, U, K);
- completion of Moodle quizzes (verification of outcomes: W, U, K).
- participation in case-study analyses (verification of outcomes: W, U, K).
- written exam - final, end-of-term (verification of outcomes: W, U).
Bibliography
The selection of reading resources will be adjusted as much as possible to reflect participants’ interests and academic needs. What follows is a sample bibliography.
Byram, M. (2021). Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence: Revisited (2nd ed.). Multilingual Matters.
Chapelle, C. A. & Sauro, S. (eds.) (2017). The Handbook of Technology and Second Language Teaching and Learning. Wiley.
Crystal, D. (2003) English as a global language, 2nd ed., CUP.
Di Sabato, B. & Hughes, B. (2025) (eds.) Multilingual Perspectives from Europe and Beyond on Language Policy and Practice, Routledge.
Graddol, D. (2006) English Next. Why global English may mean the end of ‘English as a Foreign Language’, British Council.
Jenkins, J. (2014) Global Englishes. A resource book for students, 3rd ed., Routledge.
Leung, C. (2022) Language proficiency: from description to prescription and back? Educational Linguistics 1(1): 56 – 81.
Mendes de Oliveira, M. (2023). English as a lingua franca and interculturality: navigating structure- and process-oriented perspectives in intercultural interactions, Language and Intercultural Communication, 24(2), 105–117.
Pennycook, A. (2017). The Cultural Politics of English as an International Language. Routledge.
Phillips, A. (2020). Code-switching and translanguaging in digital communication. Linguistics and the Human Sciences, 14(2), 65-82.
Vo, T.K.A. (2025) Transforming Language Learning with AI: Adaptive Systems, Engagement, and Global Impact. Engineering proceedings, 107(1).
Yu, B., Guo, W. Y., & Fu, H. (2024). Green technology in language teaching and learning for sustainable environment: A review study, Sustainability, 16(8).
Zeng, J. & Yang, J. (2024) English language hegemony: retrospect and prospect, Humanities and Social Sciences Communications.
Additional information
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: