English teaching is changing

This is one of the first findings of the study “The Future of English: Global perspectives” conducted by the British Council and published on April 20, 2023 as part of a larger research project.

This first result, unsurprisingly to tell the truth, involves very different facts in a constant evolution: if 31% of the world’s population speaks English (2018 statistics), the “native speakers” are less than 6%. More than 25% speak English with another language!

Thus, English has not come to replace other languages, but rather to impose itself on an increasingly multilingual and multicultural world. English has become the official language of 67 countries An international communication toolThe British Council calls it a “vernacular” or “normative” language.

It is used for international trade, the business world, scientific research and university education with specialization depending on the country: in Ghana, it is the language of business, and in Nigeria, the language of parliamentary debates. English is the technical and dominant language of the Internet and social networks.

In many countries of the world, school education is given in English, even if it is not the mother tongue of the students!

One of the main interests of this study of the future of English is to take the pulse of the whole world. For this, the British Council organized roundtables in different parts of the world from June to December 2021. The roundtables brought together 92 decision-makers involved in education policy, language or cultural experts from 49 countries and experts from British Council networks.

The results of these roundtables were integrated with additional data collected from desk research and surveys.

Video: Future Teachers of English Studies

But “change is in the air,” says the British Council report. In many countries of the world, governments or people prefer Strengthening local and regional languages. This harms the Punjabi language and Urdu (the official language) along with English in Pakistan.

In South Africa, as in other countries, English suffers from its past as a colonial language. In Gulf countries, families are beginning to fear that their children are not proficient enough in Arabic, and Qatar’s Ministry of Education has strengthened the place of Arabic in the curriculum. In some countries in the Middle East and South Asia, Chinese and Korean are gaining popularity.

The result: the global demand for learning English is very strong, but for an “applicative” purpose. About 92% of those questioned in surveys compiled by the British Council believe that English fluency is necessary for work and 86% for study.

So English should be taught According to learning needs who are less inclined to speak Shakespeare’s language than the Anglo-Saxons This “language” can be used for a specific purpose and context (University, job, online business etc).

And he should too Adapting to a multilingual cultural environment, which includes numerous languages ​​and English adaptations. Sometimes English also loses its status as a language of instruction in schools, especially when English is not the mother tongue and is not spoken in the family, and the achievement of children under the age of 6 is problematic. British Council.

Consideration of learning challenges has been mentioned in all the round tables consulted by the British Council Interest in new technologies to help large numbers of students To learn languages. And the Covid-19 pandemic has largely accelerated their use.

But many people around the world still don’t have a good internet connection or digital devices that allow them to enjoy it! Instead of making English accessible to all, new technologies risk widening the gap between those who have access to it and those who do not.

Similarly, in many countries, such as Brazil, the private sector is responding to the growing demand for bilingual schools, while the public sector, which receives poor youth, struggles to teach them English. The report “The Future of English” recommends “greater collaboration between public and private providers” so that English does not become a factor in exacerbating inequalities.

The Advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI). It should make it more possible to store teaching resources, for example through online learning and certification tools.

These applications make it possible to adapt teaching to a specific context, for example to a professional universe. Another advantage: Today’s tests cannot only assess passive skills (is asking & Reading), but active (will speak & Writing) in order to prepare for concrete practice of the language.

The main standardized language tests (such as IELTS from the British Council or TOEIC and TOEFL from the American organization ETS) should retain their dominance, but may face competition in the future from tests produced by some countries, such as General English. The Proficiency Test (GEPT), developed in Taipei, is already recognized by 50 companies.

However, the British Council study found that in all regions of the world, We will continue to recruit teachers. They should adapt their teaching to new technologies and be able to guide students in these tools.

English teaching must therefore continue and offer a wide range of specialized outlets: in schools, but also for standardized tests, vocational training for adults, automated language processing, content and language integrated learning (CLIL) i.e. teaching other subjects. English, etc

Following this publication, the British Council notes that it will continue to collect data globally to follow the evolution of this report.

Grants The future of English Assigned to various research projects, especially to closely follow the evolution of skills and the teaching of English in the world.

-DDownload the full report www.britishcouncil.org/future-of-english or the Short version below :

Another important message for students is that the duration of the TOEFL, a test designed by ETS Global, will be reduced: “From July 26, 2023, ETS announces, candidates will be able to benefit from a shorter TOEFL iBT test. Two hours (1 hour 56), compared to the previous three hours (2h56)”

Thank you for this time saving achievement:

• Improvements in navigation,
• A more modern piece entitled ““Writing for an Academic Debate”, which replaces freelance writing. Rather than answering the question with an essay, the student should add a reasonable and personal opinion to the Internet discussion.
• An abbreviated written comprehension section,
• Deleting all unscored test questions.

Candidates who have already registered to take the TOEFL before July 26 have the opportunity to postpone their test date free of charge (by April 30) if they wish to benefit from this new format. If they pass after July 26 and want to work in the current format, they can also advance their departure date (free until April 30).

All versions of the free practice test and TOEFL iBT test practice tools are updated on the TOEFL site.