‘Speaking English naturally’: the language ideologies of English as an official language at a Korean university.

This study explores language ideologies of English at a Korean university where English has been adopted as an official language. This study draws on ethnographic data in order to understand how speakers respond to and experience the institutional language policy. The findings show that language ide...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Multilingual & Multicultural Development Vol. 37; no. 8; pp. 783 - 794
Main Author: Choi, Jinsook
Format: Article
Published: Taylor & Francis Ltd Nov2016
Subjects:
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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      dt: Nov2016
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      pub: Taylor & Francis Ltd
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        10.1080/01434632.2016.1142550
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        atl: ‘Speaking English naturally’: the language ideologies of English as an official language at a Korean university.
      aug:
        au: Choi, Jinsook
        affil: Division of General Studies, UNIST (Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology), Ulsan, Republic of Korea
      su:
        Spoken English
        English language ability testing
        Foreign language education in universities & colleges
        Ethnographic analysis
        Language policy
        Young adults
        Higher education
      sug:
        subj:
          Spoken English
          English language ability testing
          Foreign language education in universities & colleges
          Ethnographic analysis
          Language policy
          Young adults
          Higher education
      keyword:
        English as an official language
        globalisation
        Korea
        language ideologies
        space
      ab: This study explores language ideologies of English at a Korean university where English has been adopted as an official language. This study draws on ethnographic data in order to understand how speakers respond to and experience the institutional language policy. The findings show that language ideologies in this university represent the institutional norms and expectations of English. The interpretive frame used to respond to the policy is best represented by the discourse of ‘speaking English naturally'. While some informants are positive that the language policy will enable them to transform themselves into competent speakers of English, others are sceptical about the effect of the policy in everyday communication, including classroom activities and interaction with international members of the university. Hence, within the space of interactions demarcated by the university, the ideology of English hegemony has contradictory effects upon the patterns and the rationales of language choice in routine situations. This case study illustrates important dilemmas and confusion in social interactions that typically occur in Korea when spaces are designated for English use, because the space of English as an official language is primarily linked with the language ideology of monolingualism.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
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