Global Englishes

*This Assignment is designed to help you understand and digest issues that arise in the first half of the subject. Choose 5 of the questions that have been posed each week
(Please take a look at The questions which I have chosen in the second page)
(e.g. What caused the global spread of English?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of this spread?
What is lost when a language disappears?
Is there any reason why we should consider British English more correct than Singaporean English?
Why do we see both common features across the ‘new Englishes’ and also very particular local features?)
* And write an answer to each one (about 400 words each).
*You should refer to the readings relevant to each question.
If possible try to choose related questions so that the assignment has an overall coherence.
*The central aims of this assignment are to
1. Show you have read and understood some of they key issues in the first half of the course; and
2. Construct an argument around these topics to show the strengths and weaknesses of different positions.
*The style of this assignment is, broadly speaking, an essay, though it has been broken up into different parts.
*You will be expected to refer to key readings and show a good understanding of the themes that have been discussed in the first and second modules. It will be sufficient to base your discussion on the readings from the first part of the subject, though extra reading and references will broaden the scope of the essay.
*The philosophy underlying the assignment is not so much to demonstrate an understanding of a fixed body of knowledge (though you are expected to show familiarity with key issues) but rather to demonstrate engagement with the issues raised in the subject. Thoughtful and critical discussion is the key.
*The focus should generally be on questions form the first module
(Under this module: Unit 1,2,3,4).
*You should make sure you use the readings
*You can express an opinion but the goal is to critically evaluate – to show the different arguments. So your answer doesn’t have to be balanced in terms of its overall view but it does need to be balanced in terms of its coverage of the issue.
*Try to choose questions that neither overlap too much nor address really different issues
*The assignment can simply address the 5 questions – it doesn’t need an introduction or conclusion, but it does need references.