Attitudes Towards English As a Lingua Franca in Greek Tertiary Educational
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Attitudes towards English as a Lingua Franca in Greek tertiary educational contexts by Roxani Faltzi A thesis submitted for the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Theoretical and Applied Linguistics School of English Aristotle University of Thessaloniki March 2017 To my late godfather, Sotirios and my beloved husband, Konstantinos ii Abstract As a result of globalization, English has spread to such an extent that non-native speakers far outnumber native speakers. English is often used as a lingua franca between people from diverse lingua-cultural backgrounds and is undeniably the global language of business communication. The present study stemmed from an interest in the way English is perceived and used by Greek Business School students as well as their identity in relation to English. This thesis tackles these issues from an English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) perspective and aims to give answers to questions that arise from that new sociolinguistic reality. Moreover, this study examines the factors that influence the students’ perceptions and the way they identify with English. The participants were 561 undergraduate students from a number of Greek tertiary institutions but mainly from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, the University of Macedonia and the Athens University of Economics and Business. They were 3rd, 4th, or final year students majoring in Business-related fields. The study adopted a mixed methods approach that involved data collection through questionnaires, semi- structured interviews and a social media research tool. The results highlight that students embrace the role of English as the undisputable medium of global business communication and tool for their career advancement and personal development. Moreover, the findings demonstrate that students claim ownership of English, while using it for their own purposes. Also, though the students favour native speaker accents, they allow some space to non-native speaker accents. The study pinpoints the interpersonal element of international communication and shows that iii intercultural experiences, gained through travelling, or participating in Erasmus programmes and internships abroad, are conducive to the formation of the students’ attitudes and identity in relation to English. The in-depth interviews proved insightful as they let students’ experiences unfold, providing more evidence of the factors that affect students’ attitudes and way of identification with English. The ELF use offered students the opportunity to develop an open-minded and cosmopolitan mentality, become more confident, and aware of the strategies and skills associated with successful international business communication. Based on the research findings, this study offers pedagogical recommendations for incorporating a more holistic approach in the teaching of English for specific purposes (ESP) taking into consideration the role of English in international business communication. iv Acknowledgements First and foremost, I am extremely grateful to my supervisor Dr Areti-Maria Sougari for her most valuable guidance, her encouragement and continuous trust and patience during my candidature. I would also like to thank her for initiating me in the field of attitudes and ELF and for being next to me in this endeavour. My sincere thanks are also extended to Dr Nicos Sifakis, my second supervisor, for his insightful comments on my thesis and his expertise that has proved valuable from the beginning of my research. Special thanks goes to Dr Marina Tzoannopoulou, the third member of my committee, for her attention to detail while reading my thesis and for being so kind and encouraging. I would like to express my gratitude and thanks to the participants of this research and especially those who participated in the interviews and the social media part of the study. I also wish to thank the AIESEC members at the AUTH who allowed me to join their meetings. My gratitude and thanks also go to Dr C. Boutsouki, Dr T. Hatzigagios, Prof. L. Labrianidis, Prof. D. Mardas, Dr G. Zarotiadis and finally Dr F. Vouzas, for allowing me to distribute the questionnaire to their students. Special thanks goes to Dr Iris Papadopoulou for being so helpful with the questionnaire distribution, during the pilot and the final phase of the data collection. Also, I would like to thank the ESP instructors who shared their experiences of teaching ESP. I also express my appreciation to Kostas Tzanas for his encouragement and his statistical advice throughout this research. Dr Eleftheria Tsirakoglou for providing her expertise in the back-translation of the questionnaire and for her support. I also wish to express my most heartfelt thanks to … Professors Henry Widdowson and Barbara Seidlhofer for offering me the opportunity to participate at the ELF 7 PhD workshop in Athens and for their insightful remarks on my research. v Kaisa Pietikäinen and Miya Komori-Glatz, for the insightful comments and discussions about ELF and for creating this long-distance relationship since our meeting at the ELF 7 PhD workshop. Dr Bill Batziakas, for the ELF discussions and his help with references I had no access to. My friends Froso, Lola and Sofia for being next to me during this challenging period. Chryssa, for her warm-hearted welcome and loving support during my stay in Edinburgh. Ilenia and Stefania, for being part of such an enriching, supportive and loving bond that we have created. My cousins, Roxani and Vasilis, and my uncle, Vaggelis for all the inspiration and encouragement to follow my personal path. My godmother, Pelagia, and my godfather, Sotiris, for their love and subtle guidance to pursue my own dreams. Above all, for being such loving role models and always a source of inspiration. My grandmother, Artemis, for her love, advice and for being young at heart. My family and especially my mother, Evaggelia, for loving me and for being an invaluable support all my life. Last but not least, I would like to thank my husband, Konstantinos, who has fully trusted and supported this long journey, putting off his needs and wishes at most times, sharing all the ups and downs, just because he loves me. Thank you for stepping out of the comfort zone and embarking with me on this long quest of self-discovery and personal development. Roxani Faltzi Thessaloniki, March 2017 vi Contents Dedication ii Abstract iii Acknowledgements v List of Contents vii List of Tables xiii List of Figures xv Abbreviations xvi Transcription Conventions xvii Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 The spread of English in the world 1 1.2 The rationale for the present research 2 1.3 Research questions 3 1.4 Structure of the thesis 5 Chapter 2 Globalization, English as a Lingua Franca and current challenges for teaching Business English 2.1 The globalization phenomenon and ELF 7 2.2 The global spread of English 9 2.2.1 Globalization of English in higher education 11 2.3 Political debates about the spread of the English language 15 2.4 Terminological considerations 18 2.4.1 EIL, ELF and definitions: The term used in this thesis 20 2.5 The ownership of English 24 2.6 The teaching of English and current realities 29 2.6.1 The politics of English language teaching 29 2.6.2 The need for a new approach to language teaching and learning 31 2.6.3 New challenges for ELT based on ELF research 33 2.6.4 ELF awareness in teaching and learning English 38 2.7 English for Specific Purposes 40 2.7.1 A definition of ESP and its classification 42 2.8 English for business purposes 44 2.8.1 ELF research in business contexts 45 Concluding remarks 50 vii Chapter 3 Exploring the notions of attitudes, motivation and identity 3.1 The importance of attitudes 51 3.2 Studies on attitudes towards English 53 3.2.1 Studies of NNS teachers’ attitudes towards English 54 3.2.2 Studies of learners’ attitudes towards English 58 3.2.3 A look into university students’ attitudes towards English 60 3.2.4 Factors affecting learners’ attitudes 65 3.3. Motivation 69 3.3.1 Definitions of Motivation 70 3.3.2 Motivation theories 70 3.3.3 The L2 Motivational Self System 71 3.3.4 New approaches evolved through an ELF perspective 74 3.3.5 Studies on motivation towards learning English 76 3.4 The relation between identity and attitudes towards ELF 78 3.4.1 The identity formation in relation to language learning and 80 attitudes towards ELF 3.4.2 Studies on identity in relation to ELF 81 Concluding remarks 86 Chapter 4 The context of the study 4.1 The role of the English language in Greece 87 4.1.1 Historical context 87 4.1.2 The spread and current status of English in Greece 90 4.2 The presence of English in Greece 91 4.2.1 English for tourists 91 4.2.2 English in advertising 92 4.2.3 English in newspapers and magazines 93 4.2.4 English on the radio and music 94 4.2.5 English on Greek television 96 4.2.6 English loanwords in the Greek language 97 4.2.7 Greeklish 98 4.3 English in the Greek educational system 99 4.3.1 English instruction at Greek state schools 99 4.3.2 English language certification 101 4.4 The spread of English in Greek tertiary contexts 102 4.4.1 Initiatives that support the spread of English in Greek tertiary 103 contexts (the Erasmus programme) 4.5 English instruction in the Greek tertiary education in business- 105 related fields 4.5.1 English language teaching at the AUTH 107 4.5.2 The University of Macedonia (UoM) 109 4.5.3 Athens University of Economics and Business 110 4.6 Internships at Greek tertiary institutions 111 viii 4.7 Looking at attitudes towards the role of English