The Global Future of English

Choose your mother tongue:

One of the first things you’ll notice when learning a language is the speed at which natives speak. Even if you understand words written on the page, when you hear them spoken at full speed by a native speaker you can feel like you’re listening to a confusing collection of random sounds.

Welcome to Spotlight. I’m Liz Waid.

And I’m Colin Lowther. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

“We are a group of friends from Matemwe Village, Zanzibar.

We are in Form Three.

Next year we will sit our final tests... in English.

We will probably all fail.”

These words are written in white chalk on a school blackboard. They are the beginning of a short film called Present Tense. It was made by a group of secondary school students in Zanzibar, Tanzania. It shows the problem of using English as a main language in schools. Children in primary school in Zanzibar learn in Swahili. This is a common Eastern African language. And most of the students speak another language at home. But secondary school is taught in English. This causes many problems. One problem is that children do not learn English very well. So they cannot succeed in secondary school. And this limits the jobs they can get in the future. Yakubu Fimbo Suleiman is one of the students who made the film. In his film, he said:

“And this is our problem. The teacher must speak English, but for students we do not understand. Even if the classes are taught in English - how can I learn if I do not know English?”

Why do schools around the world use English in secondary school? This is a complex issue. Today’s Spotlight is on English as a global language.

Almost 850 million people speak English as their first language. And over 500 million people speak English as a second language. English is the most popular foreign language to learn. It is the language that many people use for doing international business. It is also a common language for education. But English as global language has a long and complex history.

The English language is native to Great Britain in Northern Europe. English spread around the world starting from the late 16th century. At this time, people from Britain travelled around the world. They began colonies in many countries. They made these places part of the British Empire. Part of the British Empire’s control over other countries was through language. They made English the official language of many countries around the world. Other nations, such as France and Spain, also colonised foreign countries in a similar way.

Today, most of the countries that were colonised are now independent nations. But many of them still use colonial languages such as French and English as their main language. Today, English is an official language in 65 countries around the world. Children learn it in school. Businesses and governments use it. But in most places it is not an indigenous, local language. It is a language that is connected to colonisation.

Colonisation had many harmful effects on countries around the world. It was a system that often treated local people as if they were not as good. Today, some people think that using English now sends the same message. They think that using English can make people think that their own native language is not as good. Kwame Anthony Appiah is a Ghanaian-British writer. In an essay about language, he writes:

“Colonial education created a generation surrounded by the literature of the colonizers. True African independence needs a literature of one’s own.”

However, many people around the world also enjoy and love the English language. Some people say that the language can be enjoyed by anyone around the world. Derek Walcott is a famous poet from the Caribbean. He told the Guardian newspaper about his English education on Saint Lucia:

"I had a very good English education. We treated the English texts as if they belonged to us, because English is our native language. It is the English language which is the empire. Great poets are not its servants but its princes."

Walcott, like many other people, think that both English and local languages are important. But balancing the two can be difficult. English is important in modern life. The world is becoming more and more globalized. People travel more. They communicate using the internet. And English has an important place in this communication. It is a way for people from different nations to be able to talk together. It helps them to do business together. It helps them form common understanding – even when people come from different cultures and countries.

Many people think that English will continue to be important for the world in the future. Yet they do not want it to replace local culture or language. It is also very important for people to value the traditions of their own cultures. This includes speaking native languages. It is important to keep the knowledge and practice of local languages. These show the value of many different cultures around the world.

But people around the world also want to be part of global culture. In many places, learning English is necessary for getting a good job. In Zanzibar, tourism is becoming a major industry. Many foreign people visit Zanzibar for a holiday. And many of these tourists speak English. Knowing English can help local people get good jobs in places like hotels. Good English is also necessary for other kinds of work, like becoming a doctor or a teacher. Yakubu Fimbo Suleiman says:

“If I do not learn English I will be a fisherman. And my village will never change. I need to learn English. I need to learn to get a job. But when will the system of education change so that I can be able to learn other subjects like history, geography, and science? I will change. I want change.”

In Zanzibar, the school system answered this call for change. They changed the language used in their education system. Now, children in secondary school learn in Swahili – not English. They can still learn English as a foreign language. But they are not required to know it for all subjects. In Zanzibar, this change may help students do better in school. And then they can do more to help their communities.

How do you think the English language can be used for positive change? Do you think there is a way to use both English and other local languages? You can leave a comment on our website. Or email us at radio@radioenglish.net. And find us on Facebook - just search for Spotlight Radio.

The writer of this program was Rena Dam. The producer was Michio Ozaki. The voices you heard were from the United Kingdom and the United States. All quotes were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. You can listen to this program again, and read it, on the internet at www.radioenglish.net. This program is called, ‘The Global Future of English’.

We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye.