Pub Date : 2021-03-16DOI: 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0005
Christiane Meierkord
This chapter offers a comparative look at the histories of English in Uganda and South Africa and a concise description of what access to both formal and informal acquisition of English has been like in the two countries, post-independence and in the 2000s. Against this background, excerpts of data obtained from grassroots speakers in the Cape Town and Kampala regions, whose work and businesses involve the regular use of English, are presented and analysed qualitatively. The results reveal how access to English and to formal education in South Africa and Uganda has shaped the Englishes of those speakers of English who are not as advantaged as others. They indicate that the utterances of older South Africans reflect their informal acquisition of English through interaction with lower class whites and contain features typically associated with learners, second language varieties, and pidginised forms of English. Younger speakers who have attended English-medium schools post-Apartheid as well as the Ugandan speakers seem more conscious of mistakes and correct themselves. The chapter finishes with an outlook into how grassroots speakers can (and need to) be integrated in models of world Englishes.
{"title":"Access to English and the Englishes of the Disadvantaged: Examples from Uganda and South Africa","authors":"Christiane Meierkord","doi":"10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0005","url":null,"abstract":"This chapter offers a comparative look at the histories of English in Uganda and South Africa and a concise description of what access to both formal and informal acquisition of English has been like in the two countries, post-independence and in the 2000s. Against this background, excerpts of data obtained from grassroots speakers in the Cape Town and Kampala regions, whose work and businesses involve the regular use of English, are presented and analysed qualitatively. The results reveal how access to English and to formal education in South Africa and Uganda has shaped the Englishes of those speakers of English who are not as advantaged as others. They indicate that the utterances of older South Africans reflect their informal acquisition of English through interaction with lower class whites and contain features typically associated with learners, second language varieties, and pidginised forms of English. Younger speakers who have attended English-medium schools post-Apartheid as well as the Ugandan speakers seem more conscious of mistakes and correct themselves. The chapter finishes with an outlook into how grassroots speakers can (and need to) be integrated in models of world Englishes.","PeriodicalId":433371,"journal":{"name":"World Englishes at the Grassroots","volume":"2 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"121736696","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-03-16DOI: 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0002
S. Buschfeld
The chapter offers a conceptual overview, discussing the notion of ‘grassroots Englishes’ along with other related phenomena pertaining to the spread of the English language worldwide (‘learner English’, ‘English as a second language’, ‘English as a foreign language’, ‘English as a lingua franca’…). It provides data samples for illustration but argues that traditional clear-cut distinctions between such concepts do not fully depict linguistic realities. Furthermore, it broadens the focus to include the notion of ‘grassroots multilingualism’ and it is argued that ‘grassroots Englishes’ should be pictured as an important part within a higher-level framework of global, multilingual practices. Concluding, it is suggested that different Englishes should better be pictured as nodes in a complex system of Englishes and, in turn, as parts of a complex system of languages and multilingual practices, in which certain categorical differences can be identified but which, more importantly, overlap and interact in their emergence, existence, and uses.
{"title":"Grassroots English, Learner English, Second-language English, English as a Lingua Franca …: What’s in a Name?","authors":"S. Buschfeld","doi":"10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0002","url":null,"abstract":"The chapter offers a conceptual overview, discussing the notion of ‘grassroots Englishes’ along with other related phenomena pertaining to the spread of the English language worldwide (‘learner English’, ‘English as a second language’, ‘English as a foreign language’, ‘English as a lingua franca’…). It provides data samples for illustration but argues that traditional clear-cut distinctions between such concepts do not fully depict linguistic realities. Furthermore, it broadens the focus to include the notion of ‘grassroots multilingualism’ and it is argued that ‘grassroots Englishes’ should be pictured as an important part within a higher-level framework of global, multilingual practices. Concluding, it is suggested that different Englishes should better be pictured as nodes in a complex system of Englishes and, in turn, as parts of a complex system of languages and multilingual practices, in which certain categorical differences can be identified but which, more importantly, overlap and interact in their emergence, existence, and uses.","PeriodicalId":433371,"journal":{"name":"World Englishes at the Grassroots","volume":"39 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126538974","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-03-16DOI: 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0007
Anthonia Bamidele-Akhidenor
This chapter presents an overview of the position of English as in the case of Bahrain where Arabic is the official and national language. The study reviewed literatures on intercultural communication, accommodation strategy, and on negotiation / bargaining strategy by pursuing the following questions: (1) What intercultural communication strategies do local Arab traders employ in their conversations with other non-Arabic speakers and (2) How do they achieve desired business communication goals with other non-Arabic speakers? In the course of the discussion, the data shows that Bahraini traders have become conversant with some English words through their daily business interactions with their customers and employees. They are obligated to communicate with other non-Arabic speakers in English, as they are aware of their limitations in speaking Arabic. This type of grassroot interactions help them build a safety valve, rapport, and cordiality with their customers and employees in the business context.
{"title":"Facets of Intercultural Communication Employed in the Conversations of Local Arab Traders in Bahrain","authors":"Anthonia Bamidele-Akhidenor","doi":"10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0007","url":null,"abstract":"This chapter presents an overview of the position of English as in the case of Bahrain where Arabic is the official and national language. The study reviewed literatures on intercultural communication, accommodation strategy, and on negotiation / bargaining strategy by pursuing the following questions: (1) What intercultural communication strategies do local Arab traders employ in their conversations with other non-Arabic speakers and (2) How do they achieve desired business communication goals with other non-Arabic speakers? In the course of the discussion, the data shows that Bahraini traders have become conversant with some English words through their daily business interactions with their customers and employees. They are obligated to communicate with other non-Arabic speakers in English, as they are aware of their limitations in speaking Arabic. This type of grassroot interactions help them build a safety valve, rapport, and cordiality with their customers and employees in the business context.","PeriodicalId":433371,"journal":{"name":"World Englishes at the Grassroots","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"121734060","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-03-16DOI: 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0009
Kellie Gonçalves
This chapter adds to the growing literature in sociolinguistics which investigates language practices and multilingual repertoires within blue-collar workplaces. It investigates the ways in which transnational domestic workers within a multilingual cleaning company in New Jersey, USA have learned English from ‘below’ and thus informally and analyses English-language repertoires among both employees and clients. The chapter aims to underscore how effective communication for company external purposes (between employees and clients) often relies on creative, improvised and situation-specific deployment of both linguistic and extra-linguistic resources. Findings from this study deviate from existing literature which promotes English proficiency for reasons of recruitment and social mobility (especially within a US-context). As such, the chapter calls for scholars to look into more context-specific and local practices between individuals who do not share a first/second language in order for effective communication to be achieved.
{"title":"Grassroots Diffusion of English in a ‘Blue-collar’ Workplace: The Case of a Multilingual Cleaning Company in New Jersey, USA","authors":"Kellie Gonçalves","doi":"10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0009","url":null,"abstract":"This chapter adds to the growing literature in sociolinguistics which investigates language practices and multilingual repertoires within blue-collar workplaces. It investigates the ways in which transnational domestic workers within a multilingual cleaning company in New Jersey, USA have learned English from ‘below’ and thus informally and analyses English-language repertoires among both employees and clients. The chapter aims to underscore how effective communication for company external purposes (between employees and clients) often relies on creative, improvised and situation-specific deployment of both linguistic and extra-linguistic resources. Findings from this study deviate from existing literature which promotes English proficiency for reasons of recruitment and social mobility (especially within a US-context). As such, the chapter calls for scholars to look into more context-specific and local practices between individuals who do not share a first/second language in order for effective communication to be achieved.","PeriodicalId":433371,"journal":{"name":"World Englishes at the Grassroots","volume":"143 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127957429","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-03-16DOI: 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0010
Guyanne Wilson
Following the outbreak of civil war in Syria in 2011, hundreds of thousands of Syrians sought asylum in Europe, particularly in Germany. This chapter looks at language use among Syrian refugees living in the German state of North Rhine Westphalia. It reports the results of a series of qualitative interviews conducted with refugees and other stakeholders in the refugee integration. Refugees’ linguistic repertoire consists minimally of Syrian Arabic, English, and German, though proficiency in the latter two languages varies from person to person. Though both scholarly literature and societal legend consistently report the centrality of English as a lingua franca, the refugees’ experiences show that this is not necessarily the case; the assumption that proficiency in English will ease communication in official contexts and help gain access to employment and other social benefits is often unmet, in stark comparison to the experiences of immigrants and refugees in neighbouring Holland and Belgium. Thus, the study has implications for the understanding of the role of English as a lingua franca, particularly in Germany.
{"title":"Language Use among Syrian Refugees in Germany","authors":"Guyanne Wilson","doi":"10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0010","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0010","url":null,"abstract":"Following the outbreak of civil war in Syria in 2011, hundreds of thousands of Syrians sought asylum in Europe, particularly in Germany. This chapter looks at language use among Syrian refugees living in the German state of North Rhine Westphalia. It reports the results of a series of qualitative interviews conducted with refugees and other stakeholders in the refugee integration. Refugees’ linguistic repertoire consists minimally of Syrian Arabic, English, and German, though proficiency in the latter two languages varies from person to person. Though both scholarly literature and societal legend consistently report the centrality of English as a lingua franca, the refugees’ experiences show that this is not necessarily the case; the assumption that proficiency in English will ease communication in official contexts and help gain access to employment and other social benefits is often unmet, in stark comparison to the experiences of immigrants and refugees in neighbouring Holland and Belgium. Thus, the study has implications for the understanding of the role of English as a lingua franca, particularly in Germany.","PeriodicalId":433371,"journal":{"name":"World Englishes at the Grassroots","volume":"19 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"125204806","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-03-16DOI: 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0003
Bebwa Isingoma
This chapter delineates the sociolinguistic profile of two categories of speakers of English in Uganda, i.e. market vendors and bodaboda (motorcycle taxi) riders, who may voluntarily or incidentally use English, given the nature of their trade, which requires them to interact with customers who may not speak their L1 or an indigenous language of wider communication in their region. Using participant observations and recorded semi-structured interviews, the study details the quotidian linguistic behaviour of 30 grassroots users of English, their attitudes towards the use of English and their verbal repertoires. The results indicate different linguistic behaviours, with Northern Uganda recording more inclination to the use of English than Western Uganda, as well as displaying more positive attitudes towards its use and a richer verbal repertoire. Also, English at the grassroots depicts many of the innovative features present among acrolectal speakers of Ugandan English, that is, the speakers of grassroots English in Uganda cannot replace the innovative norms developed by the acrolectal speakers with or example Standard British English norms. Ugandan English may therefore be said to be both norm-developing as well as norm-providing in that the acrolectal sub-variety provides the grassroots sub-variety with the norms it has developed.
{"title":"The Sociolinguistic Profile of English at the Grassroots Level: A Comparison of Northern and Western Uganda","authors":"Bebwa Isingoma","doi":"10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0003","url":null,"abstract":"This chapter delineates the sociolinguistic profile of two categories of speakers of English in Uganda, i.e. market vendors and bodaboda (motorcycle taxi) riders, who may voluntarily or incidentally use English, given the nature of their trade, which requires them to interact with customers who may not speak their L1 or an indigenous language of wider communication in their region. Using participant observations and recorded semi-structured interviews, the study details the quotidian linguistic behaviour of 30 grassroots users of English, their attitudes towards the use of English and their verbal repertoires. The results indicate different linguistic behaviours, with Northern Uganda recording more inclination to the use of English than Western Uganda, as well as displaying more positive attitudes towards its use and a richer verbal repertoire. Also, English at the grassroots depicts many of the innovative features present among acrolectal speakers of Ugandan English, that is, the speakers of grassroots English in Uganda cannot replace the innovative norms developed by the acrolectal speakers with or example Standard British English norms. Ugandan English may therefore be said to be both norm-developing as well as norm-providing in that the acrolectal sub-variety provides the grassroots sub-variety with the norms it has developed.","PeriodicalId":433371,"journal":{"name":"World Englishes at the Grassroots","volume":"21 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"129651646","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-03-16DOI: 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0001
Christiane Meierkord, E. Schneider
This chapter highlights the novelty of the approach of investigating English at the grassroots in World Englishes research, as opposed to the traditional view of associating English with access to higher education and high status in a society. The notion of "grassroots" is defined, and historical patterns of the spread of English in different types of communities are outlined. A distinction is drawn between a wider notion of "English at the grassroots", heterogeneous language forms produced by non-elitist speakers, and the narrower concept of "grassroots Englishes" proper, typically associated with acquisition through natural interaction, driven by a strong instrumental motivation to obtain better jobs, characteristic social settings in the service industry and in tourism, and typical structural patterns, often perceived as reduced. The paper briefly surveys earlier work on related topics, research gaps, and the contributions offered by the papers in this volume.
{"title":"Introduction: English Spreading at the Grassroots","authors":"Christiane Meierkord, E. Schneider","doi":"10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0001","url":null,"abstract":"This chapter highlights the novelty of the approach of investigating English at the grassroots in World Englishes research, as opposed to the traditional view of associating English with access to higher education and high status in a society. The notion of \"grassroots\" is defined, and historical patterns of the spread of English in different types of communities are outlined. A distinction is drawn between a wider notion of \"English at the grassroots\", heterogeneous language forms produced by non-elitist speakers, and the narrower concept of \"grassroots Englishes\" proper, typically associated with acquisition through natural interaction, driven by a strong instrumental motivation to obtain better jobs, characteristic social settings in the service industry and in tourism, and typical structural patterns, often perceived as reduced. The paper briefly surveys earlier work on related topics, research gaps, and the contributions offered by the papers in this volume.","PeriodicalId":433371,"journal":{"name":"World Englishes at the Grassroots","volume":"17 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"125155074","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-03-16DOI: 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0012
Francesco Goglia
This chapter presents a discussion on the role of English in the linguistic repertoires of the second generation of onward-migrating families from Italy to the UK. Participants reported on their language use, language maintenance, and language attitudes, both in their early life in Italy and in the UK. The second generation maintain Italian with same-age peer friendships and older siblings. They view the language as linguistic capital to enhance their future career prospects in the UK or support a return to Italy. Italian is also maintained in conversations with parents often in the form of code-switching. Parents struggle with English after a long period of residence in Italy and children are not fluent in the heritage languages. English is considered the most important language and, together with a British education to improve their children’s life chances, is the main pull factor for families in the decision to migrate onward. Onward migration allows these families to restart language shift towards English (which was interrupted during the years of stay in Italy) in a parallel way to language shift towards English taking place in their countries of origin.
{"title":"Onward Migration from Italy to the UK: Reshaped Linguistic Repertoires and the Role of English","authors":"Francesco Goglia","doi":"10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0012","url":null,"abstract":"This chapter presents a discussion on the role of English in the linguistic repertoires of the second generation of onward-migrating families from Italy to the UK. Participants reported on their language use, language maintenance, and language attitudes, both in their early life in Italy and in the UK. The second generation maintain Italian with same-age peer friendships and older siblings. They view the language as linguistic capital to enhance their future career prospects in the UK or support a return to Italy. Italian is also maintained in conversations with parents often in the form of code-switching. Parents struggle with English after a long period of residence in Italy and children are not fluent in the heritage languages. English is considered the most important language and, together with a British education to improve their children’s life chances, is the main pull factor for families in the decision to migrate onward. Onward migration allows these families to restart language shift towards English (which was interrupted during the years of stay in Italy) in a parallel way to language shift towards English taking place in their countries of origin.","PeriodicalId":433371,"journal":{"name":"World Englishes at the Grassroots","volume":"35 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"115094271","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-03-16DOI: 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0011
A. Bohmann
This chapter discusses metalinguistic discourse produced by asylum seekers from English-speaking West Africa in Germany, with a focus on the role of English in participants’ communicative environment and the values and affordances ascribed to different varieties of English. The chapter argues that, in this specific context, a) English loses much of its communicative range but retains important identity-related functions, and b) the values associated with different varieties of English reflect global relationships in the World system of Englishes. African varieties are linked to in-group functions and receive differential evaluation, with Nigerian English being constructed as more standard-distant than Ghanaian English, whereas the English of German interlocutors is associated with the prestige varieties American and British English. Particularly surprising is the frequent equation of Gambian English with Jamaican ways of speech, a pattern accounted for not in terms of linguistic similarity but of the global circulation of reggae and dancehall culture. The chapter thus contributes to the sociolinguistics of globalization and the study of language, mobility, and migration.
{"title":"Uprooted Speakers’ Grassroots English: Metalinguistic Perspectives of Asylum Seekers in Germany","authors":"A. Bohmann","doi":"10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0011","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0011","url":null,"abstract":"This chapter discusses metalinguistic discourse produced by asylum seekers from English-speaking West Africa in Germany, with a focus on the role of English in participants’ communicative environment and the values and affordances ascribed to different varieties of English. The chapter argues that, in this specific context, a) English loses much of its communicative range but retains important identity-related functions, and b) the values associated with different varieties of English reflect global relationships in the World system of Englishes. African varieties are linked to in-group functions and receive differential evaluation, with Nigerian English being constructed as more standard-distant than Ghanaian English, whereas the English of German interlocutors is associated with the prestige varieties American and British English. Particularly surprising is the frequent equation of Gambian English with Jamaican ways of speech, a pattern accounted for not in terms of linguistic similarity but of the global circulation of reggae and dancehall culture. The chapter thus contributes to the sociolinguistics of globalization and the study of language, mobility, and migration.","PeriodicalId":433371,"journal":{"name":"World Englishes at the Grassroots","volume":"21 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126711893","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-03-16DOI: 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0008
Q. Chowdhury, Elizabeth J. Erling
This chapter, based on a research in rural Bangladesh, investigates the value of grassroots English for the Bangladeshi migrant workers in the Middle East, and sheds light on some of the methodological and ethical issues relevant to the findings. The chapter draws insights from the narratives of three participants and argues that it is difficult to establish a straightforward relationship between grassroots English/language skills and successful economic migration because of issues like global inequality, and the social and psychological costs of economic migration should also be considered. The chapter provides useful sociolinguistic insight into the value of English in a grassroots area of growing importance, economic migration, which is relatively under-explored. It also describes the methodological and ethical complexities of working with vulnerable communities, such as low/semi-skilled economic migrants, while also throwing into relief the value of gaining insight into their experiences, language practices and reflections.
{"title":"The Value of Grassroots English for Bangladeshi Migrants to the Middle East","authors":"Q. Chowdhury, Elizabeth J. Erling","doi":"10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781474467551.003.0008","url":null,"abstract":"This chapter, based on a research in rural Bangladesh, investigates the value of grassroots English for the Bangladeshi migrant workers in the Middle East, and sheds light on some of the methodological and ethical issues relevant to the findings. The chapter draws insights from the narratives of three participants and argues that it is difficult to establish a straightforward relationship between grassroots English/language skills and successful economic migration because of issues like global inequality, and the social and psychological costs of economic migration should also be considered. The chapter provides useful sociolinguistic insight into the value of English in a grassroots area of growing importance, economic migration, which is relatively under-explored. It also describes the methodological and ethical complexities of working with vulnerable communities, such as low/semi-skilled economic migrants, while also throwing into relief the value of gaining insight into their experiences, language practices and reflections.","PeriodicalId":433371,"journal":{"name":"World Englishes at the Grassroots","volume":"101 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127678520","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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