Communities of Practice and English as a Lingua Franca: A Study of Students in a Central European Context

Description

This is a timely book on one of the most widely debated issues in applied linguistics: what is the social and cultural significance of English as a lingua franca for the internationally mobile students of the 21st century in Central Europe? Through an in-depth analysis of social practices, the book develops an exciting, innovative multilingual approach to out-of-class language use and language learning that engages students in the co-construction of identities. Apart from scholars, the book will appeal to policy makers and educators who are concerned with the internationalization of universities in Central Europe. The present study is innovative in that it applies the community of practice approach to a group using English as a lingua franca, and that it combines the Conversation Analytic method with the community of practice approach The book gives fresh insights into how languages in general, and English as a lingua franca in particular, can be conceived of by bringing the social into the linguistic The practical implications of the book include considerations of how to better prepare the students for the challenges of their future academic and professional lives, which they increasingly see as shaped by the forces of internationalization