Exploring ELF in Japanese Academic and Business Contexts

This book investigates the theoretical, empirical and pedagogical issues to help us better understand what is happening with English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) communication and to activate this knowledge in respective communicative contexts. It focuses specifically on Japanese contexts and also includes theoretical and practical sections pertinent to all ELF researchers, practitioners and students, irrespective of their national or regional differences. Various sections explore established fields of linguistics from an ELF perspective, presenting a challenging but essential development for the field.

Kumiko Murata is Professor at the School of Education and the Graduate School of Education, Waseda University, Japan.

Preface 1. Introduction: Researching ELF in academic and business contexts Kumiko Murata Part 1: Conceptualizing ELF 2. ELF: English in a global context Barbara Seidlhofer 3. English as a Global Lingua Franca: Changing language in changing global academia Anna Mauranen 4. The Unmarking Trend in Language Changes and its Implications for English as a Lingua Franca Yasukata Yano Part 2: ELF and its Research in Academic Contexts 5. Own-language Use in Academic Discourse in English as Lingua Franca Juliane House 6. The Use of Unmitigated Disagreement in ELF Casual Conversation: Ensuring mutual understanding by providing correct information Mayu Konakahara 7. Analyzing Interruption Sequences in ELF Discussions Keiko Tsuchiya 8. Dynamics of ELF Communication in an English-medium Academic Context in Japan: From EFL learners to ELF users Masakazu Iino and Kumiko Murata Part 3: ELF from Business and Wider Research Perspectives 9. English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) in International Business Contexts: Key issues and future perspectives Susanne Ehrenreich 10. 'Language is only a tool': Japanese expatriates working in China and implications for language teaching Ryuko Kubota 11. English Language Skills that Companies Need: Responses from a large-scale survey Hajime Terauchi and Tamao Araki 12. Attention please!: A linguistic soundscape/landscape analysis of ELF information provision in public transport in Tokyo Peter Backhaus Part 4: Competence and Capability: Rethinking the English subject H. G. Widdowson 14. Large-scale Assessments of English for Academic Purposes from the Perspective of English as a Lingua Franca Yasuyo Sawaki 15. Using Pragmatic Strategies for Effective ELF Communication: The relevance classroom practice Jagdish Kaur