Arabic-L:LING:Call for book chapters: Lanuguage Culture Identity

Sun Jul 26 04:39:14 UTC 2009

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1) Subject:Call for book chapters: Lanuguage Culture Identity

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1)
Date: 26 Jul 2009
From:Ahmad Al-Issa <aissa at aus.edu>
Subject:Call for book chapters: Lanuguage Culture Identity

Call for Book Chapters
To all scholars interested in language, culture, and identity

Proposed Title:
Global English: Issues of Language, Culture, and Identity in the Arab  
World

Global English today is touted as the lingua franca of the world.  
English can now profess to be the language with the most non-native  
speakers and learners, and as such its current role on the world’s  
stage cannot be overlooked.

Globalization, linguistic imperialism, language rights, language and  
power, cultural, political, and economic hegemony, and language  
planning and policy are at the forefront of the debate on global  
English. There are many scholars and lay people today who are  
concerned with the subtractive spread of English worldwide.  As  
languages are pushed aside and made to run second to global English,  
people may be at risk of linguistic loss.  Furthermore, cultures and  
identities could be in similar danger.  Unfortunately, little  
attention has been given to this issue in the Arab world.

In many, if not most, Arab countries (in the Middle East and Arabian  
Gulf), the second language is English. In several of these Arabic- 
speaking nations, English has become a pervasive language, especially  
in the economic and business sectors. Additionally, children in these  
countries often begin learning English during their formative years,  
and English is increasingly becoming the medium of instruction in many  
schools, colleges, and universities where Arabic is relegated to a  
secondary status.  Although formal Arabic, foos’ha, is taught  
throughout the Arab world, there is rarely any excitement involved in  
learning Arabic. Students find it more trying to learn Arabic  
especially when it is compared to the colorful, entertaining textbooks  
and materials of English in addition to English’s creative and  
constantly updated pedagogical approaches and methods.

Although we cannot be certain that Arabic, Arab identity, or culture  
can or will be lost or lessened through the continual focus on global  
English, it is a concern. As more and more Arabs communicate in  
English, even with other Arabs, we may discover that the place of Arab  
identity is no longer held entirely in the language of Arabic, if it  
ever was. Most of us today are aware that global English comes with  
some positive and negative attachments in terms of its effects on  
other languages and speakers of those languages.  With all these  
attachments to the language, it is probable that those Arabs who use  
English as a global language have in some way been touched by more  
than just the language in terms of their identities, their cultures,  
and their native language. It is time a voice is given to the Arabs  
compelled to survive in a world of English and often at the expense of  
their Arabic language, culture, and identity.

Global English: Issues of Language, Culture, and Identity in the Arab  
World seeks to gain an understanding of how global English is  
affecting Arabs who reside in various geographic locations within the  
region. Contributions that cover any country in the the Arab Middle  
East and in the Arabian Gulf will be considered.  Each chapter will  
examine the effect of global English on self and or on the people of a  
specific country in one or more contexts (e.g., educational, business,  
social-cultural, political, etc.). Specifically, this book will seek  
to answer the question how has and how does global English impact  
Arabs in terms of their native language, identity, and culture?

Chapters sought could be empirical (i.e., research-based),  
theoretical, or narratives (i.e., personal encounters/experiences).   
The chapters should be 20-30 pages double-spaced (Times New Roman,  
font 12).  The volume will only include papers in English.

The idea of Global English: Issues of Language, Culture, and Identity  
in the Arab World grew out of our experiences teaching graduate and  
undergraduate students at the American University of Sharjah in the  
United Arab Emirates.  It also came about as a result of witnessing  
the increasing use of the English language in all sectors of society  
in the last decade, in this country and others in the region.  Our  
interest was further piqued by studies we carried out with our  
students regarding their feelings about global English and their  
perceptions and concerns about the status of Arabic.  As such, this  
book is intended for students, graduate and undergraduates, language  
teachers, teacher trainers, educational administrators, educational  
policy makers, and others concerned with language education in schools  
and universities globally and the Arab world specifically. The book  
also has as its intended audience scholars in relevant fields in order  
to promote further research on issues of language, culture, and  
identity in the Arab world.

If you are interested in contributing a chapter, please send in an  
abstract, clearly delineate the country you are writing about, the  
type of chapter you are proposing (empirical, theoretical, or  
narrative), and issue(s) you will be addressing in the chapter.   
Please include with your abstract a one-page bio or a current CV.

	The deadline for receiving abstracts is September 25, 2009.
	Abstracts and bios/CVs should be emailed as a word document  
attachment to: Dr. Ahmad Al-Issa: aissa at aus.edu
	Notification of acceptance will be sent out by October 31, 2009.
	Completed chapters are due on March 1, 2010.

For any inquiries or further information, please contact Dr. Ahmad Al- 
Issa (aissa at aus.edu) or Laila Dahan (ldahan at aus.edu).

EDITORS:
•	Ahmad Al-Issa is an Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics and  
TESOL in the English Department at the American University of Sharjah  
in the United Arab Emirates. He has published many journal articles  
and book chapters in the areas of cross-cultural communication, global  
English, intercultural pragmatics, and teaching effectiveness.  His  
most recent publications include: ‘Globalization, English Language,  
and Muslim Students in the United Arab Emirates  in Educational  
Awakening: Journal of the Educational Sciences (co-authored with L.  
Dahan, 2009), ‘Prior Knowledge and Writing in the College EFL  
Composition Classroom’ in  Coombe, C., Jendli, A., & Davidson, P.  
(Eds.).  Teaching writing skills in English:  Theory, research (2008),  
‘Deciphering the Secret Code. A New Methodology for the Cross- 
Cultural Analysis of Nonverbal Behavior’ in Behavior Research Methods  
(co-authored with Bente et al. 2008), ‘A Journey of Belonging: A  
Global(ized) Self Finds Peace’ (co-authored with N. Golley) in N.  
Golley (Ed.) Exploring Identity: Contemporary Arab Women’s  
Autobiographical Writings (2007), ‘Schema Theory and L2 Reading  
Comprehension: Implications for Teaching’ in College Teaching and  
Learning (2006), ‘When the West Teaches the East: Analyzing  
Intercultural Conflict in the Classroom’ in  Intercultural  
Communication Studies (2005), ‘Global Nomads and the Search for  
Cultural Identity: Tips from the Classroom’ in  College Teaching  
(2004), ), and ‘Socio-cultural Transfer in L2 Speech Behaviors:  
Evidence and Motivating Factors’ in  International Journal of  
Intercultural Relations (2003).

•	Laila S. Dahan teaches in the Department of Writing Studies at the  
American University of Sharjah. She holds MAs in TESOL and Political  
Science, her undergraduate degree is in languages and linguistics from  
Georgetown University. She is currently a Ph.D. candidate at the  
University of Exeter (UK). Her book, Keep Your Feet Hidden: A Southern  
Belle on the Shores of Tripoli, will be published in September 2009.  
Some of her recent publications include: ‘Globalization, English  
language, and Muslim students in the United Arab Emirates (co-authored  
with A. Al-Issa),and  ‘English as an International Language in the  
Arabian Gulf: Student and Teacher Views on the Role of Culture.’’  
In Midraj, S., Jendli, A., & Sellami, A. (Eds.). Research in ELT  
Contexts. Dubai: TESOL Arabia Publications (2007).

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