Exploring English Language Teaching in Post-Soviet Era Countries analyses different elements of English language teaching from the Soviet era to a new era of Westernised influence. This work provides an insight into the problems that occur in present-day English language education in post-Soviet era countries, considering English language teaching at all stages of education. The book outlines the challenges that many countries of the former Soviet Union experienced at the turn of the twenty-first century and relates these to education as a crucial social phenomenon. It considers the teaching of English as a lingua franca at all education levels in the countries of the former Soviet Union, with particular emphasis on universities. Using empirical research from case studies in Azerbaijan, the book considers whether post-Soviet era countries have truly moved towards a Westernised model of language education or simply imitated one. This book is the first of its kind to treat the problem by listening to teachers’ and students’ voices as the major actors of the educational process. This book will be of great interest to academics, researchers and post-graduate students in the fields of English language education, education in Eastern Europe and applied linguistics.

This book is about the worlds and conflicts of TESOL teachers and researchers whose professional lives are both enriched and problematized by the cultural and political interfaces created by working with an international language. Central to this discussion is the balance of power in classroom and curriculum settings, the relationship between language, culture, and discourse, and the change in the ownership of English.

This collection of accounts by non-native speaker English teachers presents localized perspectives on the history & curricula of English language teaching and personal narratives of authors from around the world.

The English language is currently used as a second or foreign language in those countries which had once been British colonies. For example, when united India was partitioned into two main countries, India and Pakistan, it was intended that English would gradually be replaced as the language of administration in both countries. However, as the countries were also home to several regional languages, attempts to introduce a sole official language and abolish English as the second official language have never succeeded. In today’s world, English is the language of the cultural, social and political elite, offering significant economic, political and social advantages to fluent speakers. Speakers of the English language automatically enjoy greater social status and have easier access to positions of power and influence. Learning and teaching the English language has therefore become a concern for those who cannot afford to study in native-speaking countries or at local expensive English-medium schools. This book provides various government and non-government educational and professional institutions with simple and practical language-learning courses which fulfil the requirements of people who want to learn English. It will be of great interest to a wide variety of readers, including teachers, language learners, students, linguistic departments, general readers who are struggling to learn English, and professionals who want to overcome the language barrier.