Varieties of English in the EFL 
classroom setting

An unprecedented case in the history of languages, English has expanded all over the world yielding a variety of unique – und sometimes mutually unintelligible – forms. The immediate repercussion of this observation is that when confronted with regionally marked vernaculars in the EFL setting, learners with no previous variety-specific knowledge are very likely to experience considerable difficulties. The question therefore arises as to how one can teach this topic to audiences possessing no training in linguistics in a classroom context. This contribution elaborates on the general approach and methods that lay the foundation for a textbook specifically designed to address the topic of English language diversity in the EFL setting with the aim of increasing learners’ general awareness of the heterogeneity inherent in English.

Published online: 28 November 2013
https://doi.org/10.1075/hsm.15.05dav