The Impact of English as a Global Language on Educational Policies and Practices in the Asia-Pacific Region

// TESOL QUARTERLY Vol. 37, No. 4, Winter 2003. P. 589-613 This article presents the results of an investigation into the place of English in the curriculum in several countries in the Asia-Pacific region. The study indicates that the emergence of English as a global language is having considerable impact on policies and practices in all countries surveyed. However, it also reveals significant problems, including confu- sion and inconsistency, at the level of policy, particularly regarding the issue of age of initial instruction, inequity regarding access to effective language instruction, inadequately trained and skilled teachers, and a disjunction between curriculum rhetoric and pedagogical reality.