Vann Hassell

5/29/16
C&T 491 Dr. Gonzalez-Bueno
Reflection 2
In Search of a New Paradigm for Teaching English as an International Langauge by
Suresh Canagarajah
Canagarajahs article is primarily focused on how English is not one homogenous
language but a complex variety of communication systems and ESL and EFL teachers
should be aware of this and teach in such a way that their students are able to not only
understand the widely accepted standard English, but also able to strategize and learn
methods for understanding other Englishes and finding their own voice within the
spectrum of Englishes that exist today. Canagarajah begins by examining the work of
Braj Kachra who first proposed the notion that English is not a homogenous, universally
standardized language but a complex mingling of communities from different
backgrounds and geographical locations that are constantly changing and influencing one
another. With this in mind, Canagarajah claims that teachers of English cannot teach to
the standard because this limits their students. He sees successful teaching as enabling the
students to respond to any situation where any of the varieties of English are being used
with their own personalized grammar that captures who they are within the context of
the language and the social context of the situation. Teaching to this kind of
communicative success is teaching what he terms procedural knowledge or the how
of language learning. This is contrasted with propositional knowledge which is the
what or the form of language. He breaks down procedural knowledge into three
categories. The first is language awareness, which he explains as an implicit or explicit
understanding of the universality of grammar. Canagarajah sees value in teaching
students to generalize grammar and create mental space for the understanding of abstract
principles that may not have an equivalent in their own language. The second category is

rhetorical sensitivity. Canagarajah uniquely describes the importance of understanding

rhetorical genres in order to form ones own voice and identity within the language.
Understanding rhetoric, he argues, translates to communication and is therefore crucial
for students to study. The final category is negotiation strategies, which Canagarajah
explains as the negotiation of meaning across social and grammatical contexts that
enables L2 learners to scaffold or build on their previous knowledge to obtain a deeper
level of understanding. After expounding upon these three categories, Canagarajah goes
on to explain his own classroom environment and how he uses these principles to
structure his students learning. He describes his process as a very hands-off approach
where the primary means of learning comes from inter-student dialogue and critique of a
semester-long, literacy narrative project. The classroom is designed to be a contact zone
for students to interact with the language and a safe space for students to learn freely. His
admittedly subjective assessment of his students is based on their trajectory of growth
and their ability to find themselves in the language and make it their own.
All in all, I felt that Canagarajah had a valid point from a linguistic point of view.
His discussion of language awareness touched on the idea of a Universal Grammar as
purported by Noam Chomsky and his discussion of identity within an L2 touched on
Chomskys idea of an I-language, that is, a slightly differentiated code held within each
individual about how their language works. I liked his idea about teachers creating a
learning environment and then being hands-off as opposed to teachers being the
spearhead of the learning process. As someone who is new to this field, I think it is good
for me to be thinking about things like that from the beginning in order to ensure that bad
habits are not forming early on. I do agree with Canagarajah that his form of assessment

is a bit subjective and would hope that in my own teaching I would be able to find a
balance between subjective and objective assessment so that I, as a teacher, can ensure
that the learning environment is successful for all students, even those that may be
classified as slower learners. Overall, I though this was a great article and I hope to
incorporate Canangarajahs ideas into my own teaching methods.