Language and Written Expression IV

Marianela Gomez
Individual Paper

“The English language”: Do adolescents realize the importance of it?

Marianela Gomez

Introduction

The English language is considered as a global language because it is

the most spoken language around the world. It began to spread during the 17 th
century with the British Empire and in the 20 th century was strongly reinforced
(expression and lexis) by the USA world domination in economic, political and
scientific aspects1. Nowadays, English is used by most people in their everyday
life for business, technology, trade and for entertainment all over the world.
(parallelism)

Here in Argentina, teenagers are exposed to the English language mainly

because of the use of the internet where they can find information, music, films,
games, and the different social media(parallelism). However, this global
language is not only useful for entertainment, but also for communication in the
current processes of economic, technological, scientific and cultural expansion 2.
Because of this, in 2006 the “Ley de Educación Nacional 26.2063” introduce the
English language learning as mandatory at primary and secondary level 4.
(grammar)

(Before getting to the guiding question, you need to refer to the students
of secondary school, to finish setting the context of your paper)

The purpose of this study was to examine if students from secondary

school in Argentina really realize the importance the English language has in
their life and in their future(concord). In order to obtain answers(reconsider
move), 18 students from private and state-run schools have been surveyed.
(tense)

Theoretical Background

English is considered a global language because it has grown worldwide.

People use the global language to simplify communication between people from
other countries. From the 17th century onwards,()English language began to be
spread over the world. It is due to important factors such as the power of the
British Empire, the importance of the Industrial Revolution in England and the
emerge of ()USA as a political and economic superpower after the 1st and 2nd

1
David Crystal (2nd edition 2003) “English as a global language” Chap.1 “Why a global
language?”
2
Dirección General de Cultura (2006). Diseño curricular de Inglés, Segundo Ciclo.
Buenos Aires, Ministerio de Educación. Pag. 9
3
“ National Education Law” (year?)
4
British Council (May 2015) “English in Argentina” Page18. “English language learning analysis.”
 Language and Written Expression IV
Marianela Gomez
Individual Paper

World War5 (incomplete sentence). Besides, English spreads as a consequence

of America Technological domination.

As regards Argentina, English was introduced in the curriculum design in

selected public schools in the early 1900s. However, it was only taught at
secondary level, which was neither free(yes, it was free!) nor compulsory.
Learning a second language became mandatory at primary and secondary
education levels under the 2006 “Ley de Educación Nacional”. English
curriculums for both primary and secondary level were created in many
provinces. Even though the law did not specify which foreign language has to
be taught, most provinces promote English in their schools, Buenos Aires
included(tense!). According to the Curriculum Design, ELT enable students from
secondary school to6:

 Be inserted in the work of globalized world.

 Have access to the world of technology and science.

 Expand their communicative competence.

 Consolidate their own identity and develop the comprehension of

other cultures.

 Develop their critical thought.

I have the impression you should finish this section recalling the
reader why you’re interested in studying the student’s perception.

Methodology

In order to carry out this investigation(study), eighteen students of

English from secondary school were surveyed. All of them attended secondary
school in Western Greater Buenos Aires including Morón, Castelar, Ituzaingo,
Merlo and Moreno(punctuation). The survey consisted of four multiple choices
questions and two open questions. The aim of these questions was to discover
whether students from secondary school consider The English language
important for their lives and for their future or not. The questions were written in
Spanish since it is ()students´ native language and the surveys(more than one?)
were designed in a digital format to make it easier for the interviewees to
answer them.

Results

5
David Crystal (2nd edition 2003) “English as a global language” Chap.2 “Why English? The
historical context.”
6
Dirección General de Cultura (2006). Diseño curricular de inglés, Segundo Ciclo.
Buenos Aires, Ministerio de Educación. Pag. 9 y 10. (why different font size?)
 Language and Written Expression IV
Marianela Gomez
Individual Paper

Eighteen students of English from secondary school took the survey.

Sixteen of the respondents attended a state school and only two attend a
private school(Given the reduced presence of private school students, I’d omit
this distinction; just refer to ‘secondary students’ all throughout). When students
were asked if they enjoyed the subject of English, 55.6% answered “To a small
extent.” “To a fair extent” was chosen by 33,3% of the respondents, whereas “to
a large extent” and “Not at all” were chosen both by only 5,6% of the
respondents (Figure 1).

FIGURE 1

When students were asked if they use the English language in any
aspects of their life, 66, 7% of the respondents answered “No” and the other
33,3% answered “Yes.”

In the open question “In what aspect of your life do you use English?”
Only six students answered(reconsider phrase order). Three of the students
agreed on using English for games and () internet, two of the respondents
 Language and Written Expression IV
Marianela Gomez
Individual Paper

answered they use English to talk with people who native language is English
(grammar) and one answered that he/she used English for everyday answers of
affirmation(what does this mean? Not clear).

When students were asked, “Do you think learning English is

important?”61, 1% of the respondents answered “To a large extent.” 22.2% of
students answered “To a fair extent” and 16, 7% chose the option “To a small
extent” (Figure 2).

Figure 2

When students were asked if they considered studying English will be

useful for their future, 61.1% of the respondents answered “To a large extent.”
27.8% chose the option “To a fair extent” and the 11.1% answered “to a small
extent”. None chose the option “Not at all” (Figure 3).
 Language and Written Expression IV
Marianela Gomez
Individual Paper

FIGURE 3

Seventeen students answered the last open question ()“Why do you

think English will be useful for your future?” All of them considered that English
will be useful to improve their employment prospects and to travel abroad.

Discussion

According to what students answered, I can say that most of them

considered the English language as a very important tool for their future. They
are aware that English is the language of international communication and if
they do not want to be relegated from the world they have to know(speak?)
English. Even though most of the respondents answered they do not enjoy the
subject, the English language has a universal presence in adolescents
everyday life. This motivates and inspires teenagers to learn English.

Nowadays, adolescents find entertainment through English especially

with the use of ()internet(punctuation). As they answered in the survey, they
used English mainly when playing games and listening to music(tense). But
their expectation about the English language is more than enjoyment. They
consider the language of great importance not only for getting a better job, but ()
for travelling and communicate with people of other countries.(parallelism)

Whatever students´ reasons (for what?), having a clear idea of why

knowing English is important can help to motivate them to learn the
language(tense). The English language plays an important role in all aspects,
and therefore learning and mastering it would greatly give advantage to
everyone. (This idea was already expressed; reconsider relevance)
 Language and Written Expression IV
Marianela Gomez
Individual Paper

I feel you haven’t expanded on the fact that, even though students value
the language, they don’t like the classes. Is there anything that you can say or
suggest in this respect? Perhaps you could finish with a suggestion for
teachers, who usually think that student’s don’t care about the language. Give it
a thought.

References

 Dirección General de Cultura (2006). Diseño Curricular Inglés, Segundo Ciclo.

Buenos Aires, Ministerio de Educación.

 Ley Nacional de Educación Nº26.206 (2005).

 British Council (May 2015). Education Intelligence. English in Argentina. An

examination of policy, perceptions and influencing factors.

 David Crystal (2nd edition 2003) English as a global Language. United State of
America, Cambridge University Press.

 Pozzo, María Isabel, La enseñanza de lenguas extranjeras en Argentina.

Diálogos Latinoamericanos [en linea] 2009, <http://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?
id=16220868002>