Should English Be the Primary Language? Essay Example

Research Question: Should English be the Primary Language of Instruction in Schools Worldwide?

Work Thesis: English should be adopted as the primary language of instruction in schools because it is the most spoken and understood language worldwide, and proficiency in the language can lead to better career opportunities and increased cultural exchange it is the primary language for global travel and business negotiations.

Detailed Outline

1. Work Thesis in Introduction: English should be adopted as the primary language of instruction in schools because it is the most spoken and understood language worldwide, and proficiency in the language can lead to better career opportunities and increased cultural exchange, and it is the primary language for global travel and business negotiations
2. Hook the audience with statistics on the dominance of the English language
3. Introduce two concerns: the advantages and disadvantages of making English the primary language of school instruction.

Source 1: Rao (3) role of English as a global language

Source 2: Rao and Huijun (66) statistics on the use of the English language

2. English is the most spoken language
3. More than 20% of the global population speaks English
4. International conferences, seminars, and events are often conducted in English
5. Multinational companies prefer employees that are proficient in English.

Source 1: Rao and Huijun (66) statistics on the use of the English language

Source 2: Kumar (154) importance of English proficiency

Source 3: Kawabata (105) benefits of employee English proficiency

3. Proficiency in English and better career opportunities
4. Employees with English proficiency have higher salaries and promotion opportunities
5. English is the dominant language in academia, politics, global trade, and technology
6. Proficiency in English can make students understand global market complexities and offer strategic business decisions

Source 1: Astawa et al. career benefits of English proficiency

Source 2: Huijun and Rao on the role of English in academic, technology, and politics

Source 3: Kawabata (103) English as a tool for student’s international understanding of trade

4. Increased Cultural exchange
5. An advantage of English language proficiency is increased exposure to cultural exchange between students from different nations.
6. English proficiency is the gateway to cross-cultural understanding competency.
7. The majority of cultural information and documents are preserved in English.

Source 1: Huijun and Rao (21) exposure to native student’s learning process

Source 2: Kawabaka (102) importance of English in cultural competency

Source 3: Rao and Huijun (782) coordination between native and non-native English teachers in sharing cultural information.

5. Counter argument
6. Loss of cultural identity for the minority people
7. Destabilize the education system

Source 1: Huijun and Rao on the challenge of English proficiency on non-native teachers and speakers.

Source 2: Kawabata (102) the need for English proficiency would challenge the current education system.

6. Conclusion
7. English should be the primary language of instruction in Schools worldwide.

Work Cited

Astawa, I. Nengah, Ida Bagus Nyoman Mantra, and Ida Ayu Made Sri Widiastuti. “Communicative English Language Test: A Prospective Measuring Device For Tourism Practitioners’ Employability.” The 9th International Conference Rural Research & Planning Group. 2019.

Huijun, Yu, and Rao Zhenhui. “Enhancing Students’ English Proficiency by Co-Teaching between Native and Non-Native Teachers in an EFL Context – Zhenhui Rao, Huijun Yu, 2021.” Language Teaching Research, 2021, journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1362168819873937?journalCode=ltra. Accessed 28 Feb. 2023.

Kawabata, Takako. “English Language Teachers in South Korea: Issues of Whiteness and Native-speakerness.” Journal of English Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics 4.4 (2022): 102-106.

Kumar, Tribhuwan. “Assessing language need and proficiency of English graduates of Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University for designing pre-placement training and workshops.” Asian ESP Journal 16.4 (2020): 153-168.

Rao, Parupalli Srinivas. “The role of English as a global language.” Research Journal of English 4.1 (2019): 65-79.

Rao, Zhenhui, and Huijun Yu. “Enhancing students’ English proficiency by co-teaching between native and non-native teachers in an EFL context.” Language Teaching Research 25.5 (2021): 778-797.

Soruc, Adem, et al. “Students’ academic language-related challenges in English medium instruction: The role of English proficiency and language gain.” System 103 (2021): 102651.

Reflection Questions

Learning to conduct research is important because it is a skill you will use both in academia and your professional life. It improves critical thinking and empowers you to find information for yourself. Consider the process of researching as a whole. What was the most challenging aspect of the process for you? (2-3 sentences)

The prewriting process for this essay was crucial in helping me develop a clear and concise argument supporting international schools using English as its primary medium of instruction. Initially, I spent significant time researching and brainstorming different angles to approach the topic. I read articles and research papers that provided evidence for and against using English as the main instruction language in schools worldwide. This helped me to understand the different perspectives on the topic and allowed me to identify the strongest arguments to support my position.

2) The working thesis statement is a proposed answer to your research question. It should clearly identify a debatable topic and take a position on one side of that topic. Analyze the effectiveness of your working thesis statement

My working thesis is clear and focuses on answering the research questions. It makes a clear stance on the topic to ensure the essay remains specific and focused. However, I noticed that my thesis statement needs to be more concise, and this would make it difficult for the audience to follow.

3) A detailed outline is an effective tool for laying out the progression of an argument. It allows you to consider the arrangement and organization of your ideas, as well as choose places to incorporate outside source materials. Review your detailed outline and summarize the argument you’ve presented.

My outline is brief and precise. The points are logically arranged, beginning with the strong points related to adopting English as the Primary Language of Instruction in Schools Worldwide. Multiple sources from peer-reviewed journals support the arguments.

4) You will use the same topic on three of the remaining Touchstones in this course. What kind of feedback would be helpful for you? What are specific questions you might have as you go deeper into the research process?

I will use the topic on the remaining Touchstones, and I expect some feedback relating the way I structured the outline. Although my outline is precise, I doubt I can transform it into an argumentative essay by following the presented points. Also, feedback on the clarity of my thesis statement would be helpful