Is English always an advantage?

In short, it is less and less the language of the British, Australians or Americans. But a tool that belongs to everyone and that allows a Chinese and an African, for example, to communicate easily. It is what the insiders define a lingua franca.

English has emerged as the most widely spoken language in the world

Grammar has little to do with it

What characteristics must a language have to achieve global success? One might venture that English, at least from a grammatical point of view, is easier than Russian or Arabic. True, but the difficulties are not lacking. “It is not a phonetic language, there is often little correspondence between written and spoken. And that makes it complicated ».

To speak is Rosemary Solomon, lawyer, linguist and lecturer at St. John’s University School of Law in the United States. She is the author of the book and Rise of English (The Rise of English, published by Oxford University Press), a fundamental work for understanding the political, economic and social implications of this phenomenon. The scholar is convinced that the key to reading is another. “It is a political and economic question” explains.

“It all started with the British Empire which, at its peak, spanned a quarter of the world. When it began to disintegrate, as Europe recovered from the devastation of war the United States has established itself as a world leader. Spreading their culture and their language through films, television, the media. Then the internet went further ».

English, the language of scholars

English schools have become a global affair. In various countries, including Italy, children begin learning this language at the age of six. The Intercultura program, which allows teenagers to spend a year abroad also learning the local language and cultureit does not require English, but it is a requirement in English-speaking countries and where there are bilingual schools, and as a passepartout language it helps.

At the university, however, Erasmus helped expand the use of English to foster international exchanges. Many universities in non-English speaking countries have introduced courses in English. “The goal is to prepare students for the global market, attract foreign students to increase income, improve the positioning in the international rankings of universitieswhere the presence of students from abroad counts »says Solomon.

All think alike

Is the omnipresence of English so beneficial? “The coexistence of two languages ​​implies a balance to be pursued carefully” he warns Claudio Marazzini, historian of the Italian language and president of the Accademia della Crusca. “The Englishman must not become the killer of the Italian.” He may seem paradoxical, but he is not. Languages ​​also die, every two weeks one of the approximately 6800 languages ​​on the planet disappears.

“It is undeniable that the spread of English weighs on minority languages,” says Solomon. “Parents always choose the former between instruction in English and education in the local language. Although there is ample evidence that children learn best in a language they understand. And even if the low-cost private English school offers a lower quality of teaching, as is the case in India and Africa ».

Speaking in your mother tongue makes a difference. “It is a privilege to express oneself with the naturalness, richness and creativity that one has in a perfectly known language” says Marazzini.

In defense of linguistic biodiversity, Patricia Ryan, a teacher of English in the Gulf countries for over thirty years, also takes a stand. That’s in one of her Ted Talk stressed the prohibitive cost of English tests, that discriminate against access to education for the poorest. And they practically entrust language teachers with the key to entry to university faculties, risking to leave out a genius because he doesn’t speak English.

Not only that: linguistic plurality is richness. “If you use a single language, your thoughts can become blocked on a question that becomes surmountable, perhaps, by reasoning in a different language,” explains Ryan. And then, as Marazzini observes, if you have to compete in English onlyhowever well you know it, it is clear that the British or American native speaker will be favored. The foreign student or researcher always runs the risk of appearing less prepared, only for the less familiarity with the language.

Excess of zeal

The push to give preference to English has brought the Politecnico di Milano to the center of a long diatribe. In 2012, the university decided that courses for master’s degrees and doctorates for engineers and architects should be held only in English. A two-sided legal battle ensues, involving Tar, Constitutional Court and Council of State, which in 2017 recognized the freedom of teaching in English, provided it is accompanied by an adequate number of courses in Italian, the number of which remains at the discretion of the university.

Currently at the Politecnico the doctoral courses are all in English, while of the 48 courses of the master’s degree course, 35 are in English only, 4 in Italian only and 9 in both languages. Marazzini remains critical: “Our ruling class has not understood how the relationship between Italian and English should be, which should complement and not replace our language. Yet, the ministerial announcement for the Italian Science Fund (of 2021, ed) asks to submit applications in English only, and in any interviews, Italian is banned. I would understand in the presence of foreign commissioners, but otherwise why not use our language? ».

The same scenario is repeated in the world of scholarly publications. “The National Agency for the Evaluation of the University and Research System (Anvur) considers those in English to be superior, without taking into account that in subjects such as literature or philosophy it is a stretch.”

In short, if English is the natural language of subjects such as information technology, it is less so in other areas. Other countries have also noticed this. “Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands they have a high level of knowledge of English and were among the first to offer university students programs in English, ”says Salomone. “But now they are wondering if internationalization has not been excessive, at the expense of the national language and the quality of education for local students. As for France, it has always defended its national language. In 2013 there was a clash in the world of culture over a law to ease the restrictions on university teaching not in French ”.

The illusion of the English speakers

Even if some are backtracking, native English speakers apparently have a privileged situation. They have an advantage in study, work and even travel. Rosemary Solomon, who speaks three other languages ​​besides English, thinks differently. In her book, she says that only 20 percent of the population in the United States is capable of speaking another language. “Anglophones let themselves be lulled by the illusion that it was not necessary to know other languages, given the spread of theirs,” she comments.

“But is not so: only a quarter of the world population has minimal knowledge of English. Therefore, with the remaining three quarters they can communicate only through an interpreter, and cannot tap into knowledge and career opportunities that require language and intercultural skills. I also say this to my law students: you risk having the world speak without your understanding, finding yourselves culturally and politically isolated. Reading or listening to world news through the media in another language broadens horizons, helps to understand how people from other countries interpret political developments in the US and how they evaluate American responses to global issues, such as now in the war in Ukraine. “.

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