Comments on: Taiwan’s love affair with American English

By: 怎麼訓練英文口說？ - Good學習天地

怎麼訓練英文口說？ - Good學習天地 — Wed, 09 Apr 2025 14:01:29 +0000

[…] 克服這些挑戰，需要我們主動出擊。我們可以積極創造口說環境，例如參加英文社團、與外國朋友交流，或是利用線上資源進行口說練習。別害怕犯錯，錯誤是學習的機會，每一次的嘗試都是進步的階梯。更重要的是，要培養用英文思考的習慣，盡量避免在腦海中進行翻譯，直接用英文表達自己的想法。台灣人對美國英語的喜愛，也提供了額外的優勢，可以多加利用相關資源 [[3]]。 […]

By: Ingrid Piller

Ingrid Piller — Sun, 23 Apr 2023 03:58:46 +0000

In reply to Tif. Thanks, Tif, for this helpful update! The bilingual strategy for 2030 seems ill-conceived on many fronts ...

By: Tif

Tif — Sat, 22 Apr 2023 04:38:37 +0000

Came across this article by accident and I’m glad I’m here. I agree with all the comments and observations. I’d like to add that the love affair is historical and political – in the early days before the US broke official ties with Taiwan, many Taiwanese elites were sponsored to study in the States as Soong Mei-Ling had. When they came back to become policymakers or business owners, they brought Americanism back to Taiwan, hence the eventual love affair. This is similar to The Philipines where it’s said their American is more American than the Americans. 😀
When I arrived in Taiwan 11 years ago, I was told by the locals to change my English (I’m from New Zealand) – the irony of it! Even now, if I speak a slightly non-American English accent, or use non-American English spellings or words, many locals wouldn’t understand. When I was a Dept. Head (5 years ago) at a language institute offering English courses for corporates and schools, many reject non-American “looking” or “sounding” instructors and teachers with some explicitly stating they prefer someone with an “American” accent. Despite consistent complaints that they can’t understand non-American English and the inclusion of non-American accents in TOEIC, they still insist on learning “American”.
It’s laughable the government wants Taiwan to be bilingual by 2030. This is impossible with the current teaching methods i.e., rote memorization, and a focus on the language technicalities rather than usage. As a result, most learners either feel frustrated or end up being walking dictionaries or armchair linguists rather than users. The teaching curriculum and methods need to change. Businesses and universities insisting on job candidates and graduates to take the TOEIC further contribute to the armchair linguists phenomenon. If they want their employees to be able to speak and write English, why ask them for their TOEIC scores? Or have them translate Chinese emails into English! It seems most don’t know what they’re doing. 😀
10 years after your post, the situation remains the same – many still insist on American English and struggle with other Englishes. Honestly, I don’t think this will change.

By: Tif

Tif — Sat, 22 Apr 2023 03:39:53 +0000

In reply to Jake Chazan.

They need to use English to deal with international clients and partners. 😀
They don’t receive high marks for Speaking tests because many can’t even string a proper sentence despite having 990 for TOEIC (Listening and Reading Comprehension) i.e., they’re good only insofar for memorizing the definition of a bunch of vocabulary and grammar rules.
10 years on, yes, things are still more or less the same – many still have poor English and they don’t even read Chinese, let alone English.

By: Kronos

Kronos — Wed, 24 Aug 2022 18:25:35 +0000

I think British English is better and sounds more polite.
The USA isn’t a good place to live on comparison to other English-speaking countries. It’s sosad there’s discrimination against other forms of English.

By: Steve

Steve — Fri, 14 Oct 2016 20:27:00 +0000

In reply to Jake Chazan.

A little late to the conversation here – agree with many of your points. I work for an online education company called Lingoloop (https://www.lingoloop.com). We teach small group English conversation classes using online video chat. Our observation of Taiwanese students is similar to your assessment. They are great at taking tests, but that is not a true measure of English comprehension. In fact many students from Taiwan and China who attend university in the U.S. struggle mightily with basic communication despite excellent TOEFL scores. Our service provides a comfortable environment for shy / reserved students to practice English from the comfort of their home – I hope we can be part of the solution.

By: Jake Chazan

Jake Chazan — Sun, 08 Mar 2015 17:40:06 +0000

This article simply scrapes the surface of the real issue around the teaching of English in Taiwan. There are a number of points that are relevant here. First of all, notwithstanding that fact that Taiwanese study English beginning in grade school, their English is poor. Taiwanese receive high marks on many of the international tests measuring English speaking and comprehension ability. The problem is that these are just tests and Taiwanese students are really good at studying for tests.

I have from personal experience as a university professor in Taipei. I found that most of the students are functionally illiterate in English. But it’s not just the students. University professors and executives all have problems making themselves understood in English, whether it’s written or oral. This stems from the fact that Taiwanese have little opportunity to practice and when they do they are often shy about doing so. Also, Taiwanese students and executives fail to read. They cannot expand their vocabulary without reading. Personally, I don’t think this will ever change. An additional problem is why do Taiwanese really need to speak English anyway?

By: Yi Shan Lee

Yi Shan Lee — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 21:20:31 +0000

Great article, I have been citing your PhD thesis with regards to some of the implications for introducing World Englishes in Taiwan and some of the potential challenges that mat be faced by teachers. Is there any information about how teachers might be approaching a more EIL situation in terms of teaching materials that may be used or methodologies employed? Many thanks. Yi Shan Lee

By: Jackie Chang

Jackie Chang — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 12:36:54 +0000

In reply to Neil Blonstein. Dear Neil, Thank you very much for your comments. Thank you for the link of Esperanto.

By: Marketing English as the global language in Taiwan | Language on the Move

Marketing English as the global language in Taiwan | Language on the Move — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 02:06:52 +0000

[…] Taiwan is enthralled with learning American English. One of the reasons for this love affair lies in the fact that English is the global lingua franca. In Taiwan, as elsewhere, English is associated with status and modernity: an essential instrument to access the world of finance, economy, technology and science; in short, English is regarded as a tool to achieve social modernization, economic growth and internationalization. To individuals, too, English language mastery promises globalization: it is viewed as the key to achieving a better life and future in a world which is imagined as borderless. […]

By: Neil Blonstein

Neil Blonstein — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 06:20:20 +0000

English is the world language with the following exceptions: 1) The one billion people who are still illiterate i.a. in Africa and Asia, notably in India (often where English is an official language). 2) The two billion people (with some overlap with the previous group) who earn less than 2 US dollars a day. 3) About half of the industrial world who cannot communicate in English. 4) The small group of logical people who discovered Esperanto. Among them are English teachers who know the present world order is totally wrong. http://www.EnglishTeachersforEsperanto.blogspot.com Esperanto is by far the most useful language if you wish to have friends in all the countries of the world.

By: Kimie Takahashi 高橋君江

Kimie Takahashi 高橋君江 — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 05:03:01 +0000

Thanks, Jackie, for this post and welcome to Language on the Move! My students find your research useful and one of my thesis students is following your approach and is looking at language ideologies implicit in private English language school’s advertisements in Thailand. We look forward to your future posts!

By: Khan

Khan — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 04:10:33 +0000

Excellent post raising the question of Globalization and language ideologies. While governments tend to present themselves as very international, promoters of multiculturalism, they actually negotiate differently with the discourses of inner circles. Studying linguistic practices is the weapon. Your post reminds me of ‘Kakusaika ‘ ( international) discourse in Japan and its translation or equation with Inner circles variety of English. While the emulation of Inner Circle is widely reported, I belief we still need a great deal of investigation in real life discursive practices looking at the moves people make, the shifts in stance and of course their meanings.