Globalisation, English for everyone and English teacher capacity: language policy discourses and realities in Bangladesh

Abstract

The effects of globalisation and the global spread of English have created a phenomenal demand for English all over the world. The demand is illustrated by the introduction of ‘English for Everyone’ and early English instruction in many developing countries. These policy initiatives and their implementation are believed to contribute to these nations' human capital development and their participation in the global economy for national development. However, these ‘more and earlier’ English policies have not necessarily taken the capacity of English teaching professionals into account in delivering desired outcomes. Taking Bangladesh as a case, this paper discusses some of the consequences of developing nations' endorsement of the discourses of globalisation and national development followed by their adoption of enhanced English policies, paying insufficient attention to resources and policy implementation issues. Specifically, it examines English teacher education and training at the primary and secondary levels and demonstrates how Bangladesh's inadequate infrastructure and limited institutional capacity for English teacher education have directed it to donor-funded teacher training programs which, despite short-term benefits, cannot fully address the quantity and quality issues of English teacher education. It is concluded that, if teachers' professional capacity is essential for developing learners' English competence, the more and earlier English policies themselves will not deliver desirable English Language Teaching outcomes to Bangladesh and other developing countries and, consequently, their policy goals of developing human capital through English for national development will remain unrealised. The paper suggests implications for English-in-education policies in Bangladesh and other developing nations and draws out a set of recommendations.