The starting point for this comparative study on the role of English within the media worlds of European youth is the recognition of the increasing importance of communication with peoples from other cultures and countries.

Within the European Union (EU), English has a special role in this regard. While EU policy promotes all languages spoken in member states, and although English is not the most frequently spoken first language, it is the language two Europeans are most likely to use to make themselves understood. This lingua franca phenomenon occurs not only in the fields of science and technology, but also in business and everyday, personal interactions. The media, which plays an important role in intercultural communication, serves as a cultural forum, and both creates culture and transmits representations of other cultures. Its offerings are often highly internationalized, especially in pop culture, films, TV series, and variety shows, which exercise great influence on cultural and linguistic issues in the multilingual, multicultural EU.

The primary goals of "In the Presence of English: Media and European Youth" are to gain insight into the roles of English in and for Europe; to contribute to discussions of the possibilities of transnational media offerings; to better understand the influence of media in foreign language acquisition and of its role in promoting cross cultural understanding across European cultures; and to better understand the role of English media in the construction of the world view of European youth. The research presented on the relationship of media use to language proficiency has relevance to how schools react to and take advantage of mediainfluences on English acquisition. It also has implications for approaches to language policy and planning issues relating to the present and future role of English in the EU, and the re-evaluation of the presence and prevalence of English in the media both as a threat to the notion of a European identity and as a contributing factor in the creation of such an identity.

Researchers, scholars, practitioners, and students of such fields as second language pedagogy and acquisition, language policy, media and communication, and sociolinguistics as well as educational and social psychology will all have an interest in "In the Presence of English: Media and European Youth."

The introduction of communicative competence as the goal of second and for eign language teaching has led to recognition of the role of context in language learning and use. As communicative competence is defined by the social and cultural contexts in which it is used, no single communicative competence can serve as the goal and model for all learners. This recognition has had an impact on program design and materials development. One significant change is that the choice of a teaching method is no longer the primary concern. Instead, the first step for the program designer is becoming familiar with the social and cultural features of the context of the language being taught. This includes a consideration of the uses speakers make of the language, their reasons for using it, and their attitudes toward it. Contexts of Competence: Social and Cultural Considerations in Commu nicative Language Teaching explores the relationship between context and com petence from a theoretical and practical perspective. Its audience is applied linguists in general and language teaching practitioners in particular. The overall aim of its five chapters is to provide a framework for consideration of various contexts of language learning and use and to guide the implementation and development of models of communicative language teaching that are responsive to the context-specific needs of learners."

The introduction of communicative competence as the goal of second and for eign language teaching has led to recognition of the role of context in language learning and use. As communicative competence is defined by the social and cultural contexts in which it is used, no single communicative competence can serve as the goal and model for all learners. This recognition has had an impact on program design and materials development. One significant change is that the choice of a teaching method is no longer the primary concern. Instead, the first step for the program designer is becoming familiar with the social and cultural features of the context of the language being taught. This includes a consideration of the uses speakers make of the language, their reasons for using it, and their attitudes toward it. Contexts of Competence: Social and Cultural Considerations in Commu nicative Language Teaching explores the relationship between context and com petence from a theoretical and practical perspective. Its audience is applied linguists in general and language teaching practitioners in particular. The overall aim of its five chapters is to provide a framework for consideration of various contexts of language learning and use and to guide the implementation and development of models of communicative language teaching that are responsive to the context-specific needs of learners."

This book is designed to provide insight into the roles of English in and for Europe. The starting point for this comparative study is recognition of the increasing importance of communication with peoples from other cultures and countries. The book contributes to discussions of the possibilities of transnational media offerings, and facilitates a better understanding of the influence of media in foreign language acquisition.

This volume formalizes, organizes and analyzes the relation of knowledge about language to decision-making in practice. It synthesizes research in psycholinguistics, educational linguistics and sociolinguistics, freely crossing subject fields to establish innovative and expert responses to some of the key debates in the field. Authored and compiled by leaders in their various specialties and collated and extensively re-edited from the award-winning "Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics" 2nd edition, this collection will be an ideal one-stop desk reference solution for any linguistics professional and researcher interested in how language operates at the leading edge.
* Authoritative review of this dynamic field placed in an interdisciplinary context
* Over 100 articles by leaders in the field
* Compact and affordable single-volume format