Teaching english as an international language: Implications for literature courses in teacher preparation programs

Its spread through migration, colonization, and globalization has made English an-or arguably the-international language and, consequently, one of the most popular languages taught across the world. Yet classrooms where English is taught as a foreign language as well as in second-language teacher education have not kept pace with its growing complexity, namely the increased diversity in the language’s varieties, its users, and their purposes. This chapter problematizes this disconnect and argues that the inclusion of works beyond Anglo-America in literature courses for preservice language teachers is critical for addressing this gap. The chapter begins by introducing the notion of teaching English as an international language, a new development in the field of English-language teaching (ELT) that embraces the complicated reality of the English language today. It then explores how a more inclusive selection of literature can introduce and reinforce the perspective of English as an international language and raise teachers’ critical awareness of linguistic diversity and the cultural complexity of the language.