Teach English in JiAngqiao Zhen - Shanghai Shi

english as the Global Language With globalization and technology spreading rapidly, english dominates the world as no other language ever has. It is unclear as to what type of cultural affects this might have around the world, but it is the only language that has reached every country in the world. english is the most common language in airports, science, technology, medicine, etc. Most of the internet?s data is stored in the english language. When we turn on the radio anywhere in the world we are most likely to come across a few english stations. english has become a second language and in some cases a first language all over the globe. But unlike Latin, which at one point in time was the dominant language around the world, english seems to be too widespread and too deeply rooted in many cultures to die out. Technology has assisted in this rapid exposure to english. Teaching english has become a common practice among many young people who wish to travel and live in other parts of the world, and is only expected to grow more. What is to come of this rapid growth of the english language? Will our children no longer be able to speak their native tongues because they are only taught english is schools? Could the domination of one language eliminate unique cultural practices and traditions that so many countries have all over the world? Language and culture are inseparable and coexist. It is a beautiful thing when there are 20 people sitting at a table from different countries around the world and can find a common language where they can all communicate. This is what english has given us. The english language has allowed humans to communicate on important issues, such as global warming, has spread religion to all corners of the earth, and has made it easier for humans to understand each other?s cultures and traditions. For the first time in history, humans are able to find a universal language of communication. However, although there are many benefits to having a universal language, we must also look at why the english language has become the dominant language, and what came with it. The language of globalization is english and many argue that globalization has destroyed cultures. Critics say that although globalization creates material prosperity, it comes with high spiritual and cultural costs, threatening to turn this world into one giant mall. When cultures trade, whether it be music, literature, art, food etc. it gives them opportunity to express their creative inspiration and we can all learn from each other, and it is beneficial to have a common language to communicate these pieces of art and ideas. However, it has become more difficult to separate what globalization is doing versus teaching and using a common language while still holding onto our cultural practices. There needs to be a conscious shift from english being the gateway to material prosperity to english being the common language in which we use to share our cultures with one another. Teaching english has become a multibillion dollar industry, and it would be safe to say it isn?t because people want to learn a common language to learn and teach each other about our cultures, but because english is the money maker. It has become the language of wealth, technology, and material prosperity. It is an amazing opportunity that all of us humans have in this day in age where we can communicate and learn from one another, while we still have our differences in religion, culture, other languages, and rituals. We have a common tongue that we can use to become closer to one another and become more artistically or spiritually inspired. For these reasons, I want to teach english, to spread a common language, so that we can all learn from each other and grow closer together as a human race, not by making everything universal and the same.