ABSTRACT

English and the first textbooks were written (Howatt 1984). English has been taught in Europe and countries that were part of the British Empire since then, but it is undoubtedly the case that there was a huge growth in English language teaching in the twentieth century and particularly since 1945. This is largely due to the growth in use of English as the international language of science, technology, diplomacy and business. Baldauf and Jernudd (1983) and Swales (1985) have shown that the proportion of academic articles written in the areas of science, technology and economics has been increasing rapidly, and it is estimated that of the several million articles published every year at least half are published in English (Swales 1987). No corresponding figures about the proportion of business correspondence and negotiation exist, but it is reasonable to assume that growth in these areas is similar to that in the academic world.