Principles and Practices for Teaching English as an International Language

What is the role of reading within an English language teaching pedagogy tailored to the demands of the 21st century? This chapter examines the role of critical reading in the teaching of English for the global age, charting the development from skills based views of reading to those which take a more sociocultural emphasis. This leads in turn to what we might mean by “critical reading.” I shall argue that the position of English as the world’s major language for the foreseeable future means that it becomes ever more important to teach English language learners world-wide to read critically. Robert Scholes (1985) noted more than twenty years ago that

in an age of manipulation, when our students are in dire need of critical strength to resist the continuing assaults of all the media, the worst thing we can do is foster in them an attitude of reverence before texts.