ABSTRACT
In conclusion, what does it mean, then, for World Englishes studies to be an academic discipline? From an educational perspective, there is now a substantial and stable body of knowledge that constitutes a subject called World Englishes studies (or some similar formulation), and the status of this is such that it is beginning to be projected onto university curriculums and, occasionally, departmental structures. The pedagogic implications include the fact that there has been a paradigm-shift in the way that the academic mainstream now focuses on the teaching and research of English around the world, and of the attitudinal and ideological disputes which accompany its global spread. This shift affects not only sociolinguistic studies of worldwide English, but also applied linguistics scholarship, and in this way feeds into the training of language professionals, particularly TESOL practitioners and those involved in language planning. Ideally, it is able to inform them of the issues that pertain to the language, and provide frameworks to help with an understanding of how English relates to people's lives, to their experiences and aspirations. The body of theory, in its role as a system of explanation, offers the tools of reflection to assist people working with the language to make informed decisions about their own practices, especially when these involve facilitating or regulating the language use of others.
