The presenters challenge the assumption that in international communication conformity to native speaker norms rather than success in communication is of paramount importance. They regard English as a heterogeneous language which has been adopted internationally in the academic domain to the extent that now, from a global perspective, ELF rather than English as a native language is more characteristic of that domain. They endorse Widdowson’s contention (1994) that since English is an international language, no particular community has custody over it, and they advocate ELT objectives which reflect its global use. This study contributes to discussion on appropriate directions for ELT in Asia by proposing that traditional notions of “standard” language and proficiency undergo a reevaluation, which might manifest in a shift in teaching emphasis towards communicative capability and away from conventional encodings.
