THE UK is beginning to lose out when it comes to propagating its mother tongue. Students are now looking towards Australia, New Zealand and even Malta for mastering the English language.
New research from JWT Education, the advertising and communications agency for the British Council, has found that, while the UK remains by far the favoured destination for students learning English, its position as the main provider of courses is being threatened.
JWT Education provides strategic planning, research and advertising for big business, universities, charities and public bodies. It surveyed a number of agencies, including government bodies, industry associations and course providers in seven countries, including the UK.
It found this in spite of predictions that use of English worldwide would continue to grow in coming years for business, education and leisure purposes. It is estimated that at least 100 million people want to learn English at some level.
Allison Doorbar at JWT Education says that "While English remains a globally dominant force, there is a lot of volatility in the market for providing courses and the supply of students.
"Competition can be influenced by many factors such as economics, avian flu and threats of terrorism. The consumer is now much more discerning and in touch with the latest world events, so we find ourselves increasingly having to compete with other Anglophone countries."
Overall, fewer adults are now changing countries to learn English, the study found. Demand for knowledge of English in places such as China and Vietnam is growing as their markets have expanded around the world. Their capacity to provide home-grown courses, often from non-native speakers, is growing too. Worldwide, in fact, non-native speaking English teachers now outnumber those who learned the language from birth.
Duncan Rayner is development manager for south-east Asia for Cambridge Esol, which provides English language courses for learners overseas, as well as qualifications for teachers. He says the findings are reflected in its own experiences. "Countries are becoming more self-sufficient. While more people are learning English, there is a tendency for students to remain in their own countries because many new students come from less affluent groups.
"Some universities, such as in Malaysia and Singapore, are setting themselves up as international hubs for learning, where courses are taught through the medium of English. For mainly economic reasons, people now want to learn locally, rather than looking to the UK."
