Pragmatist discourse and English for academic purposes

Abstract

Ideological implications of pragmatic views of English language teaching have recently been singled out as problematic (Benesch 1993; Pennycook 1994a, 1994b; Santos 1992). In particular, the teaching of English for academic purposes (EAP) with the aim of helping people develop their academic communicative competence (Swales 1990) has been charged with reinforcing conformity in thought and expression under the guise of pragmatic concerns. In this article, I argue that it is misleading to represent pragmatism in EAP as a unified discourse offering constant ideological support to an unexamined educational, academic and sociopolitical status quo. At the same time, it is desirable to engage constructively with critics of pragmatism in EAP and to examine concerns to which their critiques give rise. An appeal is made for reflectively and receptively pragmatic approaches towards the formulation and investigation of issues in EAP and all language teaching.