HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Henry George Widdowson (born 28 May 1935) is a British linguist and an authority in the field of
applied linguistics Applied linguistics is an interdisciplinary field which identifies, investigates, and offers solutions to language-related real-life problems. Some of the academic fields related to applied linguistics are education, psychology, communication rese ...
and
language teaching Language education – the process and practice of teaching a second or foreign language – is primarily a branch of applied linguistics, but can be an interdisciplinary field. There are four main learning categories for language education: ...
, specifically
English language learning and teaching English-Language Learner (often abbreviated as ELL) is a term used in some English-speaking countries such as the US and Canada to describe a person who is learning the English language and has a native language that is not English. Some education ...
.


Career

He gained a PhD in Linguistics from the
University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
in 1973. Widdowson was the first Chair of Applied Linguistics at the Institute of Education, University of London. He is
Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
Professor of Education,
University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...
, and has also been Professor of Applied Linguistics at the
University of Essex The University of Essex is a public university, public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, Essex is one of the original plate glass university, plate glass universities. Essex's shield consists of the an ...
and Professor of English Linguistics at the
University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich histor ...
, where he holds an Honorary Professorship (Department of English). Since the 1990s, Widdowson lives and works in
Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...
,
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
. He is the Applied Linguistics adviser to
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
and series adviser of Oxford Bookworms Collection. Widdowson is co-editor of ''Language Teaching: A Scheme for Teacher Education''. He is the series editor of ''Oxford Introductions to Language Study'' and the author of ''Linguistics'' (1996) in the same series. He has also published ''Defining Issues in English Language Teaching'' (2002), and ''Practical Stylistics: An Approach to Poetry'' (1992).


Research

Widdowson is perhaps best known for his contribution to
communicative language teaching Communicative language teaching (CLT), or the communicative approach (CA) , is an approach to language teaching that emphasizes interaction as both the means and the ultimate goal of study. Learners in environments using communication to learn and ...
. However, he has also published on other related subjects such as
discourse analysis Discourse analysis (DA), or discourse studies, is an approach to the analysis of written, vocal, or sign language use, or any significant semiotic event. The objects of discourse Analysis ( discourse, writing, conversation, communicative event ...
and
critical discourse analysis Critical discourse analysis (CDA) is an interdisciplinary approach to the study of discourse that views language as a form of social practice. CDA combines critique of discourse and explanation of how it figures within and contributes to the exis ...
, the global spread of English,
English for Special Purposes English for specific purposes (ESP) is a subset of English as a second or foreign language. It usually refers to teaching the English language to university students or people already in employment, with reference to the particular vocabulary and ...
and stylistics.''The Routledge Encyclopedia of Language Teaching and Learning'' calls him "probably the most influential philosopher of the late twentieth century for international ESOL" (674). He has authored a number of highly influential papers. His 1994 paper in ''
TESOL Quarterly ''TESOL Quarterly'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of TESOL International Association. It covers English language teaching and learning, standard English as a second dialect, including articles ...
'',Widdowson Henry G. (1994) "The Ownership of English". TESOL Quarterly 28/2 377-89. for instance, has become a key paper in the rationale behind
English as a lingua franca English as a lingua franca (ELF) is the use of the English language "as a global means of inter-community communication" and can be understood as "''any use of English among speakers of different first languages for whom English is the communica ...
and what has become known as the "ownership" of English. One of his recent books is ''Text, Context, Pretext. Critical Issues in Discourse Analysis'' (2005), published by
Blackwell's Blackwell UK, also known as Blackwell's and Blackwell Group, is a British academic book retailer and library supply service owned by Waterstones. It was founded in 1879 by Benjamin Henry Blackwell, after whom the chain is named, on Broad Street, ...
.


Selected publications

Widdowson, H. (2003). ''Defining Issues in English Language Teaching (Oxford Applied Linguistics)'' (1st ed.). Oxford University Press. Widdowson, H. (2007). ''Discourse Analysis (Oxford Introduction to Language Study Series)''. Oxford University Press. Widdowson, H. G. (1978). ''Teaching Language as Communication (Oxford Applied Linguistics)'' (1st ed.). Oxford University Press.


Articles (brief extract)

* Widdowson, Henry G. (1992) "ELT and EL Teacher." ELT Journal 46/4. 333-339. * Widdowson, Henry G. (1993) "Proper Words in proper Places." ELT Journal 47/4. 317-329. *Widdowson, Henry G. (1994) "The Ownership of English". TESOL Quarterly 28/2 377-89. *Widdowson, Henry G. (1997) "EIL, ESL, EFL: global Issues and local Interests". World Englishes 16/1. 146-53. *Widdowson, Henry G. (1998a) " EIL: squaring the Circles. A Reply." World Englishes 17/3 397-401. *Widdowson, Henry G. (1998b) "Communication and Community. The Pragmatics of ESP." English for Specific Purposes 17/1 3-14. * Widdowson, Henry G. (1998c) "The Theory and Practice of Critical Discourse Analysis." Applied Linguistics 19/1 136-151.


References


External links


H.G. Widdowson on TESOL

Biography of H.G. Widdowson @ OUP

Text, Context, Pretext. Critical Issues in Discourse Analysis (2005)

University of Vienna, Department of English
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Widdowson, Henry 1935 births Living people Applied linguists Academics of the University of Essex Academics of the University of London Linguists from the United Kingdom Academics of the University of Vienna Alumni of the University of Edinburgh British expatriates in Austria