How English Language Changed Over Time

We now talk about Englishes rather than English and multi-literacies rather than literacies because language and learning are not as black and white as they used to be. Language and learning evolve over time to satisfy society in ways that are relevant to them. Language evolves over time and it evolves so society can talk about what society wishes to talk about (British Council Serbia, 2013) and learning evolves and changes based on what society values at the current time (O’Donnell et al., 2016). The ways we learn in the twenty first century are completely different to what was taught decades prior due to the sudden rise of technology, our communications and different types literacies emerging called multi-literacies. Language has changed

These ways can include, but are not limited to, cultural influences, other languages mixing in and even due to the social context (British Council Serbia, 2013). We know languages can change and evolve this way because it’s how every language began, including the English language. The English language was born over multiple centuries, through different cultures mixing, multiple languages influencing and taking dominance, and even through a class divide (Gardoqui, 2012). Languages change rapidly and the English language is no different. Even still, the English language evolves today. Fifteen to twenty years ago the word Englishes was coined when English was starting to become a global language (British Council Serbia, 2013). Since language evolves, it’s not wrong to believe that different geographical areas of the world evolved their own English language at different paces. Even if the evolving languages originated from a common ancestor. For example, Standard Australian English and American English have evolved over time to be different - have different words, phrases and spelling – and yet they both originated from British English. Much like every other language, these Englishes evolved in a multitude of ways to allow the inhabitants of the land talk about what they wanted to talk about (British Council Serbia, 2013). Evolution by

James Paul Gee believes that education is evolving. He believes that it is evolving to a point where the standard pedagogy of testing and examinations will be classified as outdated and primitive (DML Research Hub, 2011). Gee believes that schools should take up a more rich and deep learning environment in what he calls Situated Embodied Learning. More commonly known today as video games. While Gee isn’t preaching that digital media is the absolute best route to follow, but it does offer a precious resource that, if used correctly, teaches students how to solve problems with what they know or what they have been taught rather than teaching a string of facts (DML Research Hub, 2011). A new literacy, that respects Gee’s idea of Situated Embodied Learning, is a video game called Minecraft. A case study conducted by Schifter and Cipollone who focussed on an English lower school class in secondary education to identify if using the open ‘sandbox’ game Minecraft could be used as a tool within a classroom. The goal of the activity was to construct a narrative based on what the students knew about concepts such as characterisation and plot. To use the game as a tool to film a narrative the students had written. The findings of the study were that the students (mostly males) were