Setting the scene

Abstract

The central focus of this book is the relationship of male students to the learning of a language other than their ‘first’ or ‘native’ language. The nomenclature used to describe this other language is multifarious, reflecting different attitudes towards such languages as well as the differing status of such languages in a country or community. Examples of naming include modern language, classical language, community language, heritage language, minority language, language other than English, foreign language. The term foreign language is probably the most widespread, although it is certainly not the most popular, especially in multilingual communities where the other language is in fact not foreign, but very much part of the everyday linguistic landscape. In fact in countries like Australia there have been significant debates around appropriate nomenclature for languages used in the community and learned in schools (e.g., Lo Bianco, 1987; Clyne, 1982). Our adoption of the term foreign language is somewhat reluctant in view of these debates and of the rather loaded meaning associated with the word foreign. However, our choice is motivated primarily by convenience: as the terms foreign language and foreign language learning are well known across the English language world, we use them as umbrella terms for the many terms associated in various communities with the learning of another language.