<P> As a response to English linguistic imperialism, de-anglicisation became a matter of national pride in some places and especially in regions that were once under colonial rule, where vestiges of colonial domination are a sensitive subject . Following centuries of English rule in Ireland, an argument for de-anglicisation was delivered before the Irish National Literary Society in Dublin, 25 November 1892; "When we speak of' The Necessity for De-Anglicising the Irish Nation', we mean it, not as a protest against imitating what is best in the English people, for that would be absurd, but rather to show the folly of neglecting what is Irish, and hastening to adopt, pell - mell, and indiscriminately, everything that is English, simply because it is English ." Despite its status as an official language, the Irish language has been reduced to a minority language in Ireland as a result of centuries of English rule, as is the case in North America where their indigenous languages have been replaced by that of the colonists, and continued to decline even after independence . </P> <P> According to Ghil'ad Zuckermann, "Native tongue title and language rights should be promoted . The government ought to define Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander vernaculars as official languages of Australia . We must change the linguistic landscape of Whyalla and elsewhere . Signs should be in both English and the local indigenous language . We ought to acknowledge intellectual property of indigenous knowledge including language, music and dance ." </P> <P> Some who reject the concept of linguistic imperialism argue that the global spread of English is better understood in the framework of appropriation--that English is used around the world for local purposes . In addition to the example of Nigeria, above, the following examples have been given: </P> <Ul> <Li> Demonstrators in non-English - speaking countries often use signs in English to convey their demands to TV audiences around the globe . In some cases, the demonstrator may not even understand what the sign he is carrying says . </Li> <Li> Bobda shows how Cameroon has moved away from a mono - cultural, Anglo - centered way of teaching English and has gradually accommodated teaching materials to a Cameroonian context . Non-Western topics are treated, such as rule by emirs, traditional medicine, and polygamy . Bobda argues for bi-cultural, Cameroonian and Anglo - American education . </Li> <Li> Kramsch and Sullivan describe how Western methodology and textbooks have been appropriated to suit local Vietnamese culture . </Li> <Li> The Pakistani textbook Primary Stage English includes lessons such as "Pakistan, My Country", "Our Flag," and "Our Great Leader", which might sound jingoistic to western ears . Within the native culture, however, establishing a connection between ELT, patriotism and the Muslim faith is seen as an aim of ELT, as the chairman of the Punjab Textbook Board openly states: "The board...takes care, through these books to inoculate in the students a love of the Islamic values and awareness to guard the ideological frontiers of your (the student's) home lands ." </Li> </Ul>

English language teaching as an imperialist programme a critique