EFL ESOL, ESL, EIL, ELF, English as a Global Language

In the rest of the world, English is a foreign language. That is, it is taught in schools, often widely, but it does not play an essential role in national or social life. In Spain, Brazil and Japan, for example, Spanish, Portuguese and Japanese are the normal medium of communication and instruction: the average citizen does not need English or any other foreign language to live his daily life or even for social or professional advancement. English, as a world language, is taught among English in the World, but there is no regional variety of English which embodies a Spanish, Brazilian or Japanese cultural identity.

EFL: English as a Foreign Language refers to learning and using English as an additional language in a non-English speaking country. It can be compared with ESL and ESOL, which refer mainly to learning English as a new resident in an English-speaking country. For example EFL includes short summer courses in an English-speaking country, such as the UK, Canada or the US, also EFL taught to people who need to learn it for their studies or their career, and who do not live in an English-speaking country.

ESOL: English for Speakers Other Language this refer to the teaching of English to the students whose first language is not English, but who are living in an English-speaking country and need English to communicate in daily life. This term is used especially in the UK, Ireland, and New Zealand.

ESL: English as a Second Language, this is mainly used to talk about foreign students learning English while living in an English-speaking country. (For example: a korean person learning English in the U.K).

EIL: English as an International Language is a form of English that is used by people whose first language are not English.

ELF: The terms English as a Language Franca refers to the teaching, learning and use of the English Language as a common mean of communication for speakers of different native languages.