In their own voices: Development of English as a gender-neutral language

Abstract

This study explores how learning English among one subset of English learners, Asian female international students at US colleges, contributes to the larger project of advancing gender equality. Using their narratives, we ask why Asian female international students invest so much of their identities and effort into learning English. We discuss the ways in which their endeavours may even silently promote the development of English as a gender-neutral language. The population of Asian students offers a compelling case of how the English language is potentially transformed via its spread to this English learner population and how it presents new avenues for identity formation for the growing number of female English users worldwide (cf. Brutt-Griffler, 2010: 232).