Constructing SLA differently: the value of ELF and language ideology in an ASEAN case study

This paper examines how a designer immigrant student from Indonesia, a recipient of an ASEAN scholarship, used English as a lingua franca (ELF) with her Singaporean teacher and classmates. I illustrate how the constructs of ELF and language ideologies can bridge a conceptual gap in second language acquisition (SLA) – one which perceives any deviation from English as a native language norm in terms of error and fossilization. By drawing on classroom interaction and interview data from a year‐long ethnographic study, I present an expanded view of SLA in order to better understand language acquisition dynamics in a contemporary globalized world.