Teaching pronunciation. Is it still relevant in a globalised world.

No one can deny the impact of globalization on English language learning and teaching. We can easily see it as a major influence on educational tools, content and materials. However, how far should this phenomenon encroach on teaching approaches themselves? Some linguists have no doubts and claim that English standards have, or should have, changed dramatically within the last decade.
In this seminar, we will concentrate our attention on pronunciation and talk about English as Lingua Franca, and how this might change what we are trying to achieve. We will try to decide which phonological aspects are crucial to help students produce and which are important only for receptive understanding. Finally, we will analyze how these global changes might influence the language learning and teaching process in our context, finishing with some practical suggestions.