The globalization of Canada's knowledge industry

According to the survey question for rating the importance of the role that each of the US, UK, Canada and Australia plays in the ELT market, Canada stands third, with the US first, UK second, and Australia fourth. [...] Therefore, the UK and Australia tend to have a more strongly targeted approach to quality issues and the provision of professional development because of the maturity and more-centralized national control of their educational systems, unlike the ELT industry in Canada and the US where education control is at the provincial or state levels (Merrifield & GBM & Associates, 2006). [...] According to the British Council‟s corporate plan for 2006 - 2008, the goal of the UK in the ELT industry is that by 2010 every teacher and learner of English in the world will have access to the skills, ideas and materials they need from the UK (British Council, 2006a). [...] The high currency of the American variety of English, accompanied by the financial, economic and cultural dominance of the US in the world, has helped ensure the US‟s place in the ELT market. [...] Research objectives Despite the significant and growing number of Canadians involved in Asian English education programs and the economic, political and cultural implications of the Canadian diaspora in Asia, there has been little systematic research and analysis on the opportunities, challenges and impact of these diasporic Canadians working as English teachers in Asia.