The employability of non-native-speaker teachers of EFL: A UK survey

The native speaker still has a privileged position in English language teaching, representing both the model speaker and the ideal teacher. Non-native-speaker teachers of English are often perceived as having a lower status than their native-speaking counterparts, and have been shown to face discriminatory attitudes when applying for teaching jobs. To date, research into the employment of non-native-speaker teachers has been carried out only in the United States; this study extends that research by providing data on the United Kingdom. Questionnaires were distributed to those responsible for recruitment at English language teaching institutions in the UK in order to investigate the extent to which employers regard being a native English speaker as an important criterion when making hiring decisions. 72.3% of the 90 respondents judged the 'native English speaker criterion' to be either moderately or very important. The conclusion that employers regard this criterion as important was shown to apply to the whole sample as well as to the separate groups of private language schools only and universities only. As a pre-interview criterion, the 'native English speaker criterion' thus excludes competent English language teachers from consideration in the recruitment process. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

The role of non-verbal communication in second language learner and native speaker discourse

It is undeniable that non-verbal signals exert a profound impact on communication. Many researchers proved that people, when they are hesitating, analyze non-verbal signals to comprehend the meaning of a message (Allen, 1999), because they prioritize non-verbal aspects of communication over the verbal ones. The role of non-verbal communication is much more profound when native/non-native discourse is taken into consideration (Allen, 1999; Gregersen, 2007). The aim of the present paper is to analyze non-verbal communication of a native speaker and a second language learner. The main emphasis is put especially on the differences between the non-verbal signals of second language learners and native speakers. Some of these differences may disturb or prevent the interlocutors from conveying a message in learner/native speaker discourse (Marsh et al., 2003) so it is necessary to raise awareness of cultural differences and underline the tremendous role of non-verbal communication in second language learning. Furthermore, the present paper also covers some suggestions for foreign language teachers in order to improve their knowledge of the body language of their learners in the target language and help them to raise awareness of the significance of non-verbal communication in second language discourse

Deconstructing aspects of native speakerism: Reflections from in-service teacher education

In many Asian contexts, issues of who teaches and educates teachers in English Language Teaching remain challenging with status accorded to socalled ‘native speakers’. Issues still remain after two decades of research calling for deconstruction of the native speaker fallacy. Drawing on critiques of the concept, as well as teacher education research, this paper suggests ways to deconstruct the maze of native speakerism. Recent Malaysian in- service training research shows that positioning and modeling can override the origin of the teacher educator, namely a so-called native speaker background. Descriptions of techniques to help deconstruct native speakerism at the interactional level are derived from teacher educator reflection on data. Possibilities for countering native speakerism are suggested through descriptions of how teacher educators may model and use humour to address perceptions of hierarchy. With the growing use of English as an additional language, research into who teaches or educates teachers could also address the challenges of hidden professional racism sustained by factors such as so-called Standard English. Practical approaches from teacher educator reflections on their interaction with Malaysian teachers suggest ways to reconstruct aspects of native speakerism

Putting the learner in the spotlight – Future directions for English teachers

This paper asserts that English teachers’ understanding of their professionalism enables them to ‘put the learner in the spotlight’ through their highly-developed awareness of local contexts of English use. Changing attitudes to English language teacher identity include a revaluation of the’ native-non-native speaker’ dichotomy which is fast becoming irrelevant as teachers assert new identities based on factors such as professional beliefs about their teaching, understanding their students’ needs and understanding the role of English in their contexts. In a globalising world, these aspects no longer require ‘so-called’ native speaker skills, such as pronunciation and knowledge of ‘English’ culture. In fact, dwelling at length on the issues surrounding native and non-native speaker teacher identity tends to cloud understanding of what qualities English teachers need. Interviews with multilingual teachers of English, working in a variety of countries, have revealed an understanding of the diminishing importance of the ‘native speaker’ and the concomitant growth in the confidence of the multilingual teacher. This confidence has been acquired through depth of linguistic knowledge, through observance of other cultures, and through resistance to the encroachment of English by finding a place for the language which satisfies the needs of multilingual users without requiring subservience. In discovering these strengths of multilingual teachers, I show how stepping outside the boundaries of one’s own limited environment allows English language teachers, wherever they come from, to develop a truly enlightened international professionalism which puts learners firmly in the spotlight

A Study of Requests by Two Native Speaker Groups: University of Hawai'i at Mānoa Graduate Students & the American Military Speech Community of Oahu

The fields of Linguistics and ESL frequently use English spoken by native speakers as the target language for ESL learners or for comparative studies with interlanguage. Is it possible to claim that one English native speaker group represents all native English speakers? This paper illustrates similarities and differences in the English of two American native speaker groups in Oahu and by the genders of both groups: the American military speech community and graduate students at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. I present the data of 20 men and 20 women from each native speaker group, with a total of 80 participants. A questionnaire collects native speaker perceptions of the appropriate level of directness of requests to be used in encounters with personnel of both genders who serve the public. The native speaker groups choose directness of requests equivalently, but the genders show some significant statistical differences in choices with women choosing more direct requests than men. Different situations and addressee genders also are factors in request directness choice. The findings indicate that it is important for researchers and teachers to pay attention to accuracy in representing native speaker language

第4回 RIWL セミナー開催について

「Non-Native Approaches to World Languages and Literatures : Defining Effective Roles for Non-Native Speaker Teachers of Korean as a Second Language」Fouser, Robert J.「(Pre-)Production, composition and reception in the life of the (translated) text : replacing the concept of auteur with a pragmatic alliance of subject positions」Armstrong, Pier

El "hablante nativo" de la lengua meta: ¿qué importancia tiene para la enseñanza de la L2?

This paper centers on research related to a concept used very often in the field of foreign language learning and teaching: the belief that native speaker usage is the definite standard of the target language. Too frequently we use it as the ultimate criterion for language correctness and/or appropriateness, especially in the L2 classroom. My goals were to identify some skills ideally attributed to the native speaker, to test them with empirical research and to check their validity. In this paper I deconstruct some of the abilities linguists have traditionally attributed to the native speaker of any language; specifically, I examine the ability to produce fluent spontaneous written discourse. I was able to validate my hypothesis that native speaker’s individal variation accounts for its inadecuacy as a justification for L2 learners’ performance in L2 tests. Finally, I infer some pedagogical implications teachers will need to take into account when evaluating writing achievements in the L2

TEACHERS’ BELIEFS ON THE USE OF AUTHENTIC MATERIALS TO TEACH LISTENING (A Case Study at MAN 1 Surakarta in the Academic Year of 2014/2015)

This research is aimed at: (1) identifying teachers‟ beliefs on the use of authentic materials to teach listening; (2) identifying factors that affect teachers‟ beliefs on the use of authentic materials to teach listening; and (3) describing how authentic materials are implemented in teaching listening. This research is a qualitative case study conducted in islamic high school 1 Surakarta. The samples chosen through purposive sampling are two English teachers who teach listening skill for the tent grade. Data of the research were collected through questionnaire, observation, interview and teaching learning documents and were analyzed by using interactive model proposed by Miles and Huberman. Finding of this research are: 1. teachers believe that :a) authentic materials are materials produced by a native speaker of the target language not for a teaching purpose, b) authentic materials must introduce English in the real context used by the native speaker, improve students‟ knowledge, Improve students‟ English competence in both spoken and written, improve students‟ vocabulary, introduce the culture of native speaker, improve students‟ listening ability, motivate students to learn, motivate students to learn autonomously, c) authentic materials are important to use since it is motivating students and providing some aspect of English that students can learn, d) authentic materials are considered to be carefully selected before being taught to the students, e) song attracts students‟ interest; 2. factors that affect teachers‟ beliefs: the challenging point of authentic materials, easy access to authentic materials, the availability of the equipments, students interest, workshop/training and personal experience; 3. a) there is inconsistancy between teachers‟ beliefs and the practice in the classroom, b) authentic materials are implemented well in the classroom. The students are actively involved during teaching and learning process. Bottom-up processing is applied during listening activity. According to the findings of the research, it is noticed that teachers‟s beliefs strongly shape teachers‟ instructional practices and the selection of the materials that will be taught to the students. It is considered important to identify the beliefs of teachers since teachers‟ beliefs are the fundamental concepts to develop foreign language teaching. Keywords: Teachers’ beliefs, authentic materials, listening skil

The native-speaker fever in English language teaching (ELT): Pitting pedagogical competence against historical origin

This paper discusses English language teaching (ELT) around the world, and argues that as a profession, it should emphasise pedagogical competence rather than native-speaker requirement in the recruitment of teachers in English as a foreign language (EFL) and English as a second language (ESL) contexts. It establishes that being a native speaker does not make one automatically a competent speaker or, of that matter, a competent teacher of the language. It observes that on many grounds, including physical, sociocultural, technological and economic changes in the world as well as the status of English as official and national language in many post-colonial regions, the distinction between native and non-native speakers is no longer valid