Indonesian high school students’ attitudes towards varieties of English: A survey study

Ruth Eliana Franssisca,Adaninggar Septi Subekti

doi:10.24815/siele.v9i1.21911

Ruth Eliana Franssisca, Adaninggar Septi Subekti

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.24815/siele.v9i1.21911

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Abstract

The present study was conducted to investigate Indonesian High School students’ attitudes towards World Englishes, a construct developed based on a three-circle model proposed by Kachru. The study used an online questionnaire consisting of 22 items. The number of high school students from various regions in Indonesia participating in the study was 121. It was found that there was a moderate level of acceptance towards varieties of English. The participants believed that they should learn and be taught English varieties from inner-circle countries. However, the participants seemed to have very strong beliefs towards and pride in their local accents, to have high respect towards various accents around the world, and to perceive English to belong to whoever speaks it. Based on the finding on the participants’ positive attitude towards their local accents, English instruction could focus on the eventual purpose of learning a language, which is communication and building positive students’ self-perception about themselves regarding English. Hence, instead of comparing themselves with native speakers of English, students could focus on sharpening their English skills regardless of accents to be a part of the global community. The limitations and contributions of the present study are also presented, along with possible directions for relevant future studies in the field.

Highlights

IntroductionMore varieties of English emerged by time as a result of the interaction between native and non-native English speakers (Bhowmik, 2015)
The popularity of World Englishes has spread worldwide due to globalisation
The canon work of Kachru (1990) proposed the three-circle model which can be used as a reference to understand the concept of the World Englishes

Summary

Introduction

More varieties of English emerged by time as a result of the interaction between native and non-native English speakers (Bhowmik, 2015). This concept brings a diversity of grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation (Rezaei et al, 2019). The canon work of Kachru (1990) proposed the three-circle model which can be used as a reference to understand the concept of the World Englishes. The model consisted of ‘inner circle’ countries where the majority of the people speak English as the first language (L1), ‘outer circle’ countries where English is spoken as a second language (ESL), and ‘expanding circle’ countries where English is spoken as a foreign language (EFL) (Kachru, 1990). The term ‘World Englishes’ uses a plural noun acknowledging varieties of English developed in both outer circle and expanding circle countries (Patria, 2021)

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