‘Native Speaker’ English Language Teachers: Disengaged from the Changing International Landscape of their Profession

Abstract

Traditionally, the field of English language teaching has conceptualised the ‘native speaker’ English language teacher as an ideal speaker, teacher, trainer and expert. In fact, the label ‘native speaker’ teacher communicates much more than simple information about linguistic ability in the field of English language teaching. In the opinions of several scholars (for example, Canagarajah, 1999; Holliday, 2005; 2006; Kubota, 2002; Pennycook, 1994; Phillipson, 1992), the label and its associated discourse reflect, not just the language proficiency of the ‘native speaker’ English language teacher, but a litany of opinions, practices and prejudices which have developed into a deep-rooted and extensively referred to ELT ideology. Indeed, Nayar (2002), in his analysis of hundreds of English language teacher comments posted on a website, concludes that the ‘native speaker’ is identified as a teacher who is in control, with all the answers, an authority on both grammar and universal acceptability, a representative of correct language, of sound thinking and, Nayar opines, even proper social behaviour in English. This same theme is continued by Holliday, who sees ‘native-speakerism’ as being so deeply embedded in TESOL that people are ‘standardly unaware of its presence and its impact’ (2005: 10). Indeed, ‘native speaker’ English language teachers have traditionally obtained employment and much influence in international educational institutions, with the discourse of their training becoming not only their own dominant professional paradigm, but also the dominant professional paradigm for many ‘non-native speaker’ English language teachers worldwide.