Native Speaker Norms and China English: From the Perspective of Learners and Teachers in China

Abstract

This article explores the question of whether the norms based on native speakers of English should be kept in English teaching in an era when English has become World Englishes. This is an issue that has been keenly debated in recent years, not least in the pages of TESOL Quarterly. However, China English in such debates has been given lesser attention, and the voices of English learners and teachers in China have not been adequately reported. This article serves as such an attempt in the context of China having the largest English‐learning population in the world. The present study drew comprehensive data from 984 college students and their teachers at 4 universities in different parts of China. With three cross‐validated research methods (questionnaire survey, matched‐guise technique, and focused interview), this article argues that native speaker‐based norms and models are the most desirable in China's English classroom at the tertiary level, but they could be supplemented by the well‐codified and successfully promoted features of China English.