TAIWANESE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TO NON-NATIVE SPEAKERS ENGLISH TEACHERS

Abstract

Numerous studies have been conducted to explore issues surrounding non-native speakers (NNS) English teachers and native speaker (NS) teachers which concern, among others, the comparison between the two, the self-perceptions of NNS English teachers and the effectiveness of their teaching, and the students’ opinions on and attitudes towards them. Most of these studies have been conducted in ESL contexts in which the teachers are NNS English teachers, while most NNS English teachers actually work in EFL contexts. It is important that we understand issues on NNS English teachers in EFL contexts. Hence, this article aims to investigate university students’ attitudes towards their NNS English teachers in Taiwan. The data were collected through questionnaires and interviews. The findings indicated that Taiwanese students’ attitudes towards their NNS English teachers are positive and favorable and NNS English teachers are generally perceived as capable of delivering efficient instruction though some shortcomings of NNS English teachers were pointed out by participants. Discus- sion on these shortcomings and implications on Taiwan educational system and the qualifications of NNS English teachers is provided.