The aim of this study is to investigate whether upper-secondary school students, studying English as a foreign language (EFL) in Sweden, prefer to learn from Native English speaking teachers (NEST) as opposed to Non-native English speaking teachers (NNEST). Furthermore, the present study seeks to identify, from the EFL learners’ perspective, why certain characteristics of both NNEST and NEST are felt to be more prestigious than others which in turn might affect the students’potential to acquire a desired identity.

This thesis develops a better understanding of the lived experiences of NNES teachers, coming from diverse racial, cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and the complex negotiations and constructions of their professional identities against the prevalent NS fallacy in the Arab Gulf states. This study employs a Postcolonial theoretical framework. In order to unravel NNESTs’ perspectives and understand how they make sense of their experiences, this study adopts a life history approach. The results suggest that participants view nativeness as a fixed identity, dependant on elements, such as being born into a language and learning it in early childhood. The participants had both confidence and concern about their linguistic abilities, which indicated that their non-native identity resulted in complex situations for them to deal with. The findings also revealed that the participants managed to find ways in which to inhabit these non-native identities confidently and to construct themselves as effective teachers who did not have to be NSs by nature. The participants narrated that the issue of pronunciation and accent had a significant impact on their professional identities. NS norms in accent was seen as eliciting stereotyped judgements of NNESTS as the inferior Other, and resulting in hiring policies that were greatly skewed against NNESTs. The participants also believed that stereotyped notions about the superiority of education acquired from the Center privileged NESTs in employment and led to the devaluation of indigenous knowledge. The participants also spoke about encountering direct and indirect challenges, which made it difficult for them to position themselves as legitimate teachers of English. They also believed that perceptions about the superiority of the NS would be impossible to overcome in the near future since the language policy of the Gulf states was strongly intertwined with its economic and political interests. The study, therefore, provides recommendations for theory, practice, and policy.

Globalization has made English a pivotal language for global communication. This has increasingly made a great number of native English speakers move to Korea and teach English at all levels of education from kindergarten to university year after year. Most of them have not only little or no training as language instructors, but also little or no teaching experience. Many may wonder how they teach students with little understanding about teaching in a foreign country. At the same time, they may also surmise that they would endure many difficulties in their profession. As a faculty member working with them for over fifteen years, I have also had such questions. Especially, I was curious what conflicts they bear in their minds and how they respond to differences between Canadian and Korean culture and pedagogy. This study is grounded on the hermeneutic tradition which ultimately pursues humane lives. This hermeneutic tradition leads me to the conflicts that native English speaking teachers have experienced, to the implications embedded in the Korean and English language, and to the differences between Canadian and Korean ways of thought. While following the hermeneutic tradition, I am aware that there was little or no communication between the Canadian and Korean teaching staff, which resulted in their alienated lives and in living in a world of exclusion from their schools, disregard about their profession, and indifference from their students. The hermeneutic tradition guides me in a path toward restoring the deteriorated humane aspects of their lives as teachers. As a ground for understanding them, I attempt to define the notion of the in-between on the basis of equality and respect which are rooted in the concept of the Korean language for the in-between. This conceptual elaboration enables me to conceive that differences are not objects to exclude, to disregard, or to be indifferent, but motives to perceive the necessity to reform and to change the inequality and injustices. In this light, I propose that educational institutions allow them to participate in decision making, open a special in-service teacher training program for them, and provide them with a support system.

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This study examined the perceptions of non-native English speaking immigrant students at a small Canadian university relating to their transition to university, their experiences within the social and academic contexts of the campus, and their sense of belonging on their campus. This study used a phenomenological approach, and was supported by a conceptual framework of minority student persistence and belonging within postsecondary education. The findings of this study suggest that these students’ positive social experiences and perception of the campus as being diverse and open to diversity were connected to students’ sense of belonging. The findings also suggest that increased availability of customized support is needed for non-native English speaking students on this Canadian campus, and that greater awareness among university faculty and administration needs to be paid to students’ integration in classroom and campus practices. This thesis concludes with recommendations for practice and future research.

This study examined the perceptions of non-native English speaking immigrant students at a small Canadian university relating to their transition to university, their experiences within the social and academic contexts of the campus, and their sense of belonging on their campus. This study used a phenomenological approach, and was supported by a conceptual framework of minority student persistence and belonging within postsecondary education. The findings of this study suggest that these students’ positive social experiences and perception of the campus as being diverse and open to diversity were connected to students’ sense of belonging. The findings also suggest that increased availability of customized support is needed for non-native English speaking students on this Canadian campus, and that greater awareness among university faculty and administration needs to be paid to students’ integration in classroom and campus practices. This thesis concludes with recommendations for practice and future research.

Sachs (2005) argues that a conceptual framework of identity can guide teachers on how to construct their own ideas regarding “how to be”, “how to act”, and “how to understand” their work (p. 15). However, teachers who work in a foreign context may need to adapt their conceptual framework of identity in order to improve the fit between themselves and their workplace. With this thought in mind, the current qualitative, exploratory study is concerned with the professional identity adaptation of a group of ten native English speaking teachers working at two governmental institutes in the state of Qatar. The aim of this study was two-fold: first, to discover what factors affect teachers’ self-perception and professional identity; second, to explore implications for the practice of these native English speaking teachers (NESTs). Research data collected through in-depth semi-structured interviewing and classroom observations revealed that both institutional and intrapersonal factors were involved in the adaptation of the teachers’ professional identity and the teachers’ approaches to adapt their pedagogy. In other words, one of the noticeable features of the teachers’ professional identity adaptation was the conflict between the teachers’ expectations and the realities of the local context (interpersonal conflicts). There was evidence that teachers’ intrapersonal negotiation lead them to develop multiple identities in order to avoid any troubles at the workplace. Consequently, the mismatch between the teachers’ expectations of their professional life and the realities of the local context caused an apparent inconsistency between the teachers’ beliefs and behavior, which was considered to be a form of cognitive dissonance among the teachers. This study provides English teachers who work in a new context with pragmatic information and insights about the professional identity adjustment process. It also heightens their awareness of the possible professional identity transitions that they may go through. The study should help expatriate ESL teachers in the State of Qatar, in particular, to cope with a possible discrepancy between the idealism of their pedagogical and cultural theory, and their perceived reality of classroom practice.

The purpose of this study was to determine the roles that Native English speaking (NES) and non-native English speaking (NNES) tutors play in sessions with NES and NNES tutees in a U.S. Midwestern university's writing center, according to the perceptions of both types of tutors and tutees. The study also aimed to determine the extent to which the "native speaker fallacy"--the preference for anything related to native speakers over anything related to non-native speakers--was evident in these perceptions, particularly in tutoring strategies, difficulties in tutoring, and tutoring competence. The researcher collected data for the study from pre- and post-session interviews of both types of tutors and cross-analyzed coded patterns from this data with patterns found in pre- and post-session interviews of both types of tutees and with the researcher's observations of the participants' sessions. According to the research results, both tutors' and tutees' perceptions as expressed in their interviews were more affected by the tutors' status, NES versus NNES, than by specific qualifications of the tutors to assist tutees, with the responses revealing the participants' assumption of native speakers' superiority. Despite cross-analyzed findings that NNES tutors were perceived as more able to explain the causes of error, findings also revealed NES tutors' confidence in their NES status as compensating for their lack of grammar knowledge and NNES tutors' perception of themselves as inferior and needing to compensate for their non-NES status through teacher-like directness in assistance offered. Also, despite tutees' expressed appreciation for NNES tutors' explanations of errors, tutees still expressed a preference for NES tutors and applied a double standard, with NNES tutors seen as effective only if proved to be good writers and NES tutors assumed to be effective by virtue of their native speaker status. Drawing upon findings suggesting the influence of the native speaker fallacy on the participants' perceptions, the researcher concludes by discussing the significance of this study for identifying possible university initiatives to enhance appreciation of diverse cultures and for suggesting that although intrinsic knowledge of language seems preferred over learned knowledge, possessing both types of knowledge and the flexibility to employ more fluid roles as both peer and teacher would seem to equip tutors for more productive sessions.

Internationally English is increasingly being used as a language of instruction in education. This is also true within the South African context, a country with eleven official languages. Many non-native English speaking (NNES) students, for whom English might be their second, third or even fourth language, are studying through the medium of English. Previous studies on this topic acknowledge that the level of English proficiency which NNES students have, affects their academic performance. The problem under investigation in this case study was the relationship between students’ academic performance in particular modules and how their written responses in examinations contributed to them failing a module. The purpose was to establish to which extent limited English proficiency contributed to the poor academic performance of NNES preservice teachers studying through distance education. This study is underpinned by Cummins’ theory of Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills and Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (1984). It is supported by related literature which emphasises the challenges NNES students experience in understanding academic content and responding to written assessment tasks in a language other than their home language. A quantitative approach was used which focused on the written responses to examination papers of thirty undergraduate B Ed students who had failed a particular module, at a private higher education institution. The contribution of inadequate or incoherent English, as the reason why marks were not allocated to answers, was calculated and analysed. Results indicated that students’ English grammatical proficiency does have an influence on their academic performance, though it is not the main contributing factor to students failing their modules. For this case study it was determined that the pre-service teachers’ inadequate English written proficiency contributed almost a third (25,6%) of the reasons for their poor academic performance. This finding suggests the need to develop new teaching strategies to accommodate and offer language support to NNES students in higher education institutions that offer qualifications using English as the medium of instruction. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Humanities Education / MEd / Unrestricted

This paper investigates foreign born teachers working as EFL educators and their attitudes towards teaching as well as their roles in teaching the English language. The purpose of this study is to examine what motivates EFL teachers to work abroad and to explore why they are highly valued in non-English speaking countries. Through qualitative interviews with four (4) Filipino teachers working overseas as EFL educators their strengths and weaknesses are explored. My investigation shows that the Filipino teachers’ primary role is to teach communication and literacy skills. In addition, the reasons why these four teachers have chosen to work abroad are higher salary rates and better working conditions. However, their lack of knowledge of the local language and culture are their weaknesses. Finally, findings show that the respondents’ positive attitude towards teaching English abroad shows the importance of English in globalization.