Resume of Article Native and Non-Native English Language Teacher : Student Perception in Vietnam and Japan by Ian Walkinshaw and Duongthi Hoang Oanh

The issue of parity between native and non-native-speaker teachers needs to be foregrounded because even though the vast majority of English language teachers worldwide are non-NESTs, many non-NESTs in the ELT industry are sorely disenfranchised (see Cla rk & Paran, 2007, for the U.K. context). The issue is particularly salient in Asia, where native speakers are often the industry’s ideal model and American English the preferred variety (Young & Walsh, 2010). The

current findings respond to questions about how these teachers are perceived by learners and what qualities they bring to the language classroom. Specifically, the data show that NESTs were valued as models for authentic, natural pronunciation, despite comprehensibility issues. Grammatical explanations were not viewed as a NEST forte (cf. Benke & Medgyes, 2005). Respondents appreciated learning about NESTs’ cultures, but also experienced a cultural and communicative gap in NEST-fronted classrooms. Also, NESTs often could not communicate in their students’ L1. Non-NESTs’ pronunciation was viewed as non-authentic and their speech less fluent than native speakers’, but respondents appreciated their ability to code-switch to the L1 when required. In addition, non- NESTs’ ability to explain complex grammar was valued. Although some respondents criticized non-NESTs’ limited knowledge of English-speaking cultures, others valued working with teachers who shared their own cultural norms and values. Finally, the sample highlighted the benefits of learning with both NESTs and non-NESTs (cf. Benke & Medgyes, 2005). Let us briefly sketch the implications of these findings for teaching English as a lingua franca, which frames multilingualism (rather than native-speakerness) as a cornerstone of language teacher competence (Kirkpatrick, 2007). Our data indicate that non-NESTs’ multilingual competence was a boon for the English learners in the two participant groups because it underpinned three primary perceived advantages of non-NESTs: Their ability to code-switch when teaching complex items, their understanding of the complex nature of second language learning, and their pedagogical competence, borne of their own experience as second language learners (Ellis, 2002). This finding should benefit the selfesteem and professional confidence of multilingual non-NESTs, and should boost their reputation in the ELT

profession (Braine, 2010). Another potential positive outcome is a move away from the idealized notion (among teachers, parents, and administrators) of NESTs as a default model for students to emulate (Phillipson, 1992). Rather, monolingual NESTs may come to be viewed as potentially

constrained by their lack of second language learning experience. In proposing future research trajectories, we echo Moussu and Llurda’s (2008) call for further research into this topic outside of the British, Australasian, and North American (BANA) context. This would help to address an imbalance in research focus: Although the greater part of English language learning and teaching takes place elsewhere in the world (Kirkpatrick, 2007), much of the existing research originates

in the BANA countries or in Europe, which have the most resources and funding for research. We also advocate further research into the complementary skillsets of NESTs and non-NESTs and the practical application of these skills in language classrooms. Specific research foci could include the educational contexts, levels of learner proficiency, and linguistic sub-skills most closely corresponding to NESTs’ and non-NESTs’ respective strengths. In sum, the current research findings advance the debate on this topic by highlighting the unique and often complementary skillsets of NESTs and non-NESTs at tertiary institutions in Vietnam and Japan. More broadly, these findings are one more nail in the coffin of the notion—still prevailing in Asia—that non-native English-speaking teachers are second-class educators and inherently inferior to native-speaker teachers.

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