Students’ Preferencesof Native and Non-Native English Teachers

Around the world, English is the most popular language spoken as a second language (Kachru, 1996). Nowadays, business, science, education, and other fields use this language to communicate. Bhatt (2001) states that English’s global dissemination is due to its spread by native speakers and its introduction as an official language along with other national languages. Many institutions at basic and higher education require students to learn a second language and, in the case of Mexico, English is the language of choice in the vast majority of schools. As a result of the great number of English language learners worldwide, it is fair to point out that most teachers of this language are non-native speakers (Moussu & Llurda, 2008). It is in this framework that the perceptions that language learners may have about their teachers are an interesting aspect to research. In this paper, research conducted to uncover the preferences English language learners have regarding the nativeness or non-nativeness of their language teachers is discussed.

This quantitative study was conducted with 167 students enrolled in English courses in a major university in Mexico. The method for data collection was through a survey in which the items were designed to explore students’ preferences regarding having a native English teacher versus having a non-native English teacher. The research questions guiding this study are the following:

1.   What are English language students’ preferences regarding native speaker (NS) and non-native speaker (NNS) teachers teaching the listening, speaking, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary, and culture aspects of English as a foreign language?

2.   What are English language students’ preferences regarding NS teachers teaching at the beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels?

Literature Review

Native/Non-native English speaking teachers

NS teachers are those who speak English language as their first language whereas NNS teachers are those who learned English as a second or foreign language. Every English teacher falls into one of the categories. Even if teachers are highly proficient in the target language and if the target language is not their first language, they are NNS. The debate on the importance in the asset of being a NS teacher of English has been going on for quite some time now (Amin, 1997; Butler, 2007; Liu, 1999). Interestingly, in some countries NS teachers are paid more just for the mere reason of being NS or there is a tendency to hire NS teacher (Butler, 2007).

When learning a language through formal instruction, there are basically two contexts: English as a foreign language (EFL) and English as a second language (ESL). Nayar (1997) studied the difference between these two acronyms for these language learning contexts in-depth and indicated that the basic distinction deals with territoriality. That is, an EFL setting refers to learning English in a country where English is not the official language or the means for everyday communication (e.g., China, France, Mexico, Saudi Arabia). The ESL setting implies learning in a context where English is used in everyday life for communication purposes (e.g., Australia, England, the United States). Nowadays, it is more accepted that proficient NNS can be the source of input. Moreover, in their study on students’ motivation and expectancy, Chen, Warren, and Chang (2005) stated that ESL contexts are more researched and the results are taken in EFL context regardless of their differences. It is important to point out that this study is conducted in an EFL context; therefore the students’ likelihood of having a native English teacher is minimal.

Learners’ perceptions and expectations

Providing a clear cut definition for learners’ perceptions is not as easy as it may seem (Horwitz, 1988; Wenden, 1998; Wenden, 1999). Researchers redefine the concept according to the purposes of their studies. Overall, it can be said that learner perceptions or beliefs are the ideas or assumptions that learners have or make about how languages are learned and therefore should be taught. These ideas could be stated in the forms of statements and categorized in different ways. For this study, the definition of perceptions and beliefs will be more specific to the ideas that learners hold regarding whether a NS or a NNS should teach them English and why.

Learners’ perceptions can be analyzed from different perspectives pertaining to different parts of languages learning. The pertinent perspectives for this study include the four skills (speaking, listening, reading, writing), the element of culture, as well as grammar and vocabulary. In general, it can be seen that there are different perspectives regarding the preferences of NNS and NS as English teachers. Often, learners consider speaking the language they are learning as their ultimate goal (Chapelle & Jamieson, 2008). This is reflected on a very common expression to ask about someone’s proficiency in a second language, namely English: Do you speak English? The ability to understand spoken language could be one of the hardest to master as language learners have to be constantly adapting to lexical variations, accents, and individual differences in speaking. It is also one of the skills that demands constantly attention to what is being said as sometimes there is no opportunity to ask for repetition or clarification. Kelch and Santana-Williamson (2002) conducted a study in an ESL context and found that students preferred teachers whose accent was native-like. They found that students considered more likable those teachers who had a native-like accent, even though the participants in their study were not always accurate when presented with speech samples and asked to determine if the speaker was a native or non-native speaker of English. The abilities to understand and produce a written text in a foreign language are skills introduced in most language courses from the beginning. To the best of my knowledge, students’ preferences towards who should teach the reading and writing skills (NS or NNS teachers) have not been explored yet.

Culture is an aspect that is interconnected with language learning. In an ESL context, Nemtchinova (2005) found that non-native language teacher trainees were aware of the target culture and capable of teaching it by choosing materials and topics that accurately reflect the target culture. Similar results were found by Lazaraton (2003) in her analysis of videotaped classes of NNS teachers when teaching culture. De Oliveira and Richardson (2001) discuss the possibility of NS and NNS teachers collaborating in language courses with the objective of using their strengths in order to help students. The authors describe how their individual personalities have served as complements. In the Mexican context, this type of collaboration would be an innovative approach to teaching culture that students might not have even considered. Although there may be a bit of research regarding teaching culture, concrete research regarding contributions to students’ perceptions and culture are few and far between. In a research study conducted by Francis and Ryan (1998) in urban and rural areas of Mexico where English is taught, it was found that there are positive and negative attitudes towards the language depending on a variety of variables (i.e., sociolinguistic and cultural). Therefore, it would be interesting to investigate how students feel towards being taught culture by a NS or a NNS of the language.

The areas of grammar and vocabulary constitute important building blocks in learning a language. Ellis (2006) studied teaching grammar from a Second Language Acquisition perspective and posed eight interesting questions related to this topic; however, none of those questions dealt with the preferences that students had for NS or NNS teachers to instruct them in this area. An older article by Celce-Murcia (1991) explored learner variables in grammar pedagogy where the author briefly pointed out that learners’ proficiency levels had different needs and ways teachers should approach teaching grammar; nevertheless, the topic of students’ preferences towards teachers’ nativeness was not approached. Regarding vocabulary, Reynolds – Case (2012) investigated how NNS teachers can use the language they have in common with their students to be used as a pedagogical tool when teaching the target language. The author also pointed out the lack of research on whether sharing a first language with students offers a potential advantage for NS teachers.

Probably the most common organization for language courses these days is by proficiency levels. Institutions may award numbers or letters the describe levels, but in the end all levels can be roughly classified into beginner, intermediate, and advanced. So far, there have not been any studies conducted to investigate the learners’ preferences between a NS and a NNS of English to teach them at a specific level (beginner, intermediate, or advanced).

After reviewing the literature, it is noticed that a gap is found in students’ beliefs and preferences towards the nativeness of their English teachers in terms of language skills listening, speaking, reading, and writing, the components of grammar and vocabulary, and target culture-related information. Updated research has not looked at the EFL students’ preferences for having a NS or a NNS teaching specific language skills or areas. Therefore, this study is designed to investigate those preferences in students of English in a Mexican university.

Method

Participants

The Foreign Languages Department (FLD) at the Universidad de Sonora offers courses in several languages: English, French, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Portuguese, Arabic, and Spanish as a second language. English is the most popular due to the undergraduate students having a specific requirement towards graduation, the need to communicate with Americans in their future jobs, and students’ academic purposes. At the time of the study, there were more than 5,230 students enrolled in English classes and 60 English teachers who have a BA in English Language Teaching as a qualification. A total of 167 students taking English courses participated in this study by taking a thirteen-item survey. The sampling was by convenience taking whole classes of English in different levels of proficiency. This proficiency level is determined by the class students are taking which corresponds to the placement test or the progress of the students in the courses offered at the FLD. The students were explained the purpose, timing, and procedures of the survey clearly. Their participation was completely anonymous. In addition, the participants were from different levels and class times as the population may be different and the purpose was to be inclusive of as many opinions as possible. It is important to mention that the courses offered in the FLD are open to university students and community members (as long as they are at least 15 years old). In this study, the participants were between the ages of 18 and 54.

Instruments

A thirteen-item survey was administered to the participants (see Appendix A). The survey was piloted with teachers as well as a small cohort of eight students to determine timing, clarity of instructions, and clarity of statements and responses. After that, only a couple of changes in format were made. A reliability analysis with the items reported in this article resulted in a Cronbach’s alpha of .89, an indication of a reliable instrument. Each item is a statement in which students selected a response from five possible options. A sixth option allowed the participants to express their own opinion if it differed from the ones provided. The approximate time the participants took to complete the survey was eight to ten minutes.

The statements reflected issues related to the learner’s preferences of having a native language speaker instructor to teach them English, and more specifically listening, speaking, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary, and culture. The options were from completely disagree to completely agree. They included comments on having a non-native English teacher. Also, there were items to explore participants’ feelings towards team- teaching as well as the differences of having a native teacher in the different proficiency levels. Finally, at the end of the survey, there were five questions that served to obtain demographic information relevant to the survey.

To prevent language from being a barrier to understanding the statements and choices provided, the survey was translated into Spanish. Moreover, in order to avoid misinterpretation of the technical terms of native speaker English teacher and non-native speaker English teacher, the terms American teacher (i.e., NS) and Mexican teacher (i.e., NNS) were used. Also, this provided a more specific context as the variety of English taught in the FLD is American English. Furthermore, since the institution is located in the north of Mexico, teachers are more likely to be Mexican. It was not the intention of the researcher to stereotype or create bias towards a nationality.

Procedures

First of all, there were meetings with the head of the FLD and the English courses’ coordinator in order to explain the purpose of the study, the survey, and some general information. At these meetings, permission to approach teachers and enter classrooms to administer the survey was granted. After that, teachers from different levels and class hours were approached to see availability to enter their classrooms to conduct the survey. Once in the classroom, the researcher briefly explained the purpose of the study, the timing to complete the survey, and asked for volunteers to participate. In each of the fifteen classes that were selected to participate in the sample, all of the students volunteered to participate.

Since this study is mainly focused on students’ preferences, no treatment was conducted. The purpose was to investigate what students think about having a native or a non-native speaker of English as an English teacher.

Data analysis

The data collected from the survey was analyzed statistically with the purpose of looking at the frequencies of answers in order to determine the participants’ preferences about the nativeness of their English teacher to instruct them in different skills, language areas, and language courses. Descriptive statistics, frequencies, and percentages were used to analyze the information.

Results

As stated earlier in this paper, 167 students participated in the study. The sample was evenly distributed with 83 males and 83 females. One student failed to answer this item in the survey. The mean age of the participants was 23.69 years-old (minimum 18, maximum 57), with a standard deviation of 8.6. The participants were asked whether they had had a native English speaker as an English teacher in previous courses. Their responses showed that 43 (25.7%) of the participants had had a NS teacher at some point while learning English. Finally, since the FLD opens its courses to the public, there are students who are seeking a degree at the university and others who are members of the community with a great range of occupations. The enrollment in English courses for the semester in which this research was conducted was of 5,230 students. In this study, 126 (75.4%) of the participants are students at the university and 41 (24.6%) have other occupations. Also important to mention is that the FLD has 60 English teachers whose first language is Spanish. It is a minimum requirement to have a BA in English Language Teaching or related area, or a Certificate in Teaching English to hold a position as a teacher of the language. In terms of level of proficiency, the participants were divided into three levels (beginning, intermediate, and advanced) according to the class in which they were enrolled. The institution has determined the level of proficiency for each class following the guidelines of pre-established syllabi. Table 1 shows the distribution according to their level of proficiency.

Table 1. Number of participants by proficiency level (N=167)

The survey was structured to find out the preferences students have regarding listening, speaking, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary, and culture, and teaching by levels. Thus, the following section describes the results in this fashion.

English teachers’ native status for specific aspects of the language

The specific aspects of the language which are part of the English class include: listening, speaking, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary, and culture. Table 2 shows the frequency of responses and percentages of the variables of specific aspects.

Table 2. Responses to survey by specific areas of the language (N=167)

The first item in the survey asked if the participants thought that English should be taught by NSs. In total, 46.2% (77 responses) answered in disagreement with the statement, possibly indicating that the participants believed that NSs and NNSs were both capable of teaching the language. This was later confirmed by the answers to the question stating that both (NSs and NNSs) have the ability to teach English. Interestingly, 59.4% (99 responses) of the participants agreed with the statement that NSs and NNSs are equally capable of teaching English. When the participants were asked for each of the areas involved in language learning and teaching individually, the responses were different from those described above. Having a NS to teach the skills of listening, speaking, and vocabulary seem to be preferred by the students. A total of 49.7% (83 responses) of the participants showed preference towards having a NS teach them listening comprehension. In addition, 52.7% (88 responses) liked the idea of speaking being taught by a NS. Moreover, 46.7% (77 responses) agreed with a NS teaching them vocabulary. Another aspect that is usually embedded in language classes is the culture of the target language. Regarding the teaching of culture in the English language courses, 55.9% (90 responses) of the participants would prefer to be taught by a NS. Figure 1 shows these data.

Figure 1. Areas in which participants prefer a NS teacher (N=167)

In contrast, a total of 46.7% (78 responses) of the participants showed a preference to be taught the reading skill by a NNS, whereas 37.2% (63 responses) would prefer a NS. It is also noteworthy that 14.4% (24 responses) of the participants seem not to have a specific preference. Figure 2 shows the participants’ preferences to be taught by NNS teachers.

Figure 2. Area in which participants prefer a NNS teacher (N=167)

The results for the preference for teaching writing and grammar were evenly distributed. For writing, 42.7% (70 responses) disagreed with the statement of being taught by a NS where as 43.9% (72 responses) showed agreement. In the case of grammar, the preferences towards preferring a NS as a teacher were exactly the same, 45.5% (75 responses) of the participants agreed and 45.5% (75 responses) disagreed. In addition, there was a high frequency of responses that indicated not having a specific preference. Figure 3 displays the number of responses provided by the participants towards their preferences regarding writing and grammar.

Figure 3. Areas in which participants do not show a clear preference (N=167)

It is also noteworthy that, depending on the question in the survey, a range from 7.8 to 16.1% (13 to 26 responses) of the participants chose the option that indicated not having a specific preference towards being taught by a NS or a NNS. This may be an indication that the participants do not see a difference regarding the nativeness of their English teacher. In other words, students may perceive both NS and NNS teachers to be equally capable of teaching the language.

English teachers’ native status for specific proficiency levels of the language

Students’ perceptions and expectations of the nativeness of their English teacher depending on the proficiency level to be taught (beginner, intermediate, or advanced) were also analyzed. In other words, the preferences for having a NS or a NNS teaching them at different levels were also explored. Table 3 shows the frequencies and percentages of responses by proficiency level.

Table 3. Responses to survey by levels of proficiency (N=167)

As shown on Table 3, 56.1% (108 responses) of the participants did not agree with the statement that being taught by a NS in the advanced levels would be a better option. Moreover, 53.3% (88 responses) disagreed with being taught by a NS in the intermediate levels. Finally, 56.4% (93 responses) agreed with being taught by NS in the beginning levels as the best option. Therefore, it can be concluded that the participants’ preference for the beginning level would be to be taught by NS teachers whereas the intermediate and advanced levels a NNS would be preferred. These questions had the highest rate of responses for the choice regarding that it does not matter to the participant.

Discussion

The results are a mix of fulfilled expectations and revelations. The goal of the study was to identify students’ preferences on several variables depending on the teacher’s native status. It is surprising that even though the participants expressed that there were no differences between NS and NNS teachers in terms of teaching English, they would still show clear differences in preferences when discussing specific aspects of the language or levels of proficiency. That is, they would show a particular preference to be taught by either a NS or a NNS depending on the skill to be taught.

This study addresses two research questions about the perceptions and expectations that English language learners have regarding the native status of their teachers. One of the research questions analyzes the specific skills and areas involved in a class. The other question looks at the preferences for having a NS teaching at different levels. In the following paragraphs, the reasons behind those choices will be described. This is according to the answers provided by some students who extended their responses in the survey for each question.

On the one hand, regarding specific aspects of the language, it was expected for learners to prefer a NS in the oral receptive and productive skills, vocabulary, and culture since their expertise would be superior having lived in the target culture. These results are aligned to those reported in previous studies (Kelch & Santana-Williamson, 2002; Tang, 1997). NS teachers have learned and lived the language and culture since birth; it is just natural that they have the language experience that students see as a valuable asset. However, NNSs may also reach a high level of proficiency that would allow them to teach any skill or language area appropriately.

On the other hand, NNSs were preferred for reading. The reason behind this preference could be that participants identified themselves better with the NNS teacher as they come from the same background and they could adapt and complement each other. Moreover, regarding students’ preferences to have NS according to the proficiency level to be taught, students prefer having a NS teacher in the beginning levels. In the initial stages of the learning process, even though, language learners may have fewer strategies to be able to convey messages, they may feel that NS teachers can better teach them basic aspects of the language. They would be able to communicate their ideas or needs without having a breakdown of communication. However, once they have acquired language solid enough to communicate in their second language, they may feel that a NS teacher could help them with the development of the oral communicative skills and the expansion of vocabulary and cultural knowledge.

Conclusion

Teacher qualifications, rather than teacher’s native status, should be the most important aspect to consider when performing the task of teaching a second or foreign language. Johnson (2004) conducted a study of teachers’ and students’ perceptions on the traits of effective EFL teachers in Mexico. She surveyed 334 students and 101 teachers and found that the preferences leaned towards teaching qualities such as being well prepared and organized, motivating students to study, stimulating learner autonomy, making the class interesting, and teaching comprehensibly. As part of the study, participants were asked to provide comments on motivating and de-motivating teacher factors. Thirteen comments (out of 731), representing a very small percentage (0.02%) of all the students’ comments about teachers as motivational factors, were about teachers being a native speaker of English.

From the results in the survey of this paper, it can be observed that even though students in general may not be biased towards native or non-native English speakers, they do have preferences depending on the skills. The reason for this might be on the impression that students have about which specific aspects of the language NSs will be better than NNS teachers and vice versa.

A major implication of this paper is to emphasize the importance of having well trained English language teachers that are capable of teaching all of the aspects of the language that students are expecting them to fulfill. This objective can be better achieved by developing training programs. From the results of the study, those programs could be focused on listening, speaking, vocabulary, and culture. These aspects seemed to be those in which students showed more preference for NS teachers probably because the students’ perceived the NNS teachers with less expertise.

There are several limitations for this study. Even though the sample size may have been large enough to allow for making generalizations, the context in which the study was carried out was limited to one university. Therefore, it is advisable to collect data in other institutions in Mexico and other countries to survey learners’ opinions on their preference towards the nativeness of their English teachers. In addition, this study only used one method for data collection, the survey. More information could be gathered through other media such as interviews, observations, and questionnaires.

Finally, a very important pedagogical implication might be regarding teacher training programs devoted to developing teaching skills in specific areas. Nowadays, in the expanding circle countries (where the language being taught is a foreign language), there are English programs being implemented in the elementary levels of education, including public schools. In order for these projects to be successfully implemented and carried out, it is necessary to have English language teachers trained in all the areas of teaching the language and the language per se. In other words, English teachers should know the language as well as how to teach the language. These would ensure that teachers have command of all aspects of language and teaching the language.      

To this date, there are many misconceptions about the superiority of NSs or NNSs over the other when teaching the language. This study explored EFL students’ preferences for having English NS or NNS to teach them specific skills or areas in English. As it was seen, what matters is the capability to teach the language not the nativeness of teachers. Both NS and NNS teachers have a place in English teaching.

Note: I would like to express my gratitude to Dr. Okim Kang, Meghan Moran, and the reviewers of this article for their opinions and ideas during the development of the research and the writing of the article. Thanks to Georgina Clark, Lilia Gonzalez, and the English teachers, and students at the FLD who gladly participated in the survey.

References

Amin, N. (1997). Race and the identity of the nonnative ESL teacher. TESOL Quarterly,31(3), 580-583.

Bhatt, R. M. (2001). World Englishes. Annual Review of Anthropology,30, 527-550.

Celce-Murcia, M. (1991). Grammar pedagogy in second and foreign language teaching. TESOL Quarterly,25(3), 459-480.

Chapelle, C., & Jamieson, J. (2008). Tips for teaching with CALL: Practical approaches to computer assisted language learning. White Plains, NY: Pearson Education.

Chen, J.F, Warden, C.A., & Chang, H. (2005). Motivators that do not motivate: the case of Chinese EFL learners and the influence of culture con motivation. TESOL Quarterly,39(4), 609-633.

De Oliveira, L. & Richardson, S. (2001). Collaboration between native and non-native English speaking educators. CATESOL Journal,13(1), 123-134.

Ellis, R. (2006). Current issues in the teaching of grammar: An SLA perspective. TESOL Quarterly, 40(1), 83-107.

Francis, N., & Ryan, P. M. (1998). English as an international language of prestige: Conflicting cultural perspectives and shifting ethnolinguistic loyalties. Anthropology & Education Quarterly, 29(1), 25-43.

Butler, Y.G. (2007). How are nonnative-English-speaking teachers perceived by young learners? TESOL Quarterly,(41)4, 731-755.

Horwitz, E.K. (1988). The beliefs about language learning of beginning university foreign language students. The Modern Language Journal,72,283-294.

Johnson, C.R.(2004). Characteristics of effective EFL teachers in Mexico as perceived by students and teachers. MEXTESOL Journal, 28(1), 9-22.

Kachru, B.B. (1996). World Englishes: Agony and Ecstasy. Journal of Aesthetic Education,30(2), 135-155.

Kelch, K., & Santana-Williamson, E. (2002). ESL students’ attitudes toward native and non-native speaking instructors’ accents. CATESOL Journal,14(1), 57–72.

Lazaraton, A. (2003). Incidental displays of cultural knowledge in the nonnative-English-speaking teacher’s classroom. TESOL Quarterly,37(2), 213-245.

Liu, J. (1999). Nonnative English speaking professionals in TESOL. TESOL Quarterly,33(1), 85-102.

Moussu, L., & Llurda, E. (2008). Non-native English-speaking English language teachers: History and research. Language Teaching,41(3), 315-348.

Nayar, P.B. (1997). ESL/EFL dichotomy today: Language politics or pragmatics? TESOL Quarterly,31(1), 9-37.

Nemtchinova, E. (2005). Host teachers’ evaluations of non-native-English-speaking teacher trainees: A perspective from the classroom. TESOL Quarterly,39(2), 235-261.

Reynolds-Case, A. (2012). Exploring how non-native teachers can use commonalities with students to teach the target language? Hispania, 95(3), 523-537.

Tang, C. (1997). On the power and status of non-native ESL teachers. TESOL Quarterly, 31, 577-580.

Wenden, A. (1998). Metacognitive knowledge and language learning. Applied Linguistics,19(4), 515-537.

Wenden, A, (1999).An introduction to metacognitive knowledge and beliefs in language learning: beyond the basics. System,27,435-441.