Attitudes to English teachers' accents in the Arabian Gulf
Author(s)
Date
2014Source Title
International Journal of Applied Linguistics
Print ISSN
0802-6106
Publisher
Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Volume
24
Issue
1
Pages
50 - 73
Language
English
Type
ArticleItem Usage Stats
144
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views
221
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Abstract
While the spread of English as a lingua franca has led to calls for multidialectal
competence, EFL learners often still consider inner circle native English
speaker (NES) pronunciation as their learning goal, and may profess a
preference for particular teachers based on their NES or non-native English
speaker (NNES) status. This study investigates whether a teacher’s NES/
NNES status may affect Omani students’ level of confidence towards the
teacher. Using an adapted matched-guise technique with almost 350 students,
the study reveals a preference for speakers and accents students understand to
be from the UK, although students also responded favourably to Arabic native
speakers. Where the NES/NNES variable remained constant, no significant
difference in student’s ratings of the teacher was found.