Global Englishes and English Language Teaching (ELT) – Bridging the gap between theory and practice in a Japanese context

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System 41 (2013) 786e803www.elsevier.com/locate/system

Global Englishes and English Language Teaching (ELT) e Bridgingthe gap between theory and practice in a Japanese context

Nicola Galloway*

Moray House School of Education, The University of Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom

Received 26 November 2012; revised 19 July 2013; accepted 26 July 2013

Available online

Abstract

The native English speaker episteme continues to dominate in English Language Teaching (ELT) despite a growing body ofresearch stressing the need for change in the light of the rise of English as a lingua franca. To support the proposed changes, thisstudy explores what perceptions English learners, as major stakeholders, have in relation to the sociolinguistic realities of Englishand how these relate to learning English, as well as their responses to Global Englishes instruction in a Japanese university. 52participants, divided into a control group (taking a Global Englishes content-based English course) and an experimental group(taking a Tourism content-based course), were surveyed with pre- and post-course questionnaires (N¼ 52) and interviewed (n¼ 4)about their attitudes and perceptions over one semester. The participants were found to have had positive attitudes towards nativeEnglish, which were influenced by a host of factors including their familiarity with native English, motivation, pedagogical beliefsand stereotypical beliefs meaning unclear about the English language. The Global Englishes class was also found to have had animportant impact on students’ attitudes. These findings help bridge the gap between theory and practice by exploring what impact aGlobal Englishes orientated approach may have on language English learners in the ELT classroom.� 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: English Language Teaching (ELT); Native English Speaker (NES); Non-native English Speakers (NNESs); World Englishes (WE);

English as a Lingua Franca (ELF); Global Englishes; Expanding circle

1. Introduction

As English is increasingly used for global communication in multilingual contexts these days, Native EnglishSpeakers (NESs) are in the minority in contrast to the rising number of Non-native English Speakers. However, despitethe changing demographics of English speakers around the globe, the Native English Speaker (NES) episteme stilldominates in English Language Teaching (ELT), evident in the continued use of native English as a yardstick ofcompetence. A number of pedagogical proposals have been put forward for change in ELT practice in relation to theglobalisation of English. These proposals contend for the necessity to expose English learners to the diversity ofEnglish (Matsuda, 2002, 2012a, b; Matsuda and Friedrich, 2012) and raise their awareness of multilingualism and

* Moray House School of Education, The University of Edinburgh, Room 5.06, Charteris Land, Holyrood Road, Edinburgh EH8 8AQ, United

Kingdom. Tel./fax: þ44 131 651 6624.

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787N. Galloway / System 41 (2013) 786e803

issues related to the spread of English (Dewey, 2012; McKay, 2002, 2009, 2012) They emphasize the importance ofhelping learners acquire strategies to use ELF successfully (Canagarajah, 2005; Cogo and Dewey, 2012; Dewey, 2012)and critically consider the cultural content of materials (Baker, 2012a, b). They also problematize current Englishteacher hiring practices (Kirkpatrick, 2009, 2011, 2012; Mckay, 2012). In order to support such proposals, there is aneed to examine the attitudes of language learners towards English in general, as well in relation to learning thelanguage, in light of the changing sociolinguistic realities of English to evaluate current ELT practices. To this end, Iconducted this study positioned within the field of global Englishes, which recognises the diversity of Englishspeakers worldwide and does not use the NES as a yardstick of competence (Jenkins et al., 2011, p. 283e4).

Global Englishes, a relatively new field, is inclusive in nature, bringing together World Englishes (WE), whichfocuses on the identification and codification of national varieties of English, and English as a Lingua Franca (ELF),which is ‘any use of English among speakers of different first languages for whom English is the communicativemedium of choice, and often the only option’ (Seidlhofer, 2011, p. 7). Despite differences (c.f. Seidlhofer, 2009; Cogoand Dewey, 2012), both WE and ELF scholars stress the need to place less emphasis on the NES, emphasis the di-versity of English, and the irrelevance of NES norms for ELT. As such global Englishes-related pedagogical concernsare becoming the subject of a lot of scholarly discussion in the field, and empirical research needs to be conducted onstudents’ attitudes towards English and learning the language in relation to the developments outlined above.

In addition, it was deemed important to investigate students’ attitudes, one of the main stakeholders in ELT, in orderto gain a deeper understanding and to think critically about English education since curriculum change should not bemade prematurely. Many studies have investigated students’ attitudes towards English, yet many have failed to capturethe many factors that influence attitudes (Garrett, 2010), few have related their studies to ELT, and even fewer haveexamined learners’ attitudes in contexts where a Global Englishes perspective informations ELT. For these reasons,the study was intended to bridge this gap between theory and practice in a Japanese context by examining learners’attitudes towards English in relation to ELT. It also aimed to offer insights into what a global Englishes perspective inan ELT classroom would look like, as well the possible influence it may have on attitudes.

2. Literature review

2.1. Global Englishes research and ELT

Today, English is used all over the world by people of different lingua-cultural backgrounds. Even in countrieswhere it has no official status, such as in Kachru’s (1985, 1992) expanding circle, it is increasingly being usedinternally, and English has permeated into the daily lives of people in places such as Japan. Despite problems withKachru’s classification (c.f. Bruthiaux, 2003; Galloway and Rose, 2014; Jenkins, 2009) of English speakers into theinner circle, where English is spoken as a ‘native’ language, the outer circle, where it is spoken as a second language,and the expanding circle, where it is learnt as a ‘foreign’ language with no official status, this model has beeninfluential in raising awareness of the diversity of English. Thus, these terms were adopted in this study. The termexpanding also implies a process of growth.

As a result of this spread, much research has been conducted in the field of WE (c.f. Kachru et al., 2006) doc-umenting the distinctive features of Englishes around the world, and in the field of ELF (c.f. Jenkins et al., 2011;Seidlhofer, 2011), showing that they are not just ‘errors’ caused by different first language backgrounds, but com-mon of spoken English. In the past decade, there has been an increased interest in the pedagogic implications of suchresearch, and entire books have been written on the topic (Alsagoff et al. (Ed)., 2012; Matsuda (Ed.), 2012; Sharifian,2009). This shows an increasing acknowledgment, amongst scholars in the field at least, that ‘the linguistic, culturaland functional diversity associated with English today challenges some of the fundamental assumptions of ELT andrequires that we revisit our pedagogical practices, especially in classrooms where English is taught as an internationallanguage’ (Matsuda and Friedrich, 2012, p. 17). Research findings raise questions about how ELT should beapproached, and as Jenkins et al. (2011, p. 304e5) note, ‘Research findings in ELF have major implications for amultitude of common beliefs and assumptions about what is sanctioned as good practice by the profession’. Theycontend for the necessity for language learners to be exposed to the diversity of English to better prepare them to useEnglish globally (Mckay, 2012). There have also been calls to raise awareness of English as a lingua franca in theclassroom (Seidlhofer, 2004), which would include communication strategies and accommodation skills through amultilingual approach. Jenkins (2012, p. 492) notes the importance of presenting students with ‘the sociolinguistic

788 N. Galloway / System 41 (2013) 786e803

facts of the spread of English around the world before they make their choic’ on what is relevant to them. Proposalssupport the recruitment of more non-native English teachers, or what Kirkpatrick (2009, 2012) calls MultilingualEnglish Teachers (METs), and also question the suitability of current ELT considering the changing demographics ofEnglish speakers around the world (Cogo and Dewey, 2012).

However, few pedagogical proposals have been tried and tested and there appears to be a theory/practice divide. Inaddition, the NES episteme continues to dominate ELT practice, particularly in contexts such as Japan. In Japan, forexample, English may not have official status, but it is increasingly becoming more than a mere ‘foreign’ language. Itis the only foreign language option in most schools, compulsory in primary schools, the only subject tested on alluniversity entrance exams and is increasingly being used as the medium of instruction in Japanese universities. It hasbeen introduced as an official working language in many Japanese companies (e.g. Rakuten and Uniqlo), and thegrowing number of foreign residents is creating opportunities for using ELF usage. In 2010, of the 2,134,151registered foreigners, 1,681,469 were from Asia. In the same year, a total of 8,611,175 foreign tourists visited thecountry, and, of these, 6,528, 432 were from Asia. The number of foreign students studying in Japan has also increasedfrom 38,444 in 1990 to 124, 646 in 2011 (Japan Statistics Yearbook, 2013). Such a changing sociolinguistic landscapehighlights the need for a revaluation of ELT practice.

In Japan, there does appear to be an awareness of the role of English as a lingua franca, and the government ‘ActionPlan’ recognises that English acts as ‘the common international language’, although the same document refers toNESs, who provide a ‘valuable opportunity’ to learn English (MEXT, 2003). However, despite the rhetoric of learningEnglish for international/intercultural communication, students are still presented with an ideology that only NESsspeak good English. Thus, research is crucial to help support such pedagogical proposals.

2.2. Research investigating attitudes towards English and English language teaching

Awareness of learners’ attitudes can raise awareness of their needs, stereotypes and prejudices, and their overallattitudes. Increased teacher knowledge of such factors can lead to more effective lesson planning and courseimplementation. This is particularly important today in relation to the fact that traditional approaches to ELT are nolonger meeting the needs of many students.

2.2.1. Attitudes towards English and global English?Researchers have looked at students’ attitudes towards native English. Van der Haagen (1998) and Bayard et al.

(2001) found positive attitudes towards American English, showing how evaluations can be hierarchical.Ladegaard and Sachdev (2006) found a preference for Received Pronunciation, despite an awareness of the highvitality of American culture, indicating that this may not be enough to ‘attract’ students to a certain variety. Adolph’s(2005) more longitudinal study, also found preferences for native English, although students had a simplistic notion ofnative English related to the model used in their home contexts, highlighting the possible influence of pedagogicalbeliefs.

Researchers have also looked at attitudes towards both native English and non-native English, the majorityconcluding a preference for the former (Crismore et al., 1996; Kirkpatrick and Xu, 2002; McKenzie, 2008a; Matsuuraet al., 1994; Starks and Paltridge, 1994). Matsuura et al. (1994) and Chiba et al. (1995) noted the importance of fa-miliarity and in Beinhoff (2005, cited in Jenkins, 2007, p. 94), stricter attitudes towards speakers from their owncountries, suggesting that this may influence attitudes towards native English, although this wasn’t investigated.

Research has been conducted on language learners’ attitudes within ELT contexts, which reveal positive attitudestowards native English as the model (Butler, 2007; Dalton-Puffer et al., 1997; Rubin, 1992). Familiarity with nativeEnglish and personal experience were influential in Dalton-Puffer et al. (1997), where students were, once again, mostcritical of the English spoken in their own country. Race was found to have been important in Rubin and Smith’s(1990) study in America, highlighting that when students believed an instructor’s accent to be ‘foreign’, they alsoviewed them to be a poor teacher. The number of courses students had taken with NNES instructors was also found tobe the best predictor of listening comprehension scores, highlighting the importance of familiarity on attitudes.Rubin’s (1992) follow up study also shows how people may “hear” an accent that may not exist, which led to lowercomprehension rates. McKenzie (2008b) identified that factors including gender, self-perceived proficiency in En-glish, exposure to English and evaluations of varieties of Japanese significantly influenced attitudes. Thus, attitudesare clearly complex structures influenced by a number of different factors.


Studies have looked at teachers’ attitudes towards the role of global Englishes, but only a few of them have lookedspecifically at students’ attitudes, which, once more, show similar preferences for native English (Erling, 2005; Grau,2005; Kuo, 2006; Matsuda, 2003; Timmis, 2002). Timmis (2002) concluded that such a preference, and desire tosound like NESs, means it is inappropriate ‘to offer students a target which manifestly does not meet their aspirations’(ibid, p. 249). This is unlike Matsuda (2003) who, despite finding similar preferences for NE, concludes that more WEexposure is needed to raise students’ awareness of the diversity of English. Kuo’s (2006) participants also preferredNESs over NNESs, which she argues supports Timmis’s (2002) findings. Grau’s study (2005) revealed that studentswere open towards incorporating a global Englishes perspective into ELT and the majority agreed on the priority ofintelligibility, yet they still prefer native English. However, little information is given on the course that participantswere taking, which may have influenced their attitudes.

Despite the proposals outlined above, there has been little research on the examination of what an ELT course thatincorporates a global Englishes perspective would look like, or the possible influence it may have on learners’ at-titudes. A limited number of studies have been conducted (e.g. Derwing et al., 2002; Kubota, 2001; Shim, 2002). Twoof these involved NESs, and Shim’s (2002) study, which investigated the influence of global Englishes ‘instruction’ onNNESs’ attitudes, and none of them provided a detailed overview of how to incorporate a GE perspective into theclassroom. Moreover, Shim (2002) gives little account of the course, students’ backgrounds, motivations for learningEnglish, future goals, and current uses, all of which may influence learners’ attitudes. There is clearly a gap inresearch, yet interest in this topic is growing and some recent studies showcase the development of global Englishescourses and global Englishes-orientated curricula in expanding circle contexts (Baker, 2012b; Galloway and Rose,2013). However, there is a clear lack of research investigating the attitudes of learners towards English and ELT inrelation to global Englishes. Furthermore, the lack of research investigating the incorporation of a global Englishesperceptive into the ELT classroom, as well as the possible influence this may have on learners’ attitudes is prob-lematic, given the growing importance attributed to the pedagogy in the field of global Englishes at the theoreticallevel.

2.2.2. Attitudes towards English teachersResearch has also been conducted on the respective capacities of NNESTs and NESTs, and attitudes towards

them. Mahboob (2004) involved teachers with different mother tongues, but most studies have involved NNESTsthat share the same mother tongue as the students and all reveal positive attitudes towards NESTs (Cook, 2005;Lasagabaster and Sierra, 2005; Medgyes, 1994). Although students think both types of teachers have differentcapabilities, NESTs are favoured for speaking and pronunciation skills (Barratt and Kontra, 2000; Benke andMedgyes, 2005; Cook, 2005; Lasagabaster and Sierra, 2005; Medgyes, 1994). However, the possible influenceof students’ proficiency on attitudes was raised in Benke and Medgyes (2005) and Lasagabaster and Sierra(2005).

Thus, previous research suggests that most language learners highly value native English and prefer to follow aNES model. It must be noted that these studies utilised verbal and matched guise techniques, questionnaires, in-terviews, classroom observations, personal experiences and narratives. While verbal and matched guise techniqueselicit useful data, they reveal little about what influences attitudes. Therefore, there is a need to conduct further in-vestigations about the factors that may influence language learners’ attitudes, particularly in relation to the influenceawareness-raising of global Englishes instruction may have on English learners’ attitudes.

3. An investigation into English learners’ attitudes towards English in relation to Global Englishes

3.1. Research questions

The aim of the study was to investigate attitudes towards English and ELT, and to what extent global Englishesinstruction influences these perceptions. This generated three research questions:

1. What are English learners’ attitudes towards English?2. How do these attitudes relate to learning English?3. To what extent does Global Englishes instruction influence these perceptions?


3.2. Setting

The study utilised a questionnaire with 52 English learners (23 global Englishes and 29 non global Englishes), andinterviews with 4 English learners at a private university in Japan, with 3rd and 4th year English majors. 6 globalEnglishes participants were removed for not fully completing the questionnaire. Participants had an average Test ofEnglish for International Communication (TOEIC) score of 7071 and 78.2%were female and in their 3rd year. Japan isa member of the expanding circle, where research is important. The university was chosen due to the researcher’sprevious position as a lecturer, making it possible to design and teach two classes. Although participants were Englishmajors, the increasing number of English medium instruction courses in Japanese universities means that comparisonscan be drawn with other universities.

The two content-based classes were taught by the researcher twice a week for one semester (13 weeks). The firstfocused on tourism and the second on global Englishes, both followed similar formats, and were taught and assessed insimilar ways. The global Englishes curriculum (Table 1) was based on the pedagogical proposals put forward in theliterature and the aim was to raise awareness of the concept of global Englishes and their confidence as speakers of aninternational language. They also kept a listening journal each, where they listened to speakers from differentcountries and participated in, and reflected on, ELF exchanges (Table 2).

3.3. Data collection

A pre- and post-questionnaire (open and closed) was administered at the start and end of semester. Section onecovered background information; two and three focused on attitudes towards English and ELT. Questions related toattitudes towards English included past and present experiences using the language with NESs and NNESs, and at-titudes towards such experiences; perceived future usage of English; varieties of English they regard as attractive andthose they would like to imitate. Questions related to ELT included attitudes on the proficiency of NESTs andNNESTs; motivation for learning the language; countries they would like to have English teachers from; the Englishesand speakers represented in ELT materials; their ultimate goal and preferable skills for English teachers. Participantscould use English or Japanese, and it was administered via surveymonkey.com. 2 interviewees from both courses wererandomly selected from class lists to conduct interviews in week 13. The use of qualitative methods helped minimisethe limitations of the number of participants and single setting of the study. After explaining the purpose of the study,addressing terms of confidentiality and explaining the format, the interviewees were invited to talk freely about theirEnglish language learning history, motivation and teachers of English. The second part of the interview employed asemi-structured approach to ensure coverage of the main themes and consistency between interviews.

It should be noted that the researcher, as, not only a western NEST, but also the class teacher, may have influencedthe data. However, familiarity with the setting and the research context ensured that the researcher was more readilyaccepted than an unknown researcher may have been. Additionally, efforts were made to integrate data collection asunobtrusively as possible. Teaching behaviour remaining consistent throughout the semester, regardless of whether ornot data was being collected. A neutral position was also adopted during class activities and discussions on globalEnglishes-related topics and issues.

3.4. Data analysis

Quantitative analysis was conducted using PASW 18.0. To investigate the factors influencing attitudes, independentsamples t-tests were conducted; paired t-tests were conducted to test for statistically significant differences; crosstabulations were used to further show the distributions, and chi-squares were also conducted. Paired t-tests were usedto investigate any differences between the global Englishes and non-global Englishes participants. Mixed analysis ofvariance (ANOVA), used to compute more than two groups, were used to investigate the influence of global Englishesinstruction on the participants’ attitudes.

Qualitative data analysis was conducted using NVivo 7. The interview transcription conventions are shown inAppendix A and the interviewee profiles in Appendix B. Data analysis involved six stages. The first stage was

1 The highest possible score on the test is 990. TOEIC is the most common English proficiency test used in Japan, used by most Japanese firms

and many universities to measure English ability.

http://surveymonkey.com


familiarisation of the data to get a sense of the data as a whole. The next step was the identification of prominent topicsor ideas, or first-level coding. Through careful scrutiny of key words, several prominent concepts, themes, events, andtopical markers were evident. Firstly, free nodes (codes) were created through a mixture of concept-driven coding anddata-driven coding and short descriptions were produced. After initial coding, the frequency of each prominent topicwas documented to gain insights and see topic frequency as well as which ones occurred together. After initial coding,various patterns emerged making it possible to group together certain topics. The initial codes, i.e. emerged prominenttopics, were then categorised under a smaller number of themes into coding hierarchies. Basic descriptions were then

Table 1

The global Englishes course timetable.

Module Class Topic Homework

The spread of

English

1 Topic: Introduction

Activities: research questionnaire.

Listening journal (10 min e

student choice)

Reflection: Key Concepts

2 Topic: Introduction

Activities: Class overview, Listening journal, pre-reading.

Listening journal

Reflection

Read module 1 article

3 Topic: Module 1 reading discussion

Reading topics: The History of English; pidgins and creoles;

English speakers around the world; standard language

ideology

Activities: 10 min discussions on each reading using worksheet

(article summary, opinion, discussion questions, debate topic).

Listening journal

Reflection

4 Topic: Module 1 listening

Activities: Listen to different speakers and ELF exchanges on

the spread of English (note-taking, discussions and debate).

Listening topics: The rise of the world’s lingua franca;

categorising English speakers; variation and change;

ownership and identity

Listening journal

Reflection

5 Topic: Module 1 debate

Discussion and Debate topics: Advantages and disadvantages

of the spread of English; the politics of English e linguistic

imperialism.

Listening journal

Reflection

6&7 Topic: Module 1 writing

Activities: Read and discuss essays related to Module 1, write a

descriptive/argumentative essay based on module 1.

Listening journal

Reflection

World Englishes 8 Topic: Module 2 introduction

Activities: Module 2 brainstorming and pre-reading.

Listening journal

Reflection Read module 2

article


Reading topics: English in the Inner Circle, English in the

Outer Circle; English in the Expanding Circle; World

Englishes research

Activities: 10 min discussions on each reading (article

summary, opinion, discussion questions, debate topic).

Listening journal

Reflection

10, Topic: Module 2 listening

Activities: Listen to different speakers from different countries

talk about English (note-taking, discussions and debate).

Listening topics: English and power; ‘Standard’ English?;

the ‘New’ Englishes: social and political issues

Listening journal

Reflection

11 Topic: Module 2 debate

Discussion and Debate topics: the status of ‘New Englishes’;

the ever-rising expanding circle; English in China: a new

powerful variety?; English in Europe

Listening journal

Reflection

12&13 Topic: Classmate introduction to WE

Activities: Listen to and give a 10 min individual presentation

on Module 1/2.

Listening journal

Reflection

(continued on next page)

Table 1 (continued )

Module Class Topic Homework

English as a

Lingua Franca

14 Topic: Module 3 introduction

Activities: Module 3 brainstorming and pre-reading

Listening journal

Reflection

Read module article


Reading topics: Definitions and common misconceptions;

ELF research; pragmatics; international communication;

language and culture



Listening journal

Reflection


Activities: Listen to different speakers talk about ELF and

listen to ELF interactions (note-taking, discussions and debate).

Listening topics: ELF and grammar; ELF and pragmatics;

ELF and pronunciation

Listening journal

Reflection

17&18 Topic: Module 3 debate

Discussion and debate topics: ELF and Japan;

misunderstandings of ELF and criticisms; ELF research

and the VOICE corpus

Listening journal

Reflection

19&20 Topic: Module 3 writing

Activities: read and discuss essays related to Module 3, write a

descriptive/argumentative essay based on module 3.

Listening journal

Reflection

Learning

English

21 Topic: Module 4 introduction

Activities: Module 4 brainstorming and pre-reading.

Listening journal

Reflection

Read module article




Reading Topics: native speakerism and English language

teaching; principles of Global Englishes language teaching;

English teachers and teacher education; norms, models and

assessing English proficiency

Listening journal

Reflection


Activities: Listen to different speakers talk about ELT (note-

taking, discussions and debate).

Listening topics: ELT in Japan; English teachers; assessing

English proficiency

Listening journal

Reflection

24&25 Topic: Presentations (student choice)

Activity: Prepare to give a group, research-based presentation

related to module 1,2,3 or 4.

Listening journal

Reflection

26 Topic: Class summary

Activity: Research questionnaire

Table 2

Listening Journal Guidelines.

Date and time

(Minimum 10 min)

Speaker’s name

and nationality

Reason for choice

(3e4 sentences)

Comments

(6e10 sentences)

(observations in grammar,

vocabulary, pronunciation,

pragmatics, (un)intelligibility.

Also try to think of possible reasons

for your reactions/attitude, e.g. stereotypes,

(un)familiarity, etc.

The Listening Journal should be completed once a week. You should spend 10 min listening to a speaker (s) from a particular country or area, or

an ELF exchange. Ideas for sources you could use are listed in your textbook.


Fig. 1. Students’ current use of English.


revised and re-written to provide an overall coding framework. Final coding was then undertaken. The last stageinvolved meaning condensation and interpretation, and an attempt was made to analyse the quotes and the relationshipbetween them and the data as a whole.

3.5. Participant overview

Nearly every student in the study studies another language and 81% have been abroad, although for the majority,this was short and only 9.6% have been to a NNES country. 26.9% have studied in the US, and in addition toclassmates, participants use English mostly with NESs (Fig. 1).

Fig. 2. Students’ perceived future English use.


However, they use English with both NESs and NNESs, with 75.9% having spoken English with a NNES and 81%with a NES outside of school. The results also showed a dominance of inner circle English teachers, mostly fromAmerica (96.2%), The UK (92.3%) and Australia (73.1%).

4. Results

The pre-course questionnaire results are presented first, followed by the post-course results in relation to the in-fluence of the global Englishes class. Results are presented around the three main research questions:

1. What are English learners’ attitudes towards English?2. How do these attitudes relate to learning English?3. To what extent does global Englishes instruction influence these perceptions?

4.1. What are English learners’ attitudes towards English?

More participants reported wanting to learn English to communicate with NESs (78.8%), compared with NNESs(61.5%). Future predictions for English use also reveal a NES bias (Fig. 2), although there is awareness of ELF use.

76.9% want to sound like a NES, with 25.0% strongly agreeing. This is similar to attitudes towards attractivevarieties, particularly American (selected 27 times), Canadian (19) and British English (17). However, Japanese wasalso chosen four times and was in the top five 22 times, and participants also chose outer circle and expanding circlevarieties. Similar selections were made for preferred models of English to imitate (Fig. 3) and they clearly prefernative English, particularly American English (51.9%).

In the open-ended questionnaire, comments relating to NES ownership (correctness, ownership, etc.) were noted in57 references, compared with 41 relating to global Englishes awareness (non-native English, ELF awareness, etc.).The term ‘Lingua franca’ was only used twice, only one referred to English as a ‘common language’, native Englishwas described as ‘correct’ and ‘standard’ and non-native English as ‘imperfect’, ‘wrong’ and ‘untrustful’.

Fig. 3. Students’ preferred model of English to imitate.


Interview results revealed similar attitudes. A word frequency query in NVivo, conducted to reveal salient topics,highlighted that ‘native’ was documented 75 times, compared with ‘non-native’ 44 times. Native English wascoded in 35 data segments, compared with non-native English in 18. Everyone referred to NES Ownership, mostreferred to native English as familiar and non-native English as unfamiliar. Everyone listed native English asattractive and wanted to sound like a NES, and native English was described as ‘real’ and ‘correct’, unlike non-native English, which was seen as ‘difficult’ and ‘incorrect’. Moreover, when discussing perceived future uses ofEnglish, everyone referred to NESs and only a few discussed NNESs. American English was most frequentlydiscussed, and, ‘English speaker’ appears to be synonymous with ‘American’. For example, when asked where thecustomers in the hotel she works at come from, Yuka responded, ‘MANY MANY countries I think’, but ‘OFCOURSE AMERICA’.

However, every student also referred to the sufficiency of being intelligible, and referred to NNESs when talkingabout future English use. In the interviews, Nanae notes she was impressed at how ELF is used between people from‘60 different countries’ when she visited New Zealand, and Saori, who has NES and NNES friends, discussed futureELF use. However, they have mixed opinions about NNE and made vague and contradictory comments. For example,after being reminded that she noted liking Hong Kong English, Yukiko replied, ‘Eh. No No No, I don’t, I didn’t say Iliked Hong Kong’s accent, I mean I like the difference of accents’, but then added that it is ‘very easy to listen’,indicating that intelligibility of NNE should not be confused with her attachment to native English. Later, she said, ‘Ithink EUROPEAN PEOPLE can speak WELL’, but wants to ‘copy’ native English, but is unable to explain why,commenting, ‘Why? (.) eh (3) I like Canada’.

4.2. Factors influencing English learners’ attitudes

A number of factors influence English learners’ attitudes including the use of native English as a yardstick, in-vestment in native English, motivation, familiarity, ELF experiences, stereotypes, future goal and previous experi-ences using the language.

The open-ended questionnaire highlighted that desire for NES proficiency is related to its use as a yardstick, theirinvestment in it and because it equates to successful communication, e.g. ‘it is more useful to communicate than badEnglish’. However, some are also aware of the difficulty of this goal.

Independent t-tests showed that those who wanted to study English to communicate with NESs were significantlymore likely to want to sound like one (t(50) ¼ 2.950, p ¼ .005).

Those who used English with NESs in their free time, or who hoped to work/study in an NES country in the future,were also more likely to want to sound like one (t(50) ¼ 1.878, p ¼ .066 and t(50) ¼ �949, p ¼ .050 respectively).

Chi-square results also showed that 80% of participants with experience studying abroad in the UK want to imitateBritish English, whereas only 18.8% of those who did not study in the UK want to (c2(1, N ¼ 52) ¼ 8.23, p ¼ .004).38.5% of participants learning English because English is a useful language also want to imitate British English and61.5% chose American. The chi-square test showed that this was significant (c2(1, N ¼ 52) ¼ 5.798, p ¼ .016).

Interviewees are also familiar with native English, particularly American English, which influences their attitudes.For Saori, exposure through TV and movies makes it more intelligible, and her desire to speak American English isalso related to her experience studying there. However, familiarity with American English was also noted to hindercomprehension of non-native English, and create a false stereotype of English. Yuka was unable to understand anIndian English speaker, because she ‘was used to like (.) NATIVE English, American’, and her first encounter withBritish English was surprising and difficult for the same reason.

ELF experiences were also discussed by everyone, which also influence attitudes. Saori’s experience in Vietnamraised her awareness that continued exposure to global Englishes can increase intelligibility. Communication wasdifficult initially, but she got ‘used to hearing their accent’.

An ambiguity in attitudes was also revealed in the interviews and interviewees were often unable to offer clearreasons why they prefer nativeEnglish. Saori linked her attitude to her stereotypeswhen asked to explain her preferencefor native English, she replied, ‘Ah:, AH: (.), I dunno but (.) maybe my, kind of like stereotypes, like learning Englishfrom native speaker is better’. Japanese teachers have a ‘good knowledge of English’, but ‘it’s my stereotype @@’.

Desire to live in a NES country and cultural preferences were also important. Yukiko, who prefers CanadianEnglish, plans to study in Canada in the future, and, in addition to a preference for American culture, Nanae thinksmany students want to ‘be American’, Saori thinks it is ‘the MOST POPULAR’ because,


EVERYTHING is from the United States so maybe people think that American English is THE ENGLISH, @@ somaybe people think American English is the strong, not strongest English no @@, mm people think many of theEnglish speakers speak American English so @@ mm (.), yeah.

All interviewees also revealed ambivalent attitudes towards the English spoken in Japan. Negative comments weremade several times about the English spoken in Japan. Yukiko was unhappy when she was recognised as beingJapanese, and referred to ‘Japanese English’ as ‘too CLEAR, too clear and too flat’. For her, a native English accent isa sign of proficiency. These negative attitudes were also linked to preferences for native English. Saori wants to soundlike a NES, because ‘Japanese English isn’t FLUENT English,’ but when asked why, she replied,

@@ I can’t think that is fluent English so (2), mm: (2), yeah (.), so: I (2). WHY, WHY? But mm: (.) it’s difficult toanswer it (2) but like (4) mm, ah, @@why? Mm, maybe it’s from my images, like my FLUENT ENGLISH IMAGESis from like AMERICAN PEOPLE or BRITISH PEOPLE, not from like, Japanese people (.).

Despite complex attitudes towards non-native English, all four feel that communication is easier and, perhaps,more enjoyable with NNESs. Nanae feels ‘a little bit nervous and no confidence’ with NESs, but with NNESs, she ‘canbe more calmer and relaxed somehow’. Nevertheless, she still desires NES proficiency. Similarly, in the questionnaire,14 negative encounters with NESs were reported, compared to 4 positive ones. Positive encounters were described asbeing good opportunities to ‘practice to speak with native-speakers’, unlike positive encounters with NNESs, whichwere related to raised ELF awareness, the mutual support offered by NNESs and the ‘relaxed’ atmosphere. However,participants had mixed feelings about the benefits, with low proficiency and accent unfamiliarity noted as reasons fornegative experiences. 14 negative experiences with NESs were noted, which related to speed, comprehensionproblems and low self-confidence.

4.3. How do these attitudes relate to learning English?

In relation to preferable English teachers, there was an inner circle bias, particularly for American (73.1%), British(67.3) and Canadian (73.1) teachers (Fig. 4). However, 9.6% chose Japanese English teachers, and other outer circleand expanding circle varieties were also chosen. Nevertheless, participants have mixed feelings about the proficiencyof Japanese teachers (Table 3) and are more positive about NESTs.

Fig. 4. Students’ preferred English teachers.

Table 3

Students’ attitudes towards their English teachers.

Item Mean Standard dev Strongly disagree% Disagree% Agree% Strongly agree% Total

My Japanese teachers have been/are proficient English teachers

Pre: 2.48 .641 3.8 48.1 44.2 3.8 100

My native English teachers have been/are proficient English teachers

Pre: 3.27 .598 0 7.7 57.7 34.6 100


There was a significant difference in the paired samples t -test scores for Japanese teachers (M ¼ 2.48, SD ¼ .641)and NESTs (M ¼ 3.27, SD ¼ .598) conditions; t (52) ¼ �6.216, p < .001) and participants were significantly lesslikely to think that their Japanese teachers were proficient than their NEST.

Students also prefer ELT materials that involve NESs and NNESs, although more than twice as many prefermaterials that involve only NESs than only NNESs (Table 4). Furthermore, in relation to their English teachers, 53.8%prefer both, although 46.2% prefer only NESTs, and nobody chose only NNESTs.

Participants see NESs as more useful for ELT, and, in the questionnaire, NESs were discussed in relation to beinghelpful for learning 25 times. They want to learn ‘English through real English’, the NES model is the yardstick, NESsprovide opportunities to use English in class and have good teaching styles. However, 15 positive references weremade about NNESTs, and comments referred to shared experiences as language learners, shared mother tongue,ability to teach grammar and teaching styles.

In the questionnaires, global Englishes awareness was related to ELT materials and English teachers, and par-ticipants noted the need to ‘study about both, because there are many English speaker who came from not standardEnglish country all over the world now’. However, non-native English is not helpful for learning ‘because we mightget another English accent and that might make our English harder to be comprehended’.

In the interviews, several references were made to NES ownership and pedagogical beliefs and all four referred toexperiences with NESs as helpful learning experiences. Accent is important and Yukiko wants British, American,Canadian and Australian teachers because ‘New Zealand people have very strong accent’. Thus, regardless of pref-erences for native English, an accent hierarchy exists.

4.3.1. Factors influencing English learners’ attitudesOnce again, several factors influenced participants’ attitudes towards English in relation to ELT including future

goals, motivation, pedagogical beliefs, stereotypes, negative attitudes towards NNESTs, dominance of the NESmodel, familiarity and ELF experiences.

52.3% of participants who plan to use English in their job in the future with NESs prefer their English teachers to beboth NESs and NNESs and 47.7% prefer only NESs and the chi-square test (c2(1, N¼ 52)¼ .65, p¼ .011) shows thatthis was significant. Furthermore, 63% of participants who study English because they ‘are interested in it’ agree and28.3% strongly agree that their NESTs are proficient and the chi-square test, (c2(1, N ¼ 52) ¼ 7.15, p ¼ .028) foundthat this was significant.

Interviews revealed that native English is beneficial for learning, because it is ‘real’ and ‘standard’. When askedwhy she wants to learn native English, Yukiko noted that, ‘Why? (4) Mm: yeah. Ah, I know many Asian countries (2)ah (.) have English as official language, but I THINK it’s not their mother tongue’, pauses suggesting she is unsure.She prefers NESs ‘Because they’ve USED English since they were born, so English is very connected with their life’.Nanae’s pedagogical beliefs are also related to stereotypes; American English should be the model because it isimportant to have a ‘boss English’ and Japanese English teachers should spend four or five years in a NES country,

Table 4

Students attitudes in relation to ELT.

Item Mean Standard deviation NESs NNESs Both Total

Do you prefer to use materials in class that involve only native speakers of English, only non-native speakers of English, or both?

Pre: 3.00 .741 13.5 5.8 80.8 100

Do you prefer your English teachers to be native speakers, non-native speakers, or both?

Pre: 2.08 1.007 46.2 0 53.8 100


although when asked where they should be recruited from, she was unsure, answering, ‘Ah (1), mm: (1) ahm (1),maybe their nationality is not really important I think, so (1) ahm (1)’. Saori also notes that her desire to learn fromNESTs is related to her ‘stereotypes’.

Positive orientations towards native English and NESTs are also related to negative attitudes towards NNESTs.Japanese English teachers were referred to negatively, particularly in relation to pronunciation. Nanae thinks theirpronunciation should, ‘at least’, be ‘better than’ hers and Australian, British and American teachers should also beemployed, because ‘they are the three biggest English speaking countries’. She also thinks that NNESTs have‘pronunciation or accent that is far away from the REAL accent like American or British or a native accent’, which is‘not really helpful’. Similarly, Saori described difficulty understanding her Korean NNEST’s accent, who ‘was a reallygood English teacher’, but not ideal ‘to improve our (.) pronunciation’. However, when reminded that she alsodescribed Australian English as unfamiliar, she once again referred to her ‘stereotype’.

When discussing ELT, all four described the dominance of American teachers and American English negatively,further highlighting their contradictory views. Saori noted that it hindered their understanding of NESTs from othercountries at university and Yuka noted that, since Japanese English learners ‘are taught only AMERICAN English, soif they, you know, hear very strong English, accent English, then IT’S NOT ENGLISH, I think’. She added that,although English is not spoken as a mother tongue in Singapore, it is ‘important to know the difference of accent’ and‘respect’ them.

Several participants also noted a desire to learn non-native English and many positive comments were made aboutNNESTs. However, attitudes towards non-native English are complex and often contradictory, as noted earlier. Asnoted, Saori liked her Korean English teacher, but was unsure of her pronunciation. When reminded that English isused as a lingua franca, she gave a lengthy response, noting that exposure to non-native English is ‘good for students’for their future jobs.

ELF experiences also influenced attitudes. Yuka thinks that American and British English is important, but Englishlearners should also listen to Indian and Chinese English, as she found these difficult when in Australia. However, sheadded that American English should be the model in Japan, due to the relationship between the two countries.Nevertheless, she noted that it should be learnt ‘first’, and, thus, did not completely disregard her earlier statement.

4.4. To what extent does global Englishes instruction influence these perceptions?

To investigate the influence of the global Englishes class, the pre and post-course questionnaire data was used.Although the class did not have a statistically significant influence on attitudes, observations can be made. In thequestionnaire, participants had clear preferences for native English, but some clear differences between the globalEnglishes and non- global Englishes class are evident. Regarding attractive varieties of English, Japanese English wasonly a fifth choice once in the pre-course questionnaire, but featured seven times in the post-course questionnaire.Moreover, 6 of these 7 responses came from global Englishes participants. Additionally, outer circle and expandingcircle Englishes were only chosen 7 times in the pre-course questionnaire, but 19 times in the post-course ques-tionnaire, and these were made by global Englishes participants. However, cross-tabulations for motivation did notreveal significant relationships between global Englishes participation and wanting to Communicate with Non-NativeSpeakers of English when asked about their future uses of English. Furthermore, participants’ desire to sound like aNES did not vary significantly over time andMixed ANOVAs didn’t reveal any relationship with the global Englishescourse.

Similarly, in the post-course questionnaire, when choosing countries to recruit English teachers from, 19.2% choseJapanese teachers, compared with only 9.6% in the pre-course questionnaire, and 80% of these were taking the globalEnglishes class. At the end of semester, there was also a decline in preference for inner circle teachers and preferencefor American teachers dropped by almost 20%. Additionally, a greater number of participants chose English teachersfrom other outer circle countries, including Jamaica, Singapore and India, and the selection of Indian teachers almostdoubled from 17.3 to 32.7%, in the post-course questionnaire. ANOVA results, revealed that while participantsindicated that the proficiency level of their Japanese teachers increased significantly over time (F (1, 50) ¼ 6.671,p ¼ .013), the GE course did not influence attitudes (Table 5).

However, in the open-ended section of the post-course questionnaire, global Englishes awareness more thandoubled, two thirds of these references made by global Englishes participants; fewer references to NNESs were codedas incorrect, and were all made by non-global Englishes participants. Non-global Englishes participants also referred

Table 5

Mixed ANOVA Results for Proficiency Ratings of Japanese Teachers.

Variable Df F Sig. h2

Between groups

World Englishes 1 .067 .796 .001

Error 52

Within groups

Time (pre-test vs. post-test) 1 6.671 .013 .118

Time � Global Englishes 1 1.529 .222 .030

Error 52


to NES ownership of English more than twice as, and many global Englishes participants made references to intel-ligibility, e.g. ‘Japanese accent is also good as it’s our character’, indicating that the course not only raised theirawareness of global Englishes, but also increased their confidence as English speakers. Ten more global Englishesawareness related references were made in relation to ELT materials in the post-course questionnaire and five more inrelation to teachers. Participants commented on how the class changed their attitudes about English teachers andreferences to NNESTs doubled for global Englishes participants, e.g. since ‘English has become a global language, Ithink English teachers don’t have to be native English teachers any longer’. Many referred to global Englishesawareness as important and 23 referred to a change in attitude, referring to the class. It also raised their awareness ofglobal Englishes and their interest in it, e.g. ‘After I took this class, I became to be interested in Global Englishmore!!!! I want to know about it after finished this class!’ and influenced their attitudes towards English, e.g. ‘Before Itake this course, I’ve thought that only American or British English is standard and worth to learn, but now I think Iwant to understand more variety of English.’

The class was also discussed in relation to ELT, and many noted that since English ‘has become a global language’,teachers no longer need to be NESTs. However, while they recognise the importance of being exposed to the diversityof English, they prefer NESTs, to ensure that their English doesn’t become ‘untrustful’. ELF exchanges are ‘OK whenwe communicate with people as friends, but when we want to use English for business, we have to learn formalEnglish’ and there is a belief that native English should be learnt first.

The interviews revealed that both the two global Englishes and the two non- global Englishes participants made asimilar number of references to NES ownership, desire to sound like a NES, native English and non-native English.The two non- global Englishes students, Yukiko and Saori, discussed non-native English, and Saori showed greatawareness of ELF. Saori also wants to sound like a NES and thinks NESTs are more beneficial, but changed her mindin the interview, commenting that, since Japanese students will use ELF in the future, they need exposure to differentvarieties of English. However, both global Englishes participants, Yuka and Nanae, made more references to globalEnglishes awareness and related their comments directly to the class. Yuka described how the class raised herawareness of non-native English and, before taking the class, she had ‘NEVER thought about THATKIND of English’and thinks that it would be useful for Japanese English learners to take a similar class to raise awareness that ‘NOWMANY countries, MANY PEOPLE from all over the world USE ENGLISH’, which she was unaware of previously.Nanae also noted that, ‘Maybe my opinions have been changed’ and that her ‘Japanese accent is one of the future’. Sheis aware of ELF, but wants a native English accent. The complexity of her attitude is demonstrated by reference to anELF experience with a Polish girl, where she re-states that it is acceptable for English speakers to retain their ownaccent and points out that she was ‘really interested’ in the GE class, which gave her the opportunity to learn aboutnon-native English and also to realise that ‘English is like some common language thing in the world’, which ‘wascompletely different as I thought’. However, she ended with, ‘but I’m very interested in the (.), in native countries’,suggesting she is struggling with what she is used to and a new concept of global Englishes.

5. Discussion

5.1. Overall attitudes towards English and ELT

In this study, English belongs to NESs, the mostly likely target interlocutors. Native English is ‘correct’ and non-native English is ‘incorrect’, supporting Matsuda’s (2003) conclusion that Japanese English learners consider NESs to


be the ‘owners’ of English. Furthermore, with over three quarters wanting to sound like a NES, the results supportprevious findings (Timmis, 2002). Despite positive attitudes towards native English in general, the study confirms thathierarchies do exist, and American English is at the top (Bayard et al., 2001). However, there is also an awareness ofglobal Englishes and future ELF usage, and experiences using English with NNESs were noted to be more positive,which is promising for pedagogical proposals for change. However, as with Baker’s (2012b) participants, despite suchawareness, the notion of ‘standard’ English still dominates. However, participants are also aware of the difficulty andimpossibility of the NES model, and many referred to the importance of intelligibility (Grau, 2005), which ispromising.

Regarding ELT, similar preferences for NESTs were found, as with previous studies (Cook, 2005; Lasagabaster andSierra, 2005; Medgyes, 1994). As in previous research (Butler, 2007), there was a preference for American NESTs,and more than twice as many prefer materials that involve only NESs. However, participants see both types of teachersas having different skills (Barratt and Kontra, 2000; Benke and Medgyes, 2005; Lasagabaster and Sierra, 2005;Mahboob, 2004) and, similar to Grau’s (2005) participants, there is a slight openness about the position global En-glishes should have in ELT, which is promising.

5.2. Factors influencing attitudes

Despite supporting the findings of many previous studies that English learners do in fact favour native English, andthis favourable attitudes extends towards ELT, this study has also shown that this is not so straightforward. Both thequestionnaire and the interviews, particularly the latter, revealed that many factors influence English learners’attitudes.

Favourable attitudes towards native English may be explained by the fact that nearly 70% of the participantshave been to a NES country, and only 9.6% have been to a NNES one. Additionally, participants use Englishmore with NESs and there is a dominance of inner circle NESTs and, thus, exposure to native English. Fa-miliarity is also related to the nationality of participants’ NESTs, and the participants are most familiar withnative English, particularly American, as in previous studies (Matsuura et al., 1994; Chiba et al., 1995). This canexplain why they find native English easier to understand and can, therefore, at least in part, explain their se-lection of particular native English varieties as teaching models. This suggests that favourable attitudes towardsnative English may come from the dominance of native English ideology, creating and perpetuating a falsestereotype that acquisition of NE equates successful communication. This supports pedagogical proposals thatstress the need to increase English learners’ exposure to the diversity of English and eradicate this false view thatNE is ‘superior’.

As in Dalton-Puffer et al.’s (1997) study, personal experience was also found to be important, and s with experiencestudying abroad in the UK were significantly more likely to choose UK English as their preferred model. Attitudes arealso linked to motivation. More are learning English to communicate with NESs than with NNESs, and those whowanted to study English to communicate with NESs were significantly more likely to want to sound like one. Par-ticipants who plan to use English in their job in the future with NESs were also found to be more likely to prefer theirEnglish teachers to be both NESs and NNESs, or only NESs, and those participants who study English because they‘are interested in it’ are more likely to think their NESTs are proficient.

Results also support the influence of pedagogical beliefs about how languages should be learnt (Adolphs,2005) and participants want to sound like a NES because of its use as a yardstick, their familiarity with itand because it equates to successful communication worldwide. As in Kuo’s (2006) study, they do not seecommunication with an NNES as a good learning opportunity and, despite negativity towards NESs interlocutors,it is a necessary way to improve English because of the former’s ‘phonological and grammatical inaccuracy’(ibid, p. 218).

These pedagogical beliefs are also based on previous experiences. Some have negative experiences usingEnglish with NESs abroad and another noted that ‘Japanese English’ is unintelligible, which may explain theirdesire to sound like a NES. Thus, as argued at the theoretical level, English learners need exposure to the di-versity of English, including increased opportunities to practice ELF to instill confidence that, as a majorityspeaker, English is now a global language that does not belong to NESs. It is no longer relevant for comparisonsto be made with NESs, or to view NNESs as failed natives. Approaches to ELT should emancipate future ELFusers from NES norms and instil confidence in them that as bilinguals, and often multilinguals. English learners’


awareness should be raised of the advantages of being an ELF speaker. They should be encouraged to see thevalue of their first language and culture as a resource, not a hindrance, and see successful ELF users as rolemodels.

In this study, NESs are held in high esteem. However, this does not make the dominance of NE acceptable. Thisstudy also aimed to investigate global Englishes instruction and the influence on attitudes. Here, more participantschose the English spoken in Japan as an attractive variety of English in the post-course questionnaire and the selectionof outer circle and expanding circle varieties almost tripled, with most of these selections made by global Englishesparticipants. No global Englishes participants made references to NNESs as incorrect in the post-course questionnaireand NES ownership was referred to more than twice as much by non-global Englishes participants. Similarly, in theinterviews, the global Englishes participants made more references to global Englishes awareness and related thesecomments directly to the global Englishes class. This was also reflected in attitudes towards ELT; more global En-glishes participants chose Japanese teachers in the post-course questionnaire, global Englishes participants showed adecline in preference for NESTs and it is clear that the global Englishes participants see the need for ELT materials tobe more inclusive of different Englishes and cultures around the world. The global Englishes course also raisedawareness of non-native English, the English spoken in Japan, confidence as speakers of a recognisable variety ofEnglish and overall global Englishes awareness. Furthermore, global Englishes participants noted an increasedawareness of global Englishes, a new interest in further study and changed perceptions of English and ELT. In-terviewees also noted a change in opinion. Thus, while there may be preference for native English, supporting pre-vious research, the global Englishes participants enjoyed the course and it raised their awareness of global Englishesoverall.

6. Conclusion

Despite being conducted in one country, this study highlights the need for more research into the needs, interests,attitudes and goals of English learners’ today, as well as further investigations into the development of ELT courseswith a global Englishes focus. Several factors influence English learners’ attitudes towards English, and preferencesfor native English are clearly linked to familiarity and stereotypes. Teachers are urged to build on these findings inline with the pedagogical proposals in the literature, tailor their English classes to the global ownership of English.This study highlights the need to make English learners aware of the fact that future target interlocutors are likely tobe ELF users, as well as NESs. Additionally, to eradicate stereotypes, multilingual English teachers, preferably withELF experience, should be recruited from around the world to increase English learners’ familiarity with someoneother than native English. Future ELF users need increased exposure, need to learn strategies to interact with peoplefrom many different backgrounds and learn that their aim should be mutual intelligibility, not native-likeproficiency.

This study calls for further investigations into the creation of a global Englishes curriculum that builds on theresearch findings of this study. From this study, it is clear that, in the Japanese context, the NES is still placedfirmly on a pedestal, and it is clearly time for them to stand aside and let the experienced and successful ELF usershine.

Appendix A. Interview transcription conventions

[Inaudible segment] Inaudible portion

(Overlapping) Overlapping speech

CAPS Emphatic stress (‘I’ and acronyms are underlined)

(.) Pause of less than a second

(3) Approximate length of pause in seconds

: Length (repeated to show greater length)

@ Laughter

... Author’s gaps


Appendix B. Interviewee profiles

Name English education Experience abroad English use ELF

experience

Future goal

Saori Singapore (3 years)

Conversation school

School

English major

England (study 1 month)

Vietnam (Volunteer)

Friends (NESs and NNES)

Korean NNEST

Yes Use English in

future job

Yukiko Mother’s friends

(she can speak English)

Conversation school

School

English major

England (study 3 months)

France, UK, Canada, Australia,

Hong Kong, America (Holiday)

Mother’s friends

(NESs & NNESs)

Yes Work/holiday Canada

Work in Japan

Travel Agent

Nanae English pre-school

(from 3 years old).

Conversation school

School

English major

Hawaii (Holiday)

New Zealand (Study 1 year)

Part-time job at Disneyland

(Chinese & Indian tourists)

Friend (German)

Yes Work in Japan

using English

Yuka Conversation school

School

English major

Canada (holiday)

Australia (study 1 month)

Part-time job in a hotel

(German & American tourists)

Yes Work in Japan

using English

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Nicola Galloway is a lecturer in education (TESOL) at The University of Edinburgh, where she teaches on the MSc TESOL program. Before that,

she worked in Japan for over ten years as an English teacher. Upcoming book publications include an academic text on Global Englishes with

Routledge.

http://www.mext.go.jp/b_menu/houdou/15/03/03033101/001.pdf

Documents

Global Englishes and English Language Teaching (ELT) – Bridging the gap between theory and practice in a Japanese context