The plight of non-native English-speaking teachers of languages in the teaching profession: A case of African teachers of English

Abstract

Although the current corpus of English Language Teaching [ELT] literature acknowledges the fact that being a successful and effective English Language teacher goes beyond one‟s linguistic heritage as a native speaker of the language, Non-Native English Speakers (NNES) still face marginalization in regard to their professional credibility and proficiency as English Language teachers. While studies on this issue have predominantly focused on the plight of teachers of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in many countries, there has been limited research on balanced bilingual teachers of English in African countries –such as Uganda and Rwanda who, in fact, are native speakers of more than one language. This paper aims at reviewing the recent literature on the plight of non-native English speakers teaching English language as a profession. It intends to specifically highlight the issues faced by teachers of English who may not necessarily fit snugly into the Native and Non-Native dichotomy. Relevant research on job marginalization, accents, and student‟s perceptions will be discussed.

Key words: English as a foreign language, native-non-native English speaking teachers, marginalization