I Am Never Afraid of Being Recognized as an NNES

25 Pages·2014·0.13 MB·English

“I Am Never Afraid of Being Recognized
as an NNES”: One Teacher’s Journey
in Claiming and Embracing Her
Nonnative-Speaker Identity
GLORIA PARK
Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Indiana, Pennsylvania, United States
With an increase in the number of learners and speakers of English
as an additional language entering the English language teaching
field, especially in Outer and Expanding Circle countries and some
migrating into the Inner Circle countries (e.g., Jenkins, 2009), there
is an urgent need to prepare, and understand the experiences of,
English language teachers from diverse backgrounds in teaching
English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) programs. In view
of this burgeoning need, TESOL programs could tailor their curric-
ula to meet the academic and professional needs of all students plan-
ning to teach English in worldwide contexts. To this end, this article
presents one thread of a larger study examining the experiences of
five East Asian women before and during their TESOL programs.
Snapshots are provided of one TESOL student whose academic and
professional experiences highlight the disconnectedness between her
experiences in China, her TESOL program, and her mentored stu-
dent teaching experience. An exploration of this student’s identity
transformation is followed by a discussion of implications for TESOL
programs.
doi: 10.1002/tesq.4
According to the Open Doors Report (Open Doors Report, 2010),
published annually by the Institute of International Education,
the number of international students in the United States increased by
3% during the 2009–2010 academic year. The increase represents a
record high number, which was driven by a 30% increase in Chinese
student enrollment in the United States. Although the ODR does not
specifically report the number of international students in teaching
English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) degree programs, the
report does indicate the number of international students in the Uni-
ted States that matriculated in intensive English programs and in the
TESOLQUARTERLYVol.46,No.1,March2012 127
©2012TESOLInternationalAssociation
fields of education, foreign language, and social sciences in which
many U.S. TESOL programs are housed. Published by the TESOL
International Association, The English Language Professional’s Resource
Guide lists more than 400 TESOL1 programs in the United States alone
(MultiView, 2011). The sheer number of U.S. programs likely height-
ens the visibility of the United States as a place in which to pursue a
TESOL degree. Moreover, the vast array of TESOL programs in the
United States reinforces the perception of the power and prestige of
American Standard English (AmSE; see Bolton, 2005; McArthur, 2001;
Phillipson, 1992). As a result of this perception, many nonnative-Eng-
lish-speaking teachers (NNESTs) from Outer Circle countries (OCCs)
and Expanding Circle countries (ECCs) are migrating to Inner Circle
countries (ICCs) to not only increase their English language (EL) pro-
ficiency but also become prepared to teach English around the world
as a result of global mobility and the focus on internationalization
(see Bolton, 2005; Jenkins, 2009; Kachru, 1997; Kamhi-Stein, 2000).
Many from OCCs and ECCs seek admission into U.S. TESOL pro-
grams to begin their academic and professional journeys as teachers of
English (e.g., Bolton, 2005; Butler, 2007; Kamhi-Stein, 2000; Nunan,
2003).
What has received little attention in regard to this is the experi-
ences of NNESTs in these programs as they transition from their
native to U.S. educational contexts. Understanding and documenting
the academic and professional experiences of NNESTs’ journeys prior
to and during this phase of their education could raise awareness of
rewards reaped and challenges encountered from the ways in which
their linguistic identities have been constructed in the TESOL pro-
grams. Many NNESTs’ experiences are rewarding due to gaining
access to English-dominant academic communities to (re)construct
their identities as users of English in authentic contexts (Kachru &
Nelson, 2006). On the other hand, many NNESTs perceive a deficit in
their EL proficiency due to not sounding like native speakers (Jenkins,
2009; Kamhi-Stein, 2004). Not surprisingly, securing a high level of EL
proficiency has come to be one of the goals for NNESTs as they con-
tinue to envision English as a form of social, academic, and symbolic
capital (Lin, 1999; Park, 2009).
Understanding the experiences of NNESTs in TESOL programs
would assist teacher educators and researchers in tailoring TESOL cur-
ricula to meet the academic and professional needs of all students
planning to teach English in worldwide contexts, especially in OCCs
and ECCs. To this end, the focus of this article is on one thread of a
1TESOLprogramsinthedirectoryconsistofMA,MEd,undergraduateendorsements,K–12
licensure,andPhD;thedirectorydoesnotfocusexclusivelyonMATESOLprograms.
128 TESOLQUARTERLY
larger study examining the experiences of five East Asian women
NNESTs before and during their TESOL education.2 The present arti-
cle examines the journey of one student, Xia Wang, to highlight the
disconnectedness between her experiences in China, her TESOL pro-
gram, and her mentored student teaching experience. Xia’s story is
remarkable because of the striking transformation she underwent from
the self-perceived marginalization of her identity as an NNES to the
celebration and acceptance of her NNEST identity.
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
Much has already been written on the issues pertaining to NNESTs
working in various contexts, as evidenced by edited and single-
authored volumes (e.g., Braine, 1999, 2005, 2010; Kamhi-Stein, 2004;
Llurda, 2005) and numerous articles focusing on NNEST identity con-
structions (e.g., Chacon, 2009; Lee, 2010; Menard-Warwick, 2008; Park,
2006, 2008; Pavlenko, 2003; Simon-Maeda, 2004; Tang, 1997; Varghese,
Morgan, Johnston, & Johnson, 2005). The research so far has consid-
ered the rewards and challenges experienced by native-English-speak-
ing teachers (NESTs) as well as NNESTs, yet attention to diversity
within these groups has been limited.
Challenges and Triumphs of NESTs and NNESTs
Within the past decades of scholarly work on issues relevant to
NNESTs, earlier studies positioned these teachers into a single group
without highlighting the diversity among them (e.g., Hoekje & Linnell,
1994; Kobayashi, 1992). The NEST/NNEST dichotomy, essentially an
“othering” process, minimized and overlooked the multiple identities
of NNESTs, who could potentially identify themselves as multicompe-
tent bilinguals, Generation 1.5, multilinguals, or World Englishes
(WE) speakers (Cook, 1995; Jenkins, 2009; Pavlenko, 2003). In
response to this othering perspective privileging native speaker status,
scholars examining NNEST issues began to take a stance indicating
that all NESTs and NNESTs have strengths and challenges (Medgyes,
1999). Among the strengths of NNESTs mentioned is their ability to
explain and teach English grammar due to their lived experiences as
English language learners (ELLs; Medgyes, 1999). However, although
the NNESTs were perceived to have more metalinguistic awareness
2Allnamesandinstitutionsarepseudonyms.
ONETEACHER’SJOURNEYINNNESIDENTITY 129
due to their language learning experiences, according to some observ-
ers they lacked confidence to showcase their teaching and lacked
information on navigating the sociocultural and sociopolitical contexts
embedded in teaching English (e.g., Johnson, 2009; Nieto, 2010).
Experiences of East Asian Women in TESOL Programs
Although NNESTs come from all over the world, there has been an
influx in MA TESOL programs of teachers from East Asian countries,
as suggested by studies highlighting language policy changes and WE
issues connected to preparing English teachers (Berns, 2005; Butler,
2007; Matsuda, 2003; Nunan, 2003). The reality in ECCs may be that
there is a lack of a knowledge base in preparing teachers to use cultur-
ally sensitive pedagogical materials that are relevant and practical for
their own contexts (Kumaravadivelu, 2001). Therefore, the ECCs view
ICCs as having a “norm providing capacity” (Kachru & Nelson, 2006,
p. 125) in terms of production, function, and authenticity of the EL,
hence often relegating the English teachers from ECCs to a marginal-
ized, second-class status. As one way to reconstruct their NNEST identi-
ties, teachers from ECCs seek advanced degrees in higher educational
contexts in the United States and other ICCs (e.g., Butler, 2007;
Kamhi-Stein, 2000; Nunan, 2003).
Coming to a greater understanding of how East Asian women
NNESTs navigate through their TESOL programs and how they
become (or do not become) participatory members of various English-
dominant academic communities has been the focus of several studies
in TESOL and general teacher education disciplines (e.g., Park, 2006;
Price & Osborne, 2000). Also, there have been studies examining
NNESTs’ self-perception of their teaching and other identities: Chi-
nese EFL teachers in Asian contexts (Tang, 1997), visible minority
women NNESTs in Canada (Amin, 1997), an Asian NNEST in a main-
stream context (Pailliotet, 1997), Chinese Canadian immigrant teach-
ers’ identities and roles (Beynon, Ilieva, & Dichupa, 2001), and
professional identities of women NES and NNES English as a foreign
language (EFL) teacher educators in Japan (Simon-Maeda, 2004).
However, none of the studies that I have come across has focused on
East Asian women NNESTs’ academic and professional experiences
prior to and during their enrollment in TESOL programs. It is during
their time in MA TESOL programs that these women come to (re)con-
struct their EL identities. Researching the experiences of East Asian
women highlights the privilege embedded in their prior academic
learning situations and their identities constructed and negotiated as a
result of having access to EL learning in ICCs. In such research, the
130 TESOLQUARTERLY
women’s privileged past stands in stark contrast to the levels of linguis-
tic marginalization that surface during their time in TESOL programs.
METHOD OF INQUIRY
This article reports on one part of a larger qualitative study3 examin-
ing the experiences of five East Asian women NNESTs before and dur-
ing their TESOL programs. As a researcher and an adjunct faculty
member in the women’s programs, I was immediately drawn to how
the women described their EL learning and teaching experiences. Just
like each woman who came into my study, I also identified myself as
an NNEST who often questioned her EL proficiency level in relation
to her teacher identity.
Researcher’s Positionality
At the time of this study, in addition to working as an adjunct fac-
ulty member, I was also an active member in the regional TESOL com-
munity and a mentor in various academic and professional
organizations. I saw my positionality as juxtaposed to that of the
women in this study in that their experiences were intricately inter-
woven with my own experiences as a Korean American woman. Even
though I was not an international student, my claiming of NNES, Gen-
eration 1.5, and bilingual identities as a Korean American woman
became an identity construction with similarities to what the women
have come to experience in their TESOL programs (Ladson-Billings,
2000; Pennycook, 2005). I was one of them, and had dealt with many
of the same issues with which they had dealt on a personal, academic,
and professional level. I was compelled to examine how the EL iden-
tity intersected with gender, class, and race in my own lived experi-
ences as well as the lived experiences of the women via the stories they
shared with me. The very selection of this topic reflected a subjectivity
and bias in that I could not divorce myself from the experiences of
these women. Hence, this study, in and of itself, was a reflection of my
personal and, to some degree, my academic experiences. As with
Hansen (2004), “These experiences were the reason why I became a
TESOL professional, and my self-identification as an NNES is the iden-
tity that drives my research and teaching” (p. 41). To this end, my
3During the period 2004–2006, I entered the field, collected data, conducted analysis,
andsharedthecompleteddissertationwitheachofthefivewomen.
ONETEACHER’SJOURNEYINNNESIDENTITY 131
study became an “extension of [my] understanding of the worlds [I]
seek to more fully comprehend” (Ramanathan, 2005, p. 291).
Method of Data Collection
Duringthedatacollectionperiod,Iutilizedelectronicautobiographi-
cal (E-Auto) narratives (structured), electronic journal (E-Journal)
entries (semistructured), and individual interviews (unstructured) as
maindatasourcesinunderstandingthewomen’sexperiencesbeforeand
duringtheirTESOLprograms.Inwhatfollows,Iexplicateeachphase.
E-Auto narratives. In the E-Auto phase, the women emailed me
responses to questions focusing on their language learning and teach-
ing experiences prior to gaining admission into the TESOL program
(see Appendix 1). They responded to these E-Auto questions at their
convenience in order to avoid any pressure they might have felt had
there been face-to-face interviews.
E-Journal of educational incidents. In the E-Journal phase, the
women captured their “during the program/classroom” experiences,
which revealed their thoughts and experiences as they interacted with
professors and classmates in their TESOL program (see Appendix 2).
This phase began upon completion of the E-Auto phase and ended in
June 2005.
Individual interviews. Finally, the individual interviews allowed for
more intimate interactions between each woman and me in probing
follow-up questions and clarification. Per the women’s requests, these
interviews were conducted at a location convenient to each of them.
The interviews extended over the course of 6 months with each
woman. Additionally, all data were collected in English per the
women’s requests because it gave them opportunities to use the lan-
guage to share their experiences. The interview tapes were transcribed
verbatim after each interview for preliminary analytic memo writing
and for guidance in the follow-up interview as needed.
Data Analysis
I began analyzing the data before the end of data collection, which
is consistent with the protocol for conducting qualitative research
132 TESOLQUARTERLY
(Bogdan & Biklen, 2003). First, I performed line-by-line data analysis
throughout and after data collection was completed. Second, I created
a table displaying the participants’ demographic information,4 which
was shared with each woman to conduct member-checking. Next, I
winnowed the data by creating a text of important categories and
themes in relation to the women’s past (Looking Back), present
(Reflecting on their TESOL Program), and future (Thinking Forward)
life history trajectories (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000; Dewey, 1938/
1963). Then, I further analyzed each woman’s narrative by finding
emerging themes connecting their EL identity and other social catego-
ries (i.e., race, gender, social class5). The process concluded with an
in-depth analysis of each woman. What follows is a description of one
participant’s construction of narratives prior to and during her TESOL
program.
XIA’S NARRATIVE SNAPSHOTS: FINDINGS AND
DISCUSSION
Xia was born in Beijing in 1979. At the time of my study, she was
finishing her MEd in TESOL at a university on the U.S. East Coast,
Pacific University (a pseudonym chosen by Xia). Even though she was
not planning to teach in a preK–12 context, she had decided to com-
plete the ESOL certification track in order to better understand the
U.S. public school system. Hence, in the spring of 2005, she com-
pleted her student teaching as a partial requirement for her MEd in a
K–12 degree program.
Xia made her feelings of linguistic powerlessness evident during
one of our initial encounters in September 2003, which was set up
through one of our mutual colleagues. Although I had not yet begun
the study at that time, I became interested in Xia and wanted to know
more about her views and what made her feel so powerless. In Decem-
ber 2004, after I began the data collection, she reiterated those feel-
ings of powerlessness, which she attributed to her lack of EL
proficiency. She linked her feelings to her status as a temporary resi-
dent in the United States.
In what follows, I weave my interpretations throughout Xia’s narra-
tive snapshots, illustrating her lived moments within the Chinese and
U.S. educational contexts and highlighting the emerging themes. My
interpretation is one of many possible readings of the data presented
4This included length of TESOL study, study abroad, teaching in their native contexts/
U.S.contexts,andimaginedfutureplanspost-TESOL.
5Theirvariousformsofcapital(i.e.,privileges)obtainedthroughouttheirlives.
ONETEACHER’SJOURNEYINNNESIDENTITY 133
to me. Due to the limited space, a snapshot approach is used to report
the data. This approach illustrates different events in her life that have
either enriched or disempowered her identity as an EL learner and
teacher, enabling explication of the disconnectedness between her aca-
demic and professional experiences in China and in the United States.
This disconnectedness ultimately led to Xia’s (re)construction of her
EL identity, the focus of this article.
In a Homogeneous Context: Empowerment or Hegemony?
Xia’s identity as an ELL was strong during her early educational
experiences in China due to her stellar performance in class and
on examinations of her EL abilities. She stated that all the exam-
inations she took in high school (1994–1997) were focused on
doing well for the college entrance examination. Due to the nature
of these exams, the focus of the English classes was on practic-
ing the listening test items and becoming familiar with test-taking
strategies.
SNAPSHOT 16
In my high school, the teacher did not even speak a full sentence in
English. They just said a, b, c, and d…. They focused on correct
answers all the time… in Chinese. English [was] never a difficult sub-
ject to me, especially at school where the main purpose of English
[was] passing exams. (Interview, 12/04)7
Xia perfected her test-taking strategies during her high school years.
She became very confident in her ability to excel in every subject
related to English because the goal was to do well on school and
national exams. Although she excelled academically, Xia realized that
using English in authentic communication was almost nonexistent in
the Chinese public educational system.
Xia’s engagement in the aforementioned assessment practices paral-
lel McLaren’s (2003) discussion of how a group of powerful individu-
als (e.g., teachers, schools) can gain the consent of those who may be
in powerless positions, such as Xia’s, as a learner. McLaren states that
hegemony is a “maintenance of domination not by the sheer exercise
of force but primarily through consensual social practices (i.e., what
people say and do), social forms, and social structures produced in
specific sites such as the … school” (p. 76). The struggle that became
apparent in Xia’s narrative was that even though she did not agree
6SnapshotdatathatarebracketedhavebeenediteduponXia’srequest.
712/04referstoDecember2004.
134 TESOLQUARTERLY
with her teachers’ “teaching to the test,” she both knowingly and
unknowingly participated in this oppressive situation of taking and
doing extremely well on the exams because it was the normative prac-
tice in her educational context. Due to this practice, Xia’s EL abilities
did not prepare her to use English in authentic communicative con-
texts. The assessment measures Xia was engaged in were the hege-
monic practices pervasive in educational contexts that place much
more weight on scoring high on exams as opposed to building stu-
dents’ critical thinking skills often associated with learner-centered
pedagogy (Freire, 2003; hooks, 2009).
Xia’s stellar performance in English exams helped her gain access
to the Weekend English Language Enrichment Program (WELEP)8
reserved for the top 5% of students in public school classes, which
gave her a taste of authentic communication in English in China:
SNAPSHOT 2
I benefited more from weekend “enrichment” schools [where] the
English class is more interactive and the teacher speaks better English.
[…] find pen pal in other countries for us to write with… Also [I]
had native-English-speaking guest teachers from time to time. (E-Auto,
10/04)
Xia enjoyed her experience in WELEP, which was a part of her edu-
cational capital until she graduated from high school in 1997. Accord-
ing to Xia, she was able to interact with NES guest teachers
occasionally, which introduced her to face-to-face communication with
an NES. In addition, she stated that she was able to participate in com-
municative activities with NNESTs focusing on the actual use of the
language as opposed to the regurgitation of language that was memo-
rized. Xia’s experience reflects Lin’s (1999) discussion of Bourdieu’s
(1973) concept of cultural capital and habitus. Xia’s EL experience in
WELEP points to the ways in which she was socialized to “do school”
in order to be successful in China. Because of power and privilege
connected to English in China (as is the case in other ECCs), English,
taught as an academic subject, is perceived as a powerful tool for pro-
viding the Chinese with educational and economic global access. Thus,
the EL identity is often associated with the socioeconomically
advantaged group of students. As a result, many families send their
children (also adults) to EL programs geared toward communicating
with NESs (Butler, 2007; Li, 1998; Nunan, 2003) preparing them to
gain access to postsecondary institutions in English-dominant countries.
There are several unintended consequences of this well-intentioned
8Enrichmentclasses(e.g.,giftedandtalentedprograms)catertohigh-achievingstudents,
usuallyavailabletofamiliesinhighsocioeconomicstanding.
ONETEACHER’SJOURNEYINNNESIDENTITY 135
educational endeavor. Lin (1999) argues that many children from eco-
nomically disadvantaged groups may not be able to participate in pro-
grams such as WELEP due to lack of language skills, attitudes,
dispositions, and so on gained from their families who may not pro-
mote this type of capital or habitus.
Another unintended consequence of participating in programs like
WELEP is that attending these special programs and taking classes in
afterschool language institutions could be seen as the norm. The
existence of such programs represents structural oppression for the
“have-nots.” In Lin’s discussion of Bourdieu’s (1991) notion of sym-
bolic violence, a form of miseducative experience can be that many
individuals misrepresent “good schools” to only be “English medium
schools” (Lin, 1999, p. 395). For families who may not be able to
afford to send their children to afterschool EL classes, the parents
may be perceived as not caring about their children’s education,
because going to language school is seen as the norm. However, as
stated in Lin’s (1999) article, the focus should be on the knowledge
and the needs of the students in English classes where ELLs can use
their native language to support the learning of English (Ovando,
Comb, & Collier, 2006).
Although the first two snapshots illustrate Xia’s perceived educa-
tional success in her earlier schooling journey, her undergraduate edu-
cational experience focusing on English language and literature in a
Chinese university further fueled her desire to be in an English-
dominant academic community in order to learn more about the
teaching of English. With this goal, Xia gained admission into an MEd
program in a U.S. K–12 certification program. In what follows, I intro-
duce snapshots illustrating her experiences in her TESOL program,
where she began to question her EL identity.
Questioning the Legitimacy of EL Identity in a
Heterogeneous Context
The reality Xia faced in the United States in relation to EL learning
and use was different from what she had experienced in China. Her
linguistic identity was transformed once she came to the United States
due to a host of ideologies shaping who is seen as a legitimate owner
and user of English (Canagarajah, 1999; Widdowson, 1994). As Xia
began to compare herself to NESTs in her TESOL classes with respect
to linguistic fluency, she began to question all she had accomplished
back in China in relation to EL acquisition. Thus, her desire to master
English and sound like NESTs dominated her educational experiences
136 TESOLQUARTERLY