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Prevalence of Native Speaker Model
Although the distinctions between the
characteristics of native and nonnative speak-
68 • The CATESOL Journal 17.1 • 2005
ers are not always clear-cut, the prominence
of the native speaker as the target language
model is evident in L2 teaching. While the
interlanguage analysis in second language
acquisition (SLA) research may indicate the
field’s emphasis on L2 learners and its
detachment from the native speaker, the
research also tends to measure the learner’s
achievement against the norms shared by
native speakers (Cook, 1999). The fact that
native proficiency is considered the ultimate
goal of L2 learning may not be overtly discussed
in language teaching, argues Cook
(1999), calling the native speaker “a ghostlike
presence” (p. 190). Examples of the dominant
yet implicit influence of the native speaker
can be seen in many realms of language
teaching, including teaching materials. The
Collins COBUILD English Course (Wills &
Wills, 1988), for instance, consists of a collection
of native speaker usage and is described
as a work that “focuses on the real English
students will encounter and need to use in
today’s world” (cited in Cook, 1999, p. 189).
Kramsch (1997) acknowledges the prestige
endowed on native speakers since the rise of
communicative pedagogy in the 1970s, claiming
that “today foreign language students are
expected to emulate the communicative skills
of native speakers” (p. 359). What Cook
emphasizes, based on this widespread native
speaker model, is its detrimental effect on L2
learners as it imposes on them unrealistic
goals of achieving native proficiency.
Consequently, he asserts, the learners become
“imitation or failed native speakers” (Cook,
1999, p. 195). Cook, therefore, calls for more
emphasis on L2 users without assessing their
achievement in relation to native speakers,
which only points out, as Kramsch (1998)
puts it, “what they are not, or at least not yet”
(cited in Cook, 1999, p. 189).
On the other hand, Stern (1983) opposes
Cook’s view and states, “The native speaker’s
‘competence’ or ‘proficiency’ or ‘knowledge of
the language’ is a necessary point of reference
for the second language proficiency concept
used in language teaching” (cited in Cook,
1999, p. 188). Nonetheless, the prevalence of
the native speaker as a standard may indicate
more than just employing a specific group for
a model from a practical and pedagogical
point of view. Specifically, Labov (1969) discusses
the phenomenon of linguistic ethnocentrism,
characterized by the unreasonable
expectation for the minority group to conform
to the norm of the majority group,whether the
group classification is based on race, class, sex,
or any other features (cited in Cook, 1999).
Kramsch (1997) also explicates the assumption
that the primary motivation for language
learning is to “become one of ‘them.’ But more
often than not, insiders do not want outsiders
to become one of them” (p. 364).
A similar social and political perspective
for justifying the native speaker dominance in
language teaching is Kachru’s linguistic colonial
construct, which seeks to describe the
language users based on the colonial power
structure (1997, cited in Brutt-Griffler &
Samimy, 1999). In brief, the languages of the
colonizers must perpetually overpower those
of the colonized.Also worth mentioning is the
issue of the ownership of the English language,
which is based on the assumption that
a language belongs to its native speakers.This
type of argument also encourages the native
speakers to secure their prestigious status,
particularly when the language is of considerable
importance in international communication
and thus receives a greater demand for
usage than others. Nayar (1994) argues that
native speakers “have laid claim to the rights
and responsibilities not only of controlling
the forms and norms of English globally but
also of dominating the theory and practice of
its teaching and research” (cited in Brutt-
Griffler & Samimy, 1999, p. 417).
From the viewpoint of the native versus
nonnative dichotomy, then, the native speaker
model prominent in the language education
sector clearly favors NESTs, as they themselves
can serve as an exemplary model to the
students. NNESTs, on the other hand, tend to
develop professional inferiority complexes,
given their linguistic impediment, and to be
constantly self-conscious about how they are
perceived by their students and colleagues
The CATESOL Journal 17.1 • 2005 • 69
(Cook, 1999; Liu, 2001; Medgyes, 2001).
Particularly, the area of pronunciation, in
which it is considered relatively more difficult
to acquire native proficiency, may exaggerate
the nativeness of the teachers and further
emphasize conformity to native standards.
Does this mean NESTs are better teachers
than NNESTs? The following section examines
the strengths and weaknesses of both
NESTs and NNESTs.
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