Ideologies of Native-Speakerism and Standard English in ESL Teacher Preparation Textbooks

• In Event: Fairmont Roundtable Session Six
  In Roundtable Session: Countering Colonial Subjectivities in Curriculum Studies: Analyzing Power and Ideologies Across Borders and Territories (Table 3)

Abstract

Using Norman Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis and theorizations of the native-speakerism and the Standard English ideologies, I inquired the following research questions: (1) What do ESL teacher preparation course textbooks communicate about learners of the English language and about language practices of theirs? (2) How is the native-nonnative-speaker binary challenged, if at all, in these textbooks? (3) How is the standard-nonstandard-English binary challenged, if at all, in these textbooks? I analyzed five textbooks used in four courses of a university-based ESL teacher education program. My findings suggest that these textbooks reflect competing language ideologies. I call for careful examination of the appropriateness of curricular materials in ESL teacher education and for guided analysis of textbook language ideologies for preservice teachers.

Author

• Mingzhu Deng, Georgetown University
  Presenting Author