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2NNEST NEWSLETTER, Vol. 5, No. 2

I t is our destiny as non-native English-speaking teachers(NNESTs) to face a variety of challenges on many issues, in-cluding, among others, highly required language and pedagogi-cal competencies, proper cultural orientation, native-like ac-cent, and the like. The question remains, should these chal-lenges hold us back or should we exploit them as opportunitiesto grow professionally? Two of the articles included in thisissue of theNNEST Newslettersuggest answers to this ques-tion. This issue also offers some related news along with a let-ter from the chair.

With great pleasure I want to first introduce the newNNEST Steering Committee Members for 2003-2004: MasakiOda, Caucus Chair; Ahmar Mahboob, Chair-Elect; Khalid Al-

Seghayer,NNEST NewsletterEditor; and Lucie Moussu, Web-master. In private conversations, all four have expressed theireagerness to serve the NNEST Caucus to the best of their abili-ties. They need your support, encouragement, and constructiveinput.

On behalf of the current NNEST Caucus leaders andmembers, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to PaulMatusda, Past Chair, and Aya Matusda, Past Webmaster fortheir invaluable contributions to the NNEST Caucus over thecourse of the past few years in many areas.

Masaki Oda, our current Chair, sets out the intended plansor priorities of the NNEST Caucus for the coming year and themechanism for implementing such plans. Two of the included

articles demonstrate how the potential challenges thatNNESTs professionals often encounter can be looked upon sothat they become opportunities to grow professionally. Thefirst article, by John Liang, is entitled Models of NNESTsTeacher Development: Rethinking the NS/NNS Dichotomy Init, Liang discusses some of the existing models of NNESTteacher development and then suggests a new perspective onthis issue. Liang also encourages NNESTs professionals toseek potential avenues for professional development.

In the second article, Challenges May Offer Opportuni-ties to Grow Professionally, Theresa Jiinling shares someanecdotes regarding challenges she has encountered throughher teaching career that either offered her opportunities to growprofessionally or inspired her to use her non-nativeness to heradvantage.

Finally, in the third article, Professional Development ofan NEST through Working Alongside an NNEST, KimberlyJohnson portrays how a native English- speaking teacher(NEST) can benefit from working alongside a non-native Eng-lish- speaking teacher (NNEST). In particular, this experienceoffered Johnson an opportunity to learn about her own

teaching and herself as an NES teacher and to closely examinecertain issues, such as language, authority, and her identity as anative English speaker.

This issue of theNNEST Newsletteralso contains informa-tion regarding the East Carolina University/TESOL Award foran Outstanding Paper on NNEST Issues.

I find it difficult to choose the right words to convey mygreatest appreciation to the authors for their fine contributionsto the current issue of theNNEST Newsletter. I would like alsoto call on prospective contributors to consider submitting arti-cles and related news. As always, your contributions are highly

welcome.

Enjoy this issue of theNNEST Newsletter

Khalid [email protected]

From The Chair (Continued from page 1)

proportion of the members of TESLO Inc. reside outside ofNorth America. Related to this is that the geographical distri-bution of NNEST Caucus members, 837 as of July 2003,shows that most of them do not live in North America. Anotherrelated factor comes from the fact that TESOL continues tohold its annual convention in North America. The establish-

ment of a close connection among U.S.- and non-U.S.-basedmembers of the NNEST Caucus may help to solve any poten-tial problems related to the TESOL annual convention, whichis held in North America. Therefore, we need to establishmeans that will help us overcome any problem that mightcome from the fact that TESOL usually holds it annual con-vention only in North America. An example of this resolutionis evident in a personal experience I had when assigned to or-ganize the NNEST Caucus at the TESOL Annual Conventionin Baltimore, Maryland, in March 2003. I had managed to lo-cate ten non-U.S.-based members who expressed their willing-ness to participant in the NNEST Caucus both activities. Aweek before the convention, various travel restrictions wereissued due to the war on Iraq so I lost all 10 of the volunteers.

However, the close connection between some of the U.S.-based members, especially Ahmar Mahboob, Aya Matsuda,and myself enabled me to maintain both activities, although Iwas not actually present at the convention.

The proposed establishment of a close networking con-nection among NNEST Caucus members--those living in theUnited States and those living elsewhere--will be achieved bymeans of several approaches.

( Continued on page 3)

Editors Remarks


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The proposed establishment of aclose networking connection amongNNEST Caucus members--those liv-ing in the United States and thoseliving elsewhere--will be achieved bymeans of several approaches. It

should be noted that these initialthoughts will be developed further byconsulting other NNEST Caucus lead-ers and also through your suggestionsand feedback.

First, I will encourage more par-ticipation in the NNEST electronic list(E-L). We would like members toactively contribute to the list discus-

sion and raise local and global issuesof interest to the NNEST Caucus.Having healthy and informative on-line discussion will bring memberstogether and benefit everyone, espe-cially those who cannot attend the

TESOL annual conference.Second, I will establish a men-toring system for those who wouldlike to publish articles in academicjournals, and/or present papers at con-ferences. It is hoped that this systemwill benefit both young and seniorresearchers.

Finally, I will conduct a member-ship survey. Since this is the fifth yearfor the NNEST Caucus, I think it istime to identify the needs and con-cerns of the NNEST Caucus memberswhich, in turn, will help us set up a

long-term plan.In a few weeks, I will presentsome of the discussion issues men-tioned above on the NNEST (E-L).Thus, I look forward to your activeparticipation and hope that I will havethe opportunity to interact with many

of you soon.

NNEST NEWSLETTER, Vol. 5, No. 2 3

Models of NNESTs

(continued from page 1)

pedagogical development and thensuggest a new perspective on theconcept of NNEST professionalgrowth.

Deficit Model of NNESTs Teacher

Development

Traditionally, in evaluating ateachers teaching ability, we tend tobase our evaluation/judgment onwhat qualifications the teacher has orwhat skills the teacher does not have

(Matsuda & Matsuda, 2001). Thisdeficit model is often automaticallyapplied to the evaluation of non-native English teachers. For in-stance, in comparison to native Eng-lish teachers, there are at least twoareas of competence many non-native English teachers are thoughtnever to be able to achieve: linguisticcompetence and target cultural com-petence.

In the area of linguistic compe-tence, accent appears to be an ever-

haunting nightmare. Many ESLteachers feel insecure because oftheir accent, and that this gives theirstudents an excuse to question theircredibility. In addition to the accentproblem, lack of fluency, accuracy,vocabulary, and syntactic-discourseskills also represent tremendouschallenges (Medgyes, 1992). In the

area of cultural competence, lack ofknowledge of the target culture repre-sents yet another deficit. ManyEFL/ESL teachers have admitted thatdue to a lack of cultural knowledge,they feel handicapped in teachingculturally-embedded instructionalmaterial to their students (Liu, 1999).

In any case, there are linguisticand cultural deficits intrinsic to non-native English teachers. These defi-cits undoubtedly impact these teach-

ers self-perception and self-image(Reeves & Medgyes, 1994), which inturn may deepen their sense of inferi-ority.Competitive Model of NNESTs

Teacher Development

If the deficit model representsone extreme, then the competitivemodel of NS-NNS interaction per-haps represents another extreme. Forinstance, one line of argument is thatthe concept of nativeness is just arelative construct with limited valid-ity (Davies, 1991) due to the exis-

tence of different varieties of English(Kachru & Nelson, 1996). Anotherline of argument is that the academicdiscourse community should toleratea pluralistic rhetoric that includesdifferent accents in writing or differ-ent varieties of English (Canagarajah,1996).

A third position is perhaps moredirectly related to the ELT profes-sion. For instance, Medgyes (1992)argues that fluency in English doesnot guarantee effective teaching.Similarly, Canagarajah (1999) ques-tions the native speaker fallacy. In-deed, studies have indicated that non-native speakers demonstrate a con-siderable number of advantages in alanguage classroom: they are awareof the differences between L1 and

L2, are more empathetic to studentslearning needs, backgrounds, anddifficulties, and represent a source ofmotivation and a good role model(Medgyes, 1992; Samimy & Brutt-Griffler, 1999).Collaborative Model of NNESTs

Teacher Development

Whereas the deficit and com-petitive models are justifiable de-pending on the context, it cannot bedenied that native and non-nativeEnglish teachers each have their ownstrengths. An argument over who is

worth more is just a waste of energy(Medgyes, 1992; Samimy & Brutt-Griffler, 1999).As such, a collaborative model ofteacher development may be moreappropriate because the strengths ofboth the NESTs and NNESTs can be

(Contiuned on page 4)


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well integrated and even multipliedto both parties benefit.

For instance, on the NESTs side,collaboration can help increase theirtheoretical understanding of the natureof second language learning and en-hance their sensitivity to L2 learnersneeds and difficulties. On theNNESTs side, collaboration mayhelp them develop an intuitive knowl-edge of language structure and useand increase their awareness of thetarget culture. In short, collaborationcan help both groups of teachers de-velop their language teaching aware-ness, increase their teaching effective-ness, and promote greater autonomyand mutual professional growth(Matsuda & Matsuda, 2001; Carvalho

de Oliveira & Richardson, 2001).However, the collaborative

model is not without concerns. First,it appears to be focused more on cog-nitive development in teaching skillsand awareness. Second, the NNESTs,due to language anxiety and fear, maybe afraid to initiate collaboration withNESTs, whereas some NESTs maylack an awareness of the potentialbenefits of collaboration and thus beunwilling to participate.

Integrative Model of NNESTsTeacher Development

As alluded to above, NNESTteacher development encompassesmore than the cognitive dimension ofdevelopment. A holistic or integrativeapproach to NNEST teacher develop-ment is desirable.

Perhaps an integrative model ofNNEST teacher development shouldtake into consideration the social andaffective as well as cognitive dimen-sions of teacher development.Whereas development in pedagogical

and language skills is undoubtedlyessential to effective teaching,NNESTs self-identity, self-perception, self-efficacy, and self-concept equally affect their teachingapproaches and performance.Whereas professional preparation isimportant to NNESTs teaching suc-

cess, their feelings of inferiority andsense of insecurity may hamper theirattempts to pursue further professionalgrowth. All in all, central to an inte-grative model of teacher developmentis the concept that NNESTs are seenas professional beings in need of sus-tained development in all areascognitive, social and affective.

An integrative model also meansintegrating NNESTs language learn-ing with their meta-thinking on themethodologies and pedagogies theyare studying. After all, many of thelanguage learning and teaching theo-ries are Western-based. Non-nativeEnglish teachers may need to mediateany conflict between these theoriesand the actual teaching context in their

home countries. They may even needto develop their own methodologiesand pedagogies appropriate to theirunique learning and teaching context.

Finally, an integrative modelmeans continual NS-NNS collabora-tion, whether self-initiated or pro-gram-required, hopefully beginning atthe pre-service level (Kamhi-Stein,1999) and extending into subsequentteaching and possibly teacher trainingcareers. It has been suggested that bystrategically integrating NS-NNS col-

laboration into curriculum require-ments, the two groups of teachers maylearn to develop collaborative rela-tionships that are essential to theirlong-term career growth (Carvalho deOliveira & Richardson, 2001).

Conclusion

The NNEST construct encom-passes complexity and multidimen-sionality, factors that are beyond whatis defined within the traditionalNS/NNS dichotomy. The NNESTconstruct is not merely a linguistic

issue and/or a teaching competenceissue. It includes the social, affective,and cognitive dimensions of teacherdevelopment. Therefore, NNESTsshould be encouraged to look beyondtheir innate deficits and/or relevantcompetitiveness and fix their eyes ondevelopment. After all, the challenges

they encounter in their learning proc-ess not only are inevitable but alsorepresent opportunities for growth.Therefore, non-native English teach-ers should bravely confront their fearand anxiety, develop their faith, anddetermine to pursue their growth asprofessionals in constant need of de-

velopment.

ReferencesCarvalho de Oliveira, L. &

Richardson, S. (2001).Collaboration betweennative and nonnative English-speaking educators.CATESOL Journal, 13,123-134.

Canagarajah, A. S. (1999). Interro

gating the native-speakerfallacy: Non-linguisticroots, non-pedagogicalresults. In G. Braine (Ed.),

Non-native educators in

English language teaching(pp. 77-92). Mahwah, NJ:Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Canagarajah, A. S. (1996).Nondiscursive requirements in academic publishing, material resources of

periphery scholars, andthe politics of knowledgeproduction. Written Communication, 13, 435-472.

Davis, A. (1991). The nativespeaker in applied linguistics. Edinburgh, England:Edinburgh UniversityPress.

Kachru, B. B. & Nelson, C. L.(1996). World Englishes. InS. L. McKay & N. H.Hornberger (Eds.), Sociolinguistics and languageteaching(pp. 71-102). Cambridge, England: CambridgeUniversity Press.

Kamhi-Stein, L. D. (1999). Preparingnonnative professionals inTESOL: Implications forteacher education programs.

(Continued on page 5)



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In G. Braine (Ed.),Non-native educators in English language teaching(pp. 145-158). Mahwah, NJ:Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Liu, D. (1999). Training non-native TESOL students: Challenges for TESOL teacher education in the West. InG. Braine (Ed.),Non-native educators in English language teaching(pp. 197-210). Mahwah, NJ: Law-rence Erlbaum Associates.

Matsuda, A. & Matsuda, P. K. (2001). Autonomy and collaboration in teacher education: Journal sharing among

native and nonnative English-speaking teachers. CATESOL Journal, 13, 134.Medgyes, P. (1992). Native or non-native: Whos worth more?ELT Journal, 46, 340-349.Samimy, K. K. & Brutt-Griffler, J. (1999). To be a native or non-native speaker perceptions of non-native

students in a graduate TESOL program. In G. Braine (Ed.),Non-native educators in English languageteaching(pp. 127-144). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Reeves, T. & Medgyes, P. (1994). The non-native English speaking EFL/ESL teachers self-image: An interna-tional survey. System, 22, 353-367.

Author

John Liang is an Assistant Professor in the Department of TESOL and Applied Linguistic at Biola University,La Mirada reading, and California. His research interests include pedagogical grammar, second language readingand writing, and technology-enhanced language learning.


Challenges May Offer Opportunities to Grow Professionally

Theresa Jiinling [email protected] University of Pennsylvania

The Chinese translation of the

word crisis is composed of twocharacters weiji: the first char-acter wei means danger, orchallenge, and the second char-acter ji means opportunity. Inother words, from one perspective,a challenge implies an opportunityto change positively. As a non-native English-speaking teacher(Chinese descendant), I havetaught ESL and EFL, as well asnative English-speaking students at

colleges and universities for 17years-- with 14 years in the U.S. Inthis article, I intend to share someanecdotes of challenges I haveencountered throughout my rela-tively long teaching career, whicheither offered me opportunities togrow professionally or inspired meto use my non-nativeness to my

advantage.My first job, after I received a

masters degree in Speech Com-munication, was a part-time ESLteaching position at a communitycollege in Southern Californiawhere I taught adult ESL classes tomainly Spanish-speaking learners.As I was taking the attendance inthis first class meeting, I mistak-enly pronounced Jesus as /gee-zuz/, Jose as /jouz/ and Angelas /angel/. I mumbled to myself,What a holy class I have, espe-cially after my students correctedme. I felt a little bit embarrassedand decided to take a Spanishclass. My purpose was not merely

to pronounce my students namescorrectly, but also to understandthem and help them more effec-tively.

The Challenge of Learning an-

other Language

Indulging myself in the chal-lenge of learning Spanish offered

me the opportunity to better under-stand the process of learning an-other language and to becomeaware of the challenges and hur-dles equated with such a difficultintellectual experience. Such reali-zations became salient as my in-structor used Spanish even on thefirst day of my Spanish 1 class. Ifelt the teacher was talking too fastand I became anxious when I haddifficulty understanding and com-municating with my teacher andclassmates. After going throughthis experience, I have to agreewith the contention proposed byLowe (1987) and Bailey (2001)which states that learning a new

language helps L2 teachers putthemselves in the learners shoes,thereby becoming sensitive to theproblems and processes confront-ing their own students.

This challenge made me alterhow I taught ESL beginner classes.



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Because of it, I tried a number ofapproaches, including attemptingto reduce my students anxiety byslowing down and repeating thenew language items frequentlyand in varying contexts. I alsotried to make the target languagecomprehensible to my students byemploying context clues, such aspantomiming or using a lot ofpictures. Furthermore, my ownexperience offered an understand-ing of the areas in English thatmight present difficulties for mySpanish-speaking students. Forinstance, what had seemed per-plexing learner errors such asestop (for stop) and eschool(for school) became clear to me

once I became aware of the spell-ing pattern in Spanish: the lettere always goes before s + avoiceless stop /p/, /t/, or /k/ inthe words initial position.

Having the feeling that I wasbecoming a better English teacherand also receiving positive feed-back from my students encour-aged me to pursue the journey oflearning Spanish further. By thetime I had finished my fourthsemester of Spanish, I was able to

help my Hispanic students ex-press what they wanted to say--when I noticed that they werestruggling-- in Spanish. I oftengot a kick out of it in a new classwhen I heard my Spanish-speaking students exclamation,Entiende espaol?! (You un-derstand Spanish?!) after I helpedthem. My relative linguistic andcultural knowledge also enabledme to help Asian students to somedegree (in the classes I havetaught, I usually had about ten

percent Asian: e.g., Vietnamese,Chinese, Korean, or Japanese).Hence, I would argue that thatempathy toward the second lan-guage learners and an understand-ing of students mother tongueshelped establish my credibility asa non-native English-speaking

teacher (NNEST).

The Challenge of Native-

Speaker Fallacy

The notion of Native-Speaker Fallacy was anotherchallenge that I came acrossthrough my teaching career. Thisobstacle, as I saw it, stood in theway of my securing a full timeESL teaching position. My reali-zation of this challenge comesfrom two sources. A non-nativeEnglish-speaking (NNES) coun-selor at my college told me thatwe, as non-native English speak-ers, have to work twice as hard asour native English-speaking coun-terparts to be accepted as full-

timers. She also stated that Theinterviewers will examine thenon-native speakers qualifica-tions and performance micro-scopically. Additionally, shepointed out that, based on herexperience when she served on ahiring committee, administratorsmostly tend to give full time ESLteaching positions to native Eng-lish speakers based on the believethat the ideal teacher of English isa native speaker.

I also came to know aboutthis challenge via the argumentsmade by some researchers favor-ing native English-speakingteachers over non-native English-speaking teachers. These re-searchers maintained that nativeEnglish speakers are the onlytruly valid and reliable source oflanguage data (Ferguson, 1992,p.xiii). Widdowson (1994) indi-cated that native-speaker exper-tise is assumed to extend to theteaching of the language and

consequently native speakers notonly have a patent on proper Eng-lish, but on proper ways of teach-ing it as well (pp. 387-388).

To overcome the challengeof the "native-speaker fallacy,notion, I decided to seek means toadvance myself professionally. I

undertook to obtain a second mas-ters degree, majoring in linguis-tics with a TESL concentration. Iwas driven by the strong believethat with appropriate training anon-native speaker could prove tobe as good an English teacher oreven better than a native speaker.Assuming the role of a teacherand a student at the same timewas a difficult but invaluable ex-perience. It was a challenge formy time and energy because I hadto juggle two part-time teachingjobs (including teaching as wellas freeway-flying to get to worksites) and keeping up with myown graduate studies. However,the arrangement provided me with

opportunities to try out the newteaching methodologies and theo-ries I was introduced to in mycourses and to reflect upon theconnections between theories andpractice as well.

The result was that not onlydid I have fun in teaching, mystudents were also more moti-vated to learn. One of my studentssaid, You really understand ourneeds in learning English. An-other student-- who was very mo-

tivated, but often had trouble infinding the right vocabulary toexpress his thoughts-- becamefairly fluent and found a high-paying job at a computer com-pany a year later. The secret be-hind his successful progress wasreading and writing every day(e.g., computer magazines, car-toons in the newspaper, copies of

Readers Digest, and close-captioned TV) and attempting toutilize the phrases and expres-sions he encountered in reading

and writing in his daily communi-cation with others. He stated,You are nota native-speaker ofEnglish, but you could be an ESLteacher. I thought the methodsyou told us must be somethingyou have tried and found useful.

(continued on page 7)



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For my perspective, this stu-dents improvement could be as-cribed to both his motivation tolearn English and the power ofpleasure reading or extensive read-ing . The latter is said to play a bigrole in second language acquisition(e.g., Krashen 1993; Smith 1994.Though the researchers do notclaim that there is a strong connec-tion between reading and speaking,apparently this highly motivatedstudent was able to benefit fromhis free voluntary reading and us-ing what he learned from readingin his oral and written communica-tion. What I did was simply sharethe scholars ideas I had learnedfrom my graduate courses with my

students and encourage them touse the new language as often aspossible. Nevertheless, my identityas an NNEST added to my stu-dents trust in what I said to them.

The Challenge of Establishing

Oneself Credibility

Another area of challengewas establishing my credibility asan English teacher. This was diffi-cult to accomplish apparently due

to the fact that I was teaching na-tive English speakers. Those stu-dents were not used to beingtaught by a teacher who lookedmarkedly different from their pre-conceived images of Englishteachers. In this regard, Thomas(1999) states, we [non-nativeEnglish speakers] often find our-selves in situations where we haveto establish our credibility asteachers of English to speakers ofother languages before we canproceed to be taken seriously as

professionals (p.5). I managed,however, as to be explainedshortly, to overcome this difficultyby relying on my unique status as anon-nativene.

When I secured a full-timeinstructor position, I was assignedto teach a freshman English writ-

ing class for native speakers ofEnglish. On the first day of theclass, students stared at me withlooks of distrust as I entered theclassroom. One of the studentsrolled his eyes 360 degrees as if hecould not believe what he was see-ing: A non-native speaker wasgoing to teach them English! Sev-eral students who sat at the back ofthe classroom put their feet up onthe chairs in front of them. Withfolded arms, they were waiting tosee how I was going to teach them.One of them raised his hand andasked, What does epistemologymean? Though the question mighthave been a real one, I suspectedthat the student was trying to test

my vocabulary because it was aquestion out of relevant context.

After I answered his question,I began introducing myself. I firstspoke in English, but half waythrough, I switched into Spanish,and moments later, I continued myintroduction in Chinese. Facing thechallenging students, I knew that Ihad to temporarily ignore my basicChinese value of humility and beassertive. My little schemeworked. Students started asking

me how many languages I couldspeak and paying attention to whatI said. Later on during the semesterwe discussed Amy Tans (1989)The Joy Luck Club. My studentswere highly motivated to explorethe cultural aspects presented inthe stories because they thenviewed me as a cultural informantwho could help them explore thecultural differences.

I found that establishing ourcredibility is even more pressingwhen we, NNES teachers, are

teaching native speakers. I thinkone way through which we canearn the trust of our prospectivestudents is to take advantage of ourcross-cultural experiences. In thesame vein, Wang (2003) statedthat the cultural differencesNNESTs bring to the English

classroom could be positively ex-ploited.

Closing Remakes

While the linguistic and cul-tural differences we bring toESL/EFL or English classroomsmay create challenges for our-selves, we also bring a great manypositive attributes that may en-hance our students learning. Tho-mas (1999) argued that asNNESTs we are role models; weare success stories; we are realimages of what students can aspireto be (p. 12). Looking back, I seethat several times my professionalgrowth as an NNEST was trig-

gered by a challenge in my career.Being non-native English-speakingteachers, we can certainly takeadvantage of our uniqueness. Thechallenges we face can very well

be opportunities for our growth.

References

Bailey, K., Curtis, A. & Nunan,D. (2001).Pursuing professional development.

Boston, MA: Heinle & Heinle.

Ferguson, C. A. (1992).Foreword. In B. B. Kachru (Ed.),The other tongue: Englishacross cultures (pp. xiii-xvii). Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press.

Krashen, S. (1993). The power ofreading: Insights from theresearch. Englewood,CO: Libraries Unlimited.

Lowe, T. (1987). An experiment inrole reversal: Teachers aslanguage learners.English Language Teaching

Journal, 42(2), 89-96.Smith, F. (1994). Writing and the

writer. Hillsdale, NJ:Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Tan, A. (1989). The joy luck club.New York: Putnams.

( continued on page 8)



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Thomas, J. (1999). Voices from the periphery: Non-native teachers and issues of credibility. In.Braine, G. (Ed.),Non-native educators in

English language teaching(pp. 5-14). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Widdowson, H. G. (1994). The ownership of English.TESOL Quarterly, 28, 377-388.

Wong, B. (2003). The cultural differences NNESTsbring to English composition classroom maycause an avoidable problem and be an advantage too. TESOL NNEST Newsletter, 5(1),7-8.

Author

Theresa Jiinling Tseng is from Taiwan. She is a PhDcandidate in the Composition and TESOL Program atIndiana University of Pennsylvania. Her research in-terests include second language writing and secondlanguage acquisition.


Kimberly [email protected] University of Minnesota

In the spring of 2000, teaching inan Intensive English Program at aMidwestern University in theU.S.A, I participated in the TESLpracticum as a mentor (or cooperat-ing teacher) with a non-native Eng-lish speaking (NNES) graduatestudent teacher. Many of the eventsof that spring still resonate and in-form my teaching and interactionswith NNES graduate students andESL students; this is one story fromthat experience.

This story, drawn from a lar-ger narrative (Johnson, K.A., forth-coming), provided me the opportu-nity to learn something about myteaching and myself as a (nativeEnglish speaking (NES) teacher

(Johnson and Golombek, 2002).This critical incident (Tripp,1994), forced a closer examinationof the assumptions I make aboutlanguage, authority and my identityas a native English speaker.

Teacher Identity

Teacher identity is relationaland dynamic, shifting with eachnew context (McLean, 1999). Per-haps most fundamentally, ourteaching identity will shift in ourrelationships with people, withlearners, as well as colleagues.Brison (2002), argues that the selfis both autonomous and dependent,shaped and formed in relation to

others and sustained in a socialcontext (p. 41), and understandingthis relational aspect is essential tolearning who we are as people andas teachers.

There is perhaps no relation-ship more capable of transformingthe teachers involved than that be-tween a mentor teacher and a stu-dent teacher. While some studieshave examined how this relation-ship effects student teacher identity(Britzman, 1991; Danielewicz,

2001; Johnson, 1992), little hasbeen written about the impact onthe mentor teacher. In my work as aNES mentor teacher, I am curiousabout the effect that the mentoringexperience, especially when work-ing with a NNES student teacher,may have on my own teacher iden-tity. What can I learn about myself

from the experience?The Caring Relation and Teacher

Values

Noddings (1984) argues that theactivity of the classroom itself isone of relations, between studentsand between students and teachers.This caring relation involves oneparticipant as the one-caring(in theposition of authority and responsi-bility, as a mother, or teacher) and

the cared-for(those of less powerand authority, as a child, or stu-dent). Although Noddings canidentify salient aspects for eachrole, the roles themselves are notfixed; and furthermore each partici-pant bears a responsibility in struc-turing and negotiating the relation-ship.

Noddings identifiesengrossment as central to an un-derstanding of the character of theone-caring a commitment to an-

other that varies in intensity withthe context and the relationship,manifested through acts that requirea need to see the others reality asa possibility for my own (p. 14). Iwould argue that this need to under-stand the others reality becomes

( Continued on page 9)

Professional Development of an NEST through Working

Alongside an NNEST


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even more significant in secondlanguage teaching and in our deal-ings with so many of diverse cul-tures; this is equally true, and po-tentially problematic, in the rela-tionship of the NES mentor and theNNES student teacher. The combi-nation of mixed linguistic and cul-tural identities, and individual val-ues and beliefs, may result in in-creased tension that requires spe-cial effort for the NES mentorteacher in the role of the one-caring to see the others reality.

Mentoring Ali

In this context, an MA TE-SOL program at a large US univer-sity in the Midwest, mentor teach-

ers and student teachers work to-gether for the duration of a semes-ter, cooperating on ever aspect ofthe classroom: planning, leadingactivities, assessing, reflecting,finalizing grades.

I worked work with Ali, anAngolan man in his early thirtieswith a variety of teaching experi-ences. He had taught EFL at homeand had taken a certificate in teach-ing EFL in England, but had nevertaught ESL. We were very differ-

ent people: gender, race, culture,language, religion.Together we taught a course

that met two evenings a week for2 hours each night. We had sevenstudents from Morocco, China, theCzech Republic, Indonesia, Iran,and Saudi Arabia, all involved inthe biological sciences, medicine,engineering, or business.

The Preposition

In terms of language profi-ciency, I found him to be quite

fluent (and English was his fourthor fifth language) and comfortablein conversations with me. I wouldoften make notes while he led theclass about language issues thatarose, we would talk him aboutissues after class, and during classhe and the students would often

check with me on some aspect ofthe language. I prided myself onbeing honest and non-judgmental.

The preposition incident oc-curred toward the end of the 15week semester. Students wereworking on a writing task led byAli, when one of the studentsturned to ask for clarification witha preposition. Typically, given thevaried nature of preposition usagein North American English, ques-tions about prepositions got re-ferred to me. But in this case, nei-ther Ali nor any of the studentsglanced my way. Ali answered thestudent and the activity continued.I didnt write down the question,nor do I remember the preposition

(other than recognizing it as onethe defied easy categorization andfor which there was often confu-sion), but I remember the moment.At the top of my observation notesfor that day is written, Great! Heknew the preposition and the stu-dents dont need my expertise ei-ther! In my journal from that dayis the following:

One of the students todayasked about a prepositionand Ali answered without

hesitation. How nice tosee that the students ac-cept him as knowledge-able about something like prepositions! InterestingdevelopmentalthoughAli still turns to me as thelanguage authority forsome things, it is clearthat he is confident inhimself and the studentsare confident in him as ateacher. How big has theNNS factor really been?

(4/24/00)At the time, I celebrated this

moment as a triumphant one forAli; he had demonstrated languageexpertise and not a single studentturned to me for confirmation, anindication to me that the studentsaccepted his language expertise as

well. This is all still true. What haschanged for me is the way I thinkabout myself with this incident.

Ali, as a NNEST, was awareof language issues, and I was too.What caught me by surprise withthis preposition incident is the waythatIwas surprised by it. Withoutbad intentions, I accepted myself,as everyone else had, as the ac-knowledged language expert in theclass. By reflecting critically onmy own reaction, I believe that Iwas surprised at the prepositionincident because in a way it chal-lenged my unconscious under-standing of myself as the Englishlanguage authority, bestowed uponme as a native English speaker.

The significance of this mo-ment for me, as I reflect now, iswhat it reveals about the assump-tions that I bring with me to men-toring and what it could mean forany NNESTs that I may mentor inthe future. My journal and classnotes from this semester are rid-dled with comments about lan-guage, minor errors, confusion thatI registered from students, thingsthat I wanted to talk to Ali aboutlater. Below are a couple of exam-

ples: Again tonight he had diffi-culty listening to the stu-dents. I wonder if, as Iveread about the challengesof being a NNEST, thepressure to teach commu-nicatively is stressful.Isnt it likely that he isworking on the language,anticipating the next moveor instructions or task insuch a way that it is diffi-cult for him to concentrate

on student re-sponses?Just how im-portant is the linguisticcomponent? How do Ilearn if this is indeed theissue? (2/15/00)He asked me to define




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niche as he ledthe class tonight,although Ithought he hadalready defined itcorrectly lin-guistic insecurityor just involvingme? (3/6/00)Clearly, I was

aware of my status as anNEST, and of his status asan NNEST. But howmany of these issues arereally important, in termsof the language learning ofthe students and the devel-opment of this teacher?Dont NES teachers make

language mistakes, too?How can I know if theerrors made really matterat all?

The significance ofthis moment is also relatedto the caring relationshared by me and Ali. Mypleasure in this incident ispart of my belief and carefor this student teacher,my reactions areembedded in a relation-

ship that reveals itself asengrossment and in anattitude that warms andcomforts the cared-for(Noddings, 1984, p. 19).While I may feel jarred bythe realization that Ali isalso a language expert andthat I am no longer in theone-up position, I am alsopleased at this realization.

Ultimately, and key to arelationship between men-tor teacher and student

teacher, is the understand-ing that the student isinfinitely more importantthan the subject(Noddings, 1984, p. 20).As a NES mentor teacher,I feel it is vital to recog-nize the significance of

this, and to ask: How in-hibiting or difficult mightit be for NNES studentteachers, who alreadyquestion their own compe-tence, to be aware thatthey have a critical audi-ence at all times to moni-tor their language? Howcan we best provide anenvironment of caring andsupport that allows theNNES student teacher togrow?

Professional Growth

Through Mentoring

Bill Johnston, at the

2001 TESOL colloquiumon teacher identity, askedfor those investigatingTESOL teacher identity tofocus not just on the ques-tion of who we are, butalso on the question ofwhat we do and what weknow. Reflecting on thisexperience with Ali, itbecomes clear that morethan what it tells me aboutAli is what all of this tells

me about myself, the verythings that Johnston sug-gests. All of this is morethan who I am, it is aboutwhat I do in the class-room, what I believe andwhat I know about thelanguage and the peda-gogy. It is fundamentallyabout the relationship withthis student teacher andthe values that I bring tothis context.

With the preposition

incident, I wonder aboutmy own expectations ofthe importance of lan-guage for the NNEST. Ofcourse I recognize that aminimum level of fluencyis necessary (althoughdefining that is another

issue completely, see Val-des, 1998, or Nickel,1987) but I felt, as did thefaculty and directors at theIEP, that fluency was notan issue for Ali. At thesame time, I seemed veryaware of the language, tothe point that my notes arelittered with references toerrors or issues. I worrythat my focus on this willdo more harm than goodin terms of Alis own self-confidence and freedom tofocus on more pressingissues in the classroom.Wont my concern aboutlanguage keep him from

growing in other ways byforcing him, more than healready does, to be con-stantly reminded of hisstatus as a non-native Eng-lish speaker?

I think that one les-son here is in the value ofcritical reflection for theNES mentor teacher andin open communicationwith the NNES studentteacher. As NESTs, we

must be available to assistwith linguistic issuesshould they arise, but wemust balance that with anawareness of issues ofself-confidence for thesenew teachers. This is aquestion of competingvalues, and one that theNES mentor must recon-cile. I believe an impor-tant factor in Alis devel-opment and self-confidence as a teacher

was the acknowledgement,by the students, and theNES mentor teacher, thathe was linguistically com-petent. This was demon-strated by the studentsacceptance of his exper-tise, and my willingness to

accept this as well.

Conclusion

In the end, the inter-action between studentsand teachers is, as Nod-dings notes, about caring.In my caring relation withAli, I recognize that I wasnot attempting to trans-form the world but allow-ing myself to be trans-formed through the experi-ence (p. 34). Constructingthis narrative has allowedme to understand thismentoring experience as alearning experience and

how I have been changedas a teacher and a person.I think about the NNESgraduate students that Iknow and their strugglesto forge a positive identityas English language teach-ers, and I wonder how theperceptions, and the criti-cal eyes and ears of theirNES peers or mentorteachers might inhibit thisgrowth. I wonder what I

can do differently, or if Ineed to do anything differ-ently.

It is my hope thatsharing such stories canbecome a resource forprofessional developmentfor other teachers, thatlistening may act as a cata-lyst to encourage us tolook critically at our ownexperiences. I am surethat others have wonderedabout the difficulties of

working with internationalstudent teachers, or haveasked themselves if theyhave done their best foreveryone involved: thelearners, the studentteacher, themselves.




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How can we know these things if weare unwilling to tell our stories, to havethem valued, and to expose ourselves inan attempt to grow and encourage oth-ers?

We do need for further research on

the personal experiences of mentorteachers and student teachers, particu-larly any combinations of NESTs andNNESTs. We need more research intothe nature of this relationship and theoutcomes of working together beforeteacher educators can work to make theteaching practicum experience the mostvaluable experience that it can be foreveryone involved. We have much tolearn from each other.

References

Britzman, D. (1991). Practicemakes practice: A critical

study of learning toteach. Albany: State Univer-

sity of New York Press.Danielewicz, J. (2001). Teaching

selves :Identity, peda-gogy, and teachereducation. Albany: StateUniversity of New York.

Johnson, K.A. (forthcoming)Every experience is amoving force: Identity andgrowth through mentoring.Teaching and Teacher Edu-cation.

Johnson, K. E. & Golombek, P.R.(Eds.) (in press). Teachersways of knowing: Narrative

inquiry in professional development. Cambridge: Cambridge UniversityPress.

Johnston, B. (2001). Presentation atthe colloquium on teacheridentity, TESOL 2001, St.Louis, Missouri.

McLean, S.V. (1999). Becoming ateacher: the person in theprocess. In R. Lipka and T.

Brinthaupt (Eds), The Role of Self inTeacher Development (pp. 55-91). Albany: State Universityof New York Press.

Nickel, G. (1987). How native can(or should) a non- nativespeaker be?ITL Review of

Applied Linguistics 67-68,141-160.

Noddings, N. (1984). Caring. AFeminine approach to ethicsand moral education. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

Tripp, D. (1994). Teachers

lives, critical incidents andprofessional practice.Qualitative Studies in Educa-

tion, 7(1), 65-76. Valdes, G. (1998,Spring). The construct of thenear-native speaker in the foreign language profession: Perspectives on ideologies aboutlanguage. ADFL Bulletin 29(3), 4-8.

Author

Kimberly Johnson is an ESL teacherand PhD student in Second Languagesand Cultures Education at the Univer-sity of Minnesota. Focusing specifi-cally on teacher education and profes-sional development, her research inter-ests include NNESTs in TESOL, femi-nist research and pedagogies, discourseanalysis, and the moral dimensions ofteaching and teacher education.

NEW AWARD FOR PAPERS ON NNEST RELATED TOPICSIn June 2003, a new TESOL award was approved. The East Carolina University/TESOL Award for an Outstanding Paper on

NNEST Issue provides US$250, and a complimentary convention registration, to TESOL members (native or nonnative speakers ofEnglish) who have had a proposal on NNEST issues accepted for presentation at the annual TESOL convention. This Award wasinitiated by Ahmar Mahboob of East Carolina University and supported by the NNEST Caucus leadership.

The following information are taken directly from the TESOL website: http://www.tesol.org/mbr/awards/tesol/nnestissues.html

Who's Eli-gible TESOL members who have had a proposal accepted for presentation (paper or colloquium) on NNESTissues at the 38th Annual TESOL Convention in 2004. Both native and nonnative speakers of Englishmay apply.

Purpose To recognize scholarship on NNEST issues.Amount One award of US$250, donated by East Carolina University, and a convention registration to the Annual

TESOL Convention.

Criteria Eligible proposals are evaluated according to (a) the significance of the topic as it relates to the NNESTresearch, (b) the contribution to the field of TESL/TEFL, (c) originality and creativity in concept, and (d)relevance and broad impact.

To Apply Applicants will submit their proposals through the TESOL call for participation. Using the box providedon the proposal form, applicants must indicate their desire to be considered for this award.

*For the 2003-2004 awards cycle only, all TESOL members whose NNEST-related proposals have beenaccepted for TESOL 2004 will be eligible for the award.

Due Date The application deadline is the same as the call for participation for TESOL 2004.


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Masaki Oda

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