Native vs Non-Native Speaking Teachers, Who Would You Employ?

(Source: Taken from the blog of Mr.Tom Tuohy at: http://www.ajarn.com/blogs/tom-tuohy/native-vs-non-native-speaking-teachers/

Another issue that is still an issue up to now here in Thailand..just want to share it here. Reminding all, it's not my own entry but a copied entry with a link back to the blog site of Mr. Tom.
I decided to post it here because I myself affected of such discrimination happening here in Thailand. I just realized that the Thai Government issued something that the Filipinos should receive a salary not less than 30,000 baht and the native speakers must be 60,000baht. But you see I am receiving lower 20,000 baht, however, I don't have the power to complain since I am just a hired teacher and somewhat of no-how of common trading here in Thailand.

Who to employ?
This is an age old debate, and one that never seems to go away. If you ask one person the question above, you get one answer, ask another, and a different answer will be given. The fact is nobody can really say what the better deal is from the perspective of a school owner. But what if we change the perspective slightly and ask the same question from the perspective of a student? What would a typical student say in response to the same question? No doubt you'd get a similar cross-section of opinion with some opting for the native speaker, and others for the non-native one.

But, at the risk of turning this into an over-simplification, or sweeping generalization, shouldn't we all be in agreement that it's nigh on impossible to categorise people in such a general way? I mean, there are as many good non-native teachers as there are bad ones and, in the same way, there as many good native speaking teachers as there are bad ones, too, so quite often when we make such generalizations, we forget that there is good and bad in equal measure whoever you employ.

One story
Having worked alongside both native and non-native speaking teachers over the years in places like Thailand, Saudia Arabia, Ghana, and the UK, I have to say that I have always been impressed a lot more with the latter. Perhaps it's because they have to work harder and are generally paid a lower salary, so they may feel a sense of inadequacy because they don't have attributes that certainly most Thai language school owners prize - blue eyes, blonde hair, and/or a degree from an English speaking country like say, Australia, the USA, or the UK.

I once tried to get a colleague, who I had worked with at the University of Birmingham, a job in a reputable institution in Saudia Arabia. This gentleman has three masters degrees, two bachelor degrees, and has worked as a teacher in a variety of roles in places as diverse as Iran, Argentina, the UK, Brazil, Pakistan, Oman, The Czech Republic, S. Korea, and Canada. He had also presented at conferences in countries as varied as Hungary, Argentina, and Azerbaijan and has published more than 131 academic papers to date. When the interview came around, which was a telephone one, all went well as his spoken English is impeccable. Of course the question eventually arose as to whether he was a native speaker or not. As he was born in Pakistan and held a Pakistani passport, it mattered not a jot that he was more qualified and experienced than 90% of chalkies and had spent many years in native speaking countries living and working. His application was sent "upstairs" for consideration by the powers-that-be in the institution concerned, and a refusal to consider him for the position was returned a week or so later.

What this tells you about some institutions is that they are blind to the incredible talent out there and will refuse someone with obvious skills and experience simply because they don't fit a particular racial profile sad and true though this is. It didn't even matter that this teacher was also a Muslim and prepared to teach in one of the strictest Wahhabist societies in the world. In other institutions, this would have counted as a plus, but not here.

Another story
Conversely, my wife works in a well-known international pre-school or kindergarden in the centre of Bangkok. Here they will employ non-native speakers more often than not instead of experienced and qualified locals or native speakers, but only if they are white-skinned, with light coloured eyes and hair. I remember one time my wife told me that they had employed a blonde, blue-eyed, Swedish girl who had no experience, no qualifications, certainly no teaching qualifications and, I believe was degree-challenged as well. Although she was employed as a teacher, and had classroom duties as well, she was paid 40,000 baht a month basically to look pretty when the moms and dads came in the morning and afternoons to bring and drop off their kids. This was basically pandering to the lowest common denominator and had little to do with pedagogy or education whatsoever.

Pleasing the punters
The saddest part of these kinds of stories is that the main reason why native speaking teachers are preferred over their non-native speaking cousins has little to do with things like the ability to use RP (Received pronunciation) and be able to talk like the man on the BBC six O' clock news or talk like Bill Gates e.g. with an American accent. If that were the case, then there would be some reasonably sound arguments that could be put forward to say why such teachers are preferred. On the contrary, more often than not, native speakers are preferred because little Somchai won't be left alone with an Indian, a Pakistani or a Phillipino because they are often perceived as dirty or stupid or incapable of giving little Somchai the kind of education he needs or deserves. Similarly, such students are often handed over to a good looking young female with dubious qualifications simply because the parents, who know little about what constitutes a good teacher, value such things above true pedagogical awareness and experience.

Of course this is a very shortsighted perspective and is a waste of very valuable skills and resources but, let's be honest, is it ever likely to change while parents have a say in the school they choose for little Johnny or Navaporn?

It Does Matter if You're Black or White

(Source: Taken from the blog of Mr. Philip Roeland a native speaker teaching in Thailand: Mr. Phil Roeland's Blog
I read this article at a certain website for teachers who wish to teach in Thailand, of course including Filipinos.

"The blatant discrimination in TEFL job ads 27th May 2010
Although I'm absolutely no Michael Jackson fan, I do agree with a line from one of his songs stating that "It don't (sic) matter if you're black or white", especially when it comes to recruiting well-qualified and adequate teachers. I wholeheartedly agree that black can be beautiful, even if the statement came from one of the whitest black guys that ever walked the Earth. This blog article will go a bit deeper into the whole gamut of discriminations EFL teachers are up against when applying for a job in a far away land.

Black vs. white

Although it is rarely mentioned in job ads, most if not all Asian recruiters on the lookout for teachers are after whities. And let's make no mistake about it: the prize specimens are Caucasian white, not some locals having overindulged in skin-whitening products.

Does that mean blacks (or other shades) have absolutely no chance whatsoever of finding a job? Not really. There are plenty of opportunities, but these candidates will just have to look longer and harder before finding a decent position. As there is a chronic English teacher shortage in Asia, things will look up sooner or later as schools get desperate to put teachers in the classrooms.

Why this preference for white-skinned, blonde-haired and blue-eyed teachers in Asia? I guess most parents mistakenly believe that these are the best teachers. School administrators just go along with their misguided clients as ‘the customer is always right' (even if they're not).

What to do about it? Not much we can do really, except grin and bear it, and prove them wrong by putting on an excellent performance in the classroom which cannot be ignored.

Requirements: White Native speakers prefered (sic).
Remark: Shame on this (Chinese) recruiter.

Western vs. Asian

Not only black teachers can encounter bigoted parents and school administrators. Foreign born Asians such as ABCs (American born Chinese) or ABTs (American born Thais) will often have a difficult time persuading schools to hire them. Sometimes these teachers - who carry foreign passports - don't even speak their parents' or grand-parents' tongue anymore. Again, ruling these job seekers out - even if they're qualified - is a parochial approach that doesn't have a place in our globalised world.

Requirements: Western English teacher.
Remark: Just another way of saying that applicants should be white and big-nosed if they want to work for this employer.

British vs. American

Some job ads specifically target British or American teachers. If there's a good reason, well okay. Problem is that there hardly ever is any good reason. Students often think that because they are going to a particular country they need a teacher coming from there.

If it's for cultural reasons, I might be inclined to agree, but if it's just to better their English skills when going to the USA, a Canadian teacher could do just as good a job as an American one. If it's for immigration or political purposes, there's not much one can do (Saudi Arabia for example only wants Brits, Mexico is keen on EU passports while Taiwan and Korea are in love with US and Canadian teachers).

Fair enough if you want a Brit in order to learn the Queen's English or Received Pronunciation, but really, who would want this in an evermore globalised world where global or international English will rule the roost instead of a local variant? By the way, not all Brits speak like the Queen, innit?

Requirements: British teachers wanted.
Remark: Tough luck for Ozzies, Kiwis, Irish, South Africans and both native and non-native speakers from other countries. Remote possibility that this requirement is well-founded. However, I bet it isn't.

Native vs. non-native speaker

‘English teachers should be native speakers'. I don't know where this old chestnut came from, but were this true more than 90 per cent of all English teachers worldwide should be retired straight away. Teaching English in most countries around the globe is done by local English teachers. Swedish teachers teach English in Sweden, Brazilian teachers teach English in Brazil, and so on. By the way, English teachers teach French in England, so actually teaching another language in most countries around the globe is done by local teachers.

Hardly ever do western countries employ imported native speakers to teach English. Given the overall level of English and fluency of their students, I'd say these local teachers are doing a pretty decent job. As a travel addict, I can say that many Europeans are very good at English; Latin America has a long way to go, but it's getting there; in Africa and the Middle East skills are basic but speakers make admirable efforts.

In Asia, however, especially Thailand and China, students seem to be studying the language of Shakespeare for more than a decade and still manage not to be able to utter basic phrases, hence the idea that the best teachers must be native speakers. School administrators and parents alike seem unable or unwilling to grasp that it is rather the ability of the local teachers and the motivation of students which are sorely lacking. They also seem to forget that no matter how good foreign teachers supposedly are, they won't be able to achieve much if you pool 50 to 70 uninterested students in a single classroom.

‘So who would you employ? Native or non-native speaker?', another blog on this website asked recently. I admit that well-qualified and enthusiastic native speakers would top my list. Second place, however, would go to the dedicated non-native speakers with near-native English proficiency. At the bottom of the list you'd find the unqualified, inexperienced and often job-hopping ‘teachers' that roam the world and whose prime objective is not to help students get better at English, but rather to pay off their student loans, booze and mate as much as humanly possible and ruin the reputation of every foreign teacher in the process.

How to assess a teacher's skills and qualities? Apart from having a butcher's at their CV and cover letter, a face-to-face or phone interview possibly combined with a demo lesson is an excellent way to do this. For non-native applicants, an interview by both the local recruiter and a native speaker (as the former is often not even able to recognize if someone is a native or non-native speaker) should uncover the suitable candidates. Also, either a customized or standardised test such as TOEFL or IELTS might be used to separate the weed from the chaff.

From a personal point of view, let me just add that among the best teachers I've ever hired, quite a few were non-native speakers.

Requirements: teachers from native English speaking country USA, Canada, British (sic).
Remark: All other nationalities are screwed if this policy is enforced. The only result will be that recruiters severely limit the applicants' pool and may miss out on excellent candidates from other countries (both native and non-native speaking). It is mainly because of this myopic world view that there is a chronic teacher shortage in several (Asian) countries and that often fly-by-night and unqualified teachers can acquire a job they really shouldn't be entrusted with.

Old vs. young

When is a person too old to be an effective teacher? I don't think there is a universal age limit, be it official or unofficial. Some countries limit the age of teachers to 60, others don't have any regulations at all.

In my opinion, real age is less important than the age you feel like. Some 50-year olds may still look, feel and act like spring chickens while other 30-year olds may already be burnt-out and jaded, and look as if they're carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders. Only face-to-face job interviews can really determine how old a person is. I'd probably prefer a dynamic 50-year old to a sullen 30-year old.

So is there an age when we're too old to be effective teachers? I'm sure there is. Problem is that it differs for each individual. Some could go on into their seventies (not unheard of as you may think), while others had better throw in the towel when approaching the official retirement age. Is it warranted to ask someone's age in a job ad? I suppose so. After all, you may not want a 73-year old to teach your kindergarten class or a 21-year old to teach the business executives seminar.

Requirements: Young English teacher, native English speaker, no degree required.
Remark: This employer clearly hasn't got a clue about effective recruiting. Inexperienced, unqualified, young native speakers are preferred over qualified and possibly more mature professional teachers. No wonder so many schools bitterly complain about the quality of the teachers they hire. However, instead of generalising and painting every foreign teacher black they should rather take most of the blame themselves if they follow the above recruitment policy.

Male vs. female

Are men or women better teachers? This is a tricky but also impossible question. There are excellent female teachers, but there are some damned good male ones as well. Some claim women are often better at teaching (very) young learners. This doesn't mean, however, that all men suck at this job. By the way, recruiters limiting a teacher search to women will get them a lot less applications to choose from, thus possibly missing out on the chance to sign up the illusive perfect male teacher.

Requirements: Under 45 years old - female (sic) are required.
Remark: Excellent chances of getting this job if you're a youngish female. Old hags (45+) and blokes haven't got a chance in hell. Schools should realise that some men can be great young learners' teachers as well and that not all females adore children.

Requirements vs. remuneration

The funny things when looking at job boards is, job requirements are usually very rigorous but salary is often a complete joke. Many salaries offered may seem high when compared to local salaries, but to lure a good English teacher to a faraway land, they should be more than peanuts. No wonder only 2nd or even 3rd tier monkeys apply for many of these positions.

By the way, very few applicants are interested to know that local Somchai's or Zhou Li's can survive on respectively 15,000 baht of 3,000 yuan a month. A foreign teacher may need some more creature comforts and might want to build up a nest egg for rainy days or a trip to their home country.

Better job ads
So what kind of teachers should schools be looking for and how can they improve their job ads? As far as I'm concerned, EFL job requirements should look more like this (adaptable to the local situation of course):

Requirements:
• Well-qualified: tertiary degree and teaching certificate
• Excellent English skills
• Dedicated and creative individuals
• Experience preferred

I've seen some ads recently asking for a neutral accent. I can only applaud this as teachers with heavy regional accents can be hard to understand, especially for beginners and elementary learners (not to mention friends and colleagues). However, this is often linked to the native speaker requirement, which it really shouldn't. If a speaker has a neutral English accent, can be clearly understood and if it's hard to determine where he's from when speaking, it shouldn't matter whether he's American, German, South African or Iranian. I'd hire a well-spoken and dedicated Hungarian or Zimbabwean instead of a native-speaking lager lout or redneck with bloodshot eyes any day.

Finally, schools and recruiters should start looking for the best qualified and most suitable candidates without limiting their scope using nationality, age, gender or skin colour. Only then can we truly improve education in a globalised world. Even if local attitudes seem to be rather narrow-minded, putting decent teachers - no matter what colour or origin - in front of an audience is often the best way to overcome the students' and parents' fears and make them understand that excellent teaching skills are not linked to appearance or colour of your passport. Foreign English teachers should be seen as educators and not exotic entertainers or foreign wizards with an innate teaching ability. Good luck to all of you currently on a job hunt.

PS: All job requirements in this article were taken from actual job postings"

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