NAVIGATING ACCENT AND PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY: NON-NATIVE ENGLISH-SPEAKING TEACHER IN CHINA'S ELT LANDSCAPE

Abstract

This study examines how Chinese English language teachers (CELTs) navigate issues surrounding accent and professional identity in light of pervasive discourses regarding native-speakerism in the English language teaching industry. Combining a qualitative analysis of participants’ discourse and quantitative sociophonetic analysis of their speech styles, this study finds that CELTs have developed a strong ideological association between native-like English accents and teacher expertise; also, they experience a sense of underachievement in comparison to native English speaker teachers. Given the conflicts between the assigned identity of “non-native speaker teacher” and the desired self-representation of “professional English teacher”, CELTs construct and maintain their professional identities through both discursive and linguistic strategies. This study provides further insights into the influence of macro-level language policies and circulating native- speakerist ideologies on the professional self-presentations and English speech production of ELT practitioners in China.