Exploring the lives of non‐native speaking English educators in Sri Lanka

Abstract

This paper uses in‐depth interview data to explore aspects of the lives of non‐native speaking English educators working in the state education system in Sri Lanka. In so doing the research focus is on the educators themselves and the paper will discuss such issues as: careers as English teachers—motives for entering teaching, career progression, becoming a teacher educator; professional self‐development; beliefs about teaching, learning and teacher education; and the wider socio‐educational context of English teaching in Sri Lanka. It is hoped that the paper will offer insights into the development of non‐native speaking TESOL teachers—by making more visible features of practice in particular contexts—as well as providing ‘snapshots’ of teaching and learning in state systems beyond the western world which may inform thinking more broadly about international English language teaching and learning.

Notes

* 109 Grovehall Drive, Leeds LS11 7EU, UK. Email: [email protected]

‘EFL’ is an acronym more commonly used in the UK, whereas ‘TESOL’—Teaching of English to speakers of other languages’—has its origin in the US, though it is gaining currency elsewhere and will be used as the preferred term in this paper.

The question of whether a ‘global educational culture’ might be said to exist will require more detailed investigation of the data in this paper as well as data from other countries and so will need to be the subject of a separate paper.

I am all too aware of the irony of my position as a native speaker of English in conducting this research with non‐native speakers and realize that I lay myself open to the charge not of ‘sponsoring’ the voices of these Sri Lankan educators but of ‘appropriating’ them for my own ends. However, I hope that my continuing professional and personal relationship with them will mitigate any such charge.

This is not to say, of course, that interviews with other teachers in Sri Lanka would not find similar reasons for entering teaching as Cole found in the UK. However, it is interesting that none of this small sample shared reasons for entering teaching found by Cole.

It should be noted, however, that the education reform programme underway in Sri Lanka at present has raised the minimum qualification to A level for entry to pre‐service teacher‐training colleges.

There are valuable insights into the strategies that children use to cope with learning an unfamiliar language in these interviews but space precludes discussion of them here.

For the purposes of this paper I define ‘collegiality’ and ‘collaboration’ simply as any process of teachers working together on any aspect of their professional lives which is self‐initiated.

Though the three interviewees now work as in‐service teacher educators their career progression is based on many years classroom teaching within the state educational system and I do not wish to differentiate them from schoolteachers for the purposes of this paper.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

David Hayes *

* 109 Grovehall Drive, Leeds LS11 7EU, UK. Email: [email protected]