The endonormative standards of European English

2013 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rias van den Doel ◽  
Hugo Quené
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
Internet Survey ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
European Continent ◽  
Global Ratings ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Inner Circle

It has been asserted that a common European variety of English is currently emerging. This so-called “European English” is claimed to be the result of convergence among non-native English speakers, and to reflect a gradual abandonment of Inner Circle norms, which are deemed to be increasingly irrelevant to non-native speakers’ communicative needs. Evidence is so far lacking that Europeans judge each other’s proficiency in English by anything other than native-speaker standards — particularly as regards pronunciation. Nonetheless, it would be interesting to establish whether European non-native speakers of English demonstrated convergence when evaluating the pronunciation of fellow Europeans, and in this respect deviated significantly not only from Inner Circle English native speakers but also from non-European judges. To investigate this possibility, a large-scale Internet survey was carried out in which different groups of users of English (native and non-native, European and non-European, N = 373) evaluated the pronunciation features of five European accents of English, by means of global ratings and detailed responses. The observed convergence of native and non-native judges’ responses does not correspond with emerging endonormative pronunciation standards on the European continent. Hence these findings fail to support the claims about an emerging European English variety.

scholarly journals Native Speakers as Teachers in Turkey: Non - native Pre - service English Teachers’ Reactions to a Nation - wide Project

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdullah Coşkun
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Native English Speaking Teachers

Although English is now a recognized international language and the concept of native speaker is becoming more doubtful every day, the empowerment of the native speakers of English as language teaching professionals is still continuing (McKay, 2002), especially in Asian countries like China and Japan. One of the latest examples showing the empowerment of the native English speakers comes from Turkey planning to embark on a project to hire 40.000 native English - speaking teachers (NESTs) to collaborate with the local non - native English teachers (NNESTs) in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classes in Turkey. This study tries to reveal the preliminary reactions of pre - service NNESTs about this project through data obtained from open - ended surveys. The content analysis of the data showed that even before the project was initiated, most of the participants objected to it. Although some of the participants favored the project as they believed that the NESTs might be more helpful for students to improve speaking skills and to increase their cultural awareness, the majority of the participants held negative attitudes towards the project mainly because of employment and pedagogical concerns.

scholarly journals The use of discourse markers but and so by native English speakers and Chinese speakers of English

Pragmatics ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 479-506 ◽  
Author(s):  
Binmei Liu
Keyword(s):  
Mandarin Chinese ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Oral Proficiency ◽  
Discourse Markers ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Oral Discourse ◽  
Chinese Speakers ◽  
Native Speakers Of English

Abstract Previous studies have found that but and so occur frequently in native and non-native English speakers’ speech and that they are easy to acquire by non-native English speakers. The current study compared ideational and pragmatic functions of but and so by native and non-native speakers of English. Data for the study were gathered using individual sociolinguistic interviews with five native English speakers and ten L1 Chinese speakers. The results suggest that even though the Chinese speakers of English acquired the ideational functions of but and so as well as the native English speakers, they underused the pragmatic functions of them. The findings indicate that there is still a gap between native and non-native English speakers in communicative competence in the use of but and so. The present study also suggests that speakers’ L1 (Mandarin Chinese) and overall oral proficiency in oral discourse affect their use of but and so.

How native and non-native English speakers adapt to humor in intercultural interaction

2007 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy D Bell
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Intercultural Communication ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
The Other ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Intercultural Interaction ◽  
Second Language Speakers ◽  
Negative Message ◽  
Native Speakers Of English

AbstractHumor can often carry an implicit negative message and thus be potentially dangerous to use. In addition, it is culturally and linguistically complex and sophisticated. Because of these things, it poses a challenge for L2 (second language) speakers and we might expect to see attempts at humor failing and causing offense in intercultural interaction. This paper reports on a study that examined humor in interaction between native and non-native speakers of English and found that humor did not seem to be a cause of conflict because of adjustments speakers made to their speech and their situated interpretations of meaning. In general, taboo topics and potentially dangerous forms of humor were avoided and humor was carefully contextualized. Native speakers reported being careful about the vocabulary they used in creating humor and both sides appeared to approach humor in intercultural communication prepared to accommodate the other and with an attitude of leniency.

Listening with an attitude: A model of native-speaker comprehension of non-native speakers in the United States

2002 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 419-441 ◽  
Author(s):  
STEPHANIE LINDEMANN
Keyword(s):  
Direct Relationship ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
The United States ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
English Speaker ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Poor Comprehension ◽  
The Relationship

This study investigates whether there is a relationship between negative attitudes toward non-native speakers and poor comprehension of those speakers. Twelve native English speakers whose attitudes toward Koreans had been assessed were asked to complete an interactional map task paired with native Korean speakers. In the task, some but not all of those who had been assessed as having negative attitudes toward Koreans were found to use either strategies that were described as problematizing their partners' utterances, or strategies that were described as avoidance. All participants completed the map task reasonably successfully except where the native English speaker used avoidance strategies, suggesting that the relationship between attitude and comprehension is mediated by the native speaker's choice of strategies. However, there appeared to be a direct relationship between attitude and perceived success of interactions, which may ultimately have the same consequences for interactants as if the relationship were between attitude and actual success.

scholarly journals Supporting Non-Native English Speakers at the University

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-121
Author(s):  
Bethany Peters ◽  
Michael E. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Research University ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Public Research ◽  
Public Research University ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Faculty And Staff ◽  
The University

This study reports on a survey designed to understand the experiences of faculty and staff who work with non-native speakers of English (NNESs) at a U.S. public research university. Over 1,500 faculty and staff responded to the survey, and the findings highlight their perspectives on the benefits of having non-native English speakers on campus, as well as the challenges that they experience in teaching and advising this population of students. We conclude with a discussion about possible resources and strategies that may provide enhanced support for NNES and the faculty and staff who work with them.

Imitation of Suprasegmental Patterns by Non-Native Speakers of English

1993 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Jeanne Haak ◽  
Rieko Marie Darling
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Application ◽  
Limited English Proficiency ◽  
English Proficiency ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Objective Measures ◽  
Short Sentence ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Potential Measure

Speakers with limited English proficiency (LEP) usually produce a combination of articulation errors and differences in the prosodic patterns of English. There are abundant measures of articulation, but few objective measures of prosodic performance. The Tennessee Test of Rhythm and Intonation Patterns (TRIP) was selected as a potential measure for distinguishing the prosodic patterns of native and non-native English. First, the TRIP was given to 12 native speakers of Asiatic languages and 12 native speakers of English. The performances of the two groups did not differ significantly, suggesting that the TRIP was not a definitive measure of prosodic differences in English. Second, a group of listeners was asked to identify native versus non-native English speakers based only on selected stimuli from the TRIP and a short sentence of comparable length. The listeners were significantly better able to identify native and non-native speakers when listening to the sentence than when listening to the TRIP items. Clinical application of this information in working with LEP clients is discussed.

A British response to some Indian English usages

English Today ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 19-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raja Ram Mehrotra
Keyword(s):  
South Asia ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Lingua Franca ◽  
Indian English ◽  
The World ◽  
Native Speakers Of English

English has been established in India for well over two centuries, and is now both its major lingua franca and ‘window on the world’. Some Indianisms are however little known beyond South Asia and are liable to be regarded by native speakers of English as ‘deviant’ in various ways. Here, a project is described in which a set of distinctive and representative Indian English expressions was shown to a group of native English speakers who were asked to comment on them. The list includes both distinctive words (such as face-cut, freeship, and weightage) and distinctive senses of universally used words (such as chaste, see, and tempo). The responses are discussed and a summarizing conclusion presented.

Analyzing Topical Structure in ESL Essays

1990 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 411-427 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie Schneider ◽  
Ulla Connor
Keyword(s):  
Structure Analysis ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Writing Proficiency ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Topic Progression

Topical structure analysis (TSA), a text-based approach to the study of topic in discourse, has been useful in identifying text-based features of coherence. It has also been used to distinguish between essays written by groups of native English speakers with varying degrees of writing proficiency (Witte, 1983a, 1983b). More recently, TSA has distinguished between higher and lower rated ESL essays, but with different results from those found with native speakers of English (Connor & Schneider, 1988). The present study replicated the previous ESL study of two groups of essays written for the TOEFL Test of Written English with three groups of essays. Findings indicate that two topical structure variables, proportions of sequential and parallel topics in the essays, differentiate the highest rated group from the two lower rated groups. We offer explanations for the results and propose that all occurrences of a particular type of topic progression do not contribute equally to the coherence of a text.

Orthographic Input and the Acquisition of German Final Devoicing by Native Speakers of English

2017 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 547-564 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Hayes-Harb ◽  
Kelsey Brown ◽  
Bruce L. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Beneficial Effect ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
Separate Experiment ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Phonological Development ◽  
Native Speakers Of English

We present an artificial lexicon study designed to test the hypothesis that native English speakers experience interference from written input when acquiring surface voicing in German words. Native English speakers were exposed to German-like words (e.g., /ʃtɑit/ and /ʃtɑid/, both pronounced [ʃtɑit]) along with pictured meanings, and in some cases, their written forms (e.g., <Steit> and <Steid>). At test, participants whose input included the written forms were more likely to produce final voiced obstruents when naming the pictures, indicating that access to the written forms in the input interfered with their acquisition of target-like surface forms. In a separate experiment, we attempted to moderate this negative impact of the written input by explicitly telling participants about the misleading nature of the words’ written forms, with no beneficial effect on their pronunciation accuracy. Together these findings indicate a powerful influence of orthographic input on second language lexical–phonological development that is not readily overcome by a simple intervention.

scholarly journals Which words do English non-native speakers know? New supernational levels based on yes/no decision

2020 ◽  
pp. 026765832093452
Author(s):  
Marc Brysbaert ◽  
Emmanuel Keuleers ◽  
Paweł Mandera
Keyword(s):  
Word Recognition ◽  
Family Life ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Vocabulary Test ◽  
Word Families ◽  
The World

To have more information about the English words known by second language (L2) speakers, we ran a large-scale crowdsourcing vocabulary test, which yielded 17 million useful responses. It provided us with a list of 445 words known to nearly all participants. The list was compared to various existing lists of words advised to include in the first stages of English L2 teaching. The data also provided us with a ranking of 61,000 words in terms of degree and speed of word recognition in English L2 speakers, which correlated r = .85 with a similar ranking based on native English speakers. The L2 speakers in our study were relatively better at academic words (which are often cognates in their mother tongue) and words related to experiences English L2 students are likely to have. They were worse at words related to childhood and family life. Finally, a new list of 20 levels of 1,000 word families is presented, which will be of use to English L2 teachers, as the levels represent the order in which English vocabulary seems to be acquired by L2 learners across the world.

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