“DOES IT REALLY MATTER?”: EXPLORING TEACHERS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS STUDENTS’ ACCENTS IN ELF SETTING

Authors

  • Krittat Sukman Faculty of Liberal Arts, North Bangkok University, Thailand
  • Veeravarn Kulchol Faculty of Liberal Arts, North Bangkok University, Thailand
  • Narawan Chumnumnawin Faculty of Liberal Arts, North Bangkok University, Thailand

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46827/ejals.v8i1.573

Keywords:

intercultural competence, English language teaching, educational technology, transversal skills, innovative pedagogies

Abstract

The study investigated how teachers working at an international university view English accents used by their students from expanding-circle countries, namely, Thailand, China, Korea, and Myanmar. The data were collected from 265 teachers, espousing questionnaires and semi-structured interviews as research instruments. The obtained data were then analysed quantitatively and qualitatively. It was revealed that both groups of teachers viewed their students’ non-native English accents positively, with the Thai accent being evaluated most favourably. The findings further indicate that mutual intelligibility and successful communication are prioritised, and there is a strong preference for native English varieties as pedagogical models.

Author Biographies

  • Krittat Sukman, Faculty of Liberal Arts, North Bangkok University, Thailand

    Krittat Sukman, Ph.D. is an adjunct lecturer of English at the Faculty of Liberal Arts, North Bangkok University, Thailand. Prior to his PhD in English Language Teaching from Thammasat University, he obtained his MA in English Language Teaching from Assumption University of Thailand. Recently, he was awarded an MBA from University of Northampton, the United Kingdom. His research interests include corpus linguistics, English as a Lingua Franca, and TESOL methodology.

  • Veeravarn Kulchol, Faculty of Liberal Arts, North Bangkok University, Thailand

    Veeravarn Kulchol is a lecturer in Aviation Business and Service Innovation at the Faculty of Liberal Arts, North Bangkok University, Thailand. She holds an MA in Political Science with a specialization in International Relations and Diplomacy from Thammasat University, Thailand, and an MA in Communicative English from Ramkhamhaeng University, Thailand. Her research interests focus on English as a Lingua Franca, Intercultural Communication, and TESOL methodology.

  • Narawan Chumnumnawin, Faculty of Liberal Arts, North Bangkok University, Thailand

    Narawan Chumnumnawin is a lecturer of Business English at North Bangkok University, Thailand. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in English Language Studies. She holds a master’s degree in Translation for Education and Business and a bachelor’s degree in English for International Communication. Her research interests encompass translation, applied linguistics, and cross-cultural communication.

References

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Published

2025-01-09

Issue

Vol. 8 No. 1 (2025)

Section

Articles

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