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

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.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/soc/0731/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>