This chapter demonstrates phenomenology as a potentially valuable qualitative approach for the analysis of non-native English speaking teachers (NNESTs) in their navigation through tensions encountered at their workplace. Typically, the narrative inquiry approach is employed where qualitative data, representing the experience of NNESTs, go through an analytical process that results in the potential reduction of meanings, especially those that shape contextual understandings. Recognizing this concern, scholars – especially those who have been advocating for NNESTs – have called for a more contextual analytical approach, going so far as to call for an epistemic break from conventional qualitative research paradigms that dominate the English language teaching landscape. To this end, two experiences of NNESTs are presented through phenomenology so as to illustrate them as a coherent experience, without subjecting them through normative analytical measures that would yield segments of qualitative data that would then be neatly attributed to prominent and oftentimes, dichotomous notions.
TopIntroduction
The experiences of English language teachers in various educational and sociocultural settings persist as a point of research interest in applied linguistics and educational studies (e.g. Tarrayo, 2021; Kubanyiova, 2022). The study of experiences is especially pivotal in contexts where tensions may arise due to incongruence (Henry, 2019; Ben-Peretz & Flores, 2018). These may be due to competing discourses at various levels, for example, the teacher’s individual beliefs or stance, the materials assigned through a curriculum, or even the aspirations of a nation. For instance, the discourse of promoting professional agency and autonomy among teachers, yet still having to comply with strict educational policies (Ben-Peretz & Flores, 2018); or the dynamic re-imagining of self as a teacher goes through dissimilar situations in the teaching setting (Henry, 2019). What is observed here is how the experiences of tension often arise from conflicting discourses or from the paradox of the self (Eslamdoost, King, & Tajeddin, 2020). One of the motivations of these studies is to examine how these English language teachers navigate through these tensions.
These experiences affecting English teachers have been discussed extensively in different Asian contexts, with studies highlighting opportunities and challenges arising from the encounters between various variables such as the local language, sociocultural belief systems, students and stakeholders’ expectations, and critical issues related to the history and pervasiveness of the English language. In these studies, the prominent group whose experiences is examined is that of English teachers who are non-native English speakers, or non-native English-speaking teachers (NNESTs). This group of English teachers, while highly proficient in English and possess pedagogical skills and knowledge for the English language classroom, unfortunately find themselves in the crossfires of legitimacy, and are often discussed in terms of them being non-native English speakers (see Park, 2012; Aneja, 2016; Lee & Kim, 2021; Widodo, Fang, & Elyas, 2020). Even with the growing efforts of Global Englishes to be more aware and have empathy towards the complex sociolinguistic environment of NNESTs (see Prabjandee, 2020; Widodo, Fang, & Elyas, 2020; Boonsuk, Ambele, & McKinley, 2021), questions concerning their legitimacy seem to persist (e.g., Li, 2022). At this juncture, we argue that the experiences, despite being examined and unravelled through research, have not fully given a voice to NNESTs. A reason for this is the prevailing research approach taken – the narrative inquiry. This research approach has proven itself useful and versatile, given the practical and theoretical insights it is able to draw from qualitative data derived from different contextual sites; nevertheless, the analytical approach employed in narrative inquiry studies are often driven by theoretical notions that are not necessarily perceptive towards distinct local meanings, especially those that are affirmative towards the voices of NNESTs.
This Chapter proceeds with discussion on the notion of tension within the realm of English language teaching, followed by a discussion of narrative inquiry as a tool for the examination of teacher identity, as well as recent concerns. This is then followed by an explanation of phenomenology as a plausible research approach which takes into account the value of rich contextual variables, without the need to segregate and reduce experience into distinct segments of data to satisfy theoretical notions imposed upon the qualitative experience being examined.