Teaching English as an international language
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Abstract
Teachers’ classroom practices are influenced by their beliefs and are unlikely to change if these influencing factors are not changed (Webster, McNeish, Scott, Maynard & Haywood, 2012). Current roles and functions of English as an international language (EIL) require changes in teachers' perspectives in teaching English for intercultural communication. This paper reports findings from a quantitative study which provides insights into the factors that likely inform the changes of teachers' beliefs. In the study, a close-ended questionnaire was distributed to 57 Vietnamese lecturers. Their answers were converted into an Excel spreadsheet and analyzed using a deductive approach. A Mann-Whitney U test, a nonparametric alternative for the independent samples t-test, was conducted to determine if there was a statistically significant difference in teachers’ rating scores towards the teaching of EIL among teachers of English who had pursued their postgraduate and doctoral studies overseas and in Vietnam. The results revealed that teachers’ international learning experience had a significant influence on teachers’ perspectives whereas teaching experience, teachers’ qualifications, and gender had no significant impact. The study suggests teachers are to be exposed to intercultural environments in order for them to develop beliefs and attitudes which will result in their adaptation of teaching EIL.