Who Counts as a “Native Speaker”... and Who Doesn’t?
This infographic discusses the implications and consequences of labeling individuals as "native" or "non-native" speakers, and how we can work to remedy this issue.
Imagine a “native English speaker.” What do they sound like? What do they look like?
Many people would imagine a middle class white American as representing a "native speaker."
"Nativeness" and social inequity
People not perceived as “native” face discrimination through...
citizenship barriers
misdiagnosis of learning disabilities
social & systemic racism
loss of access to resources
... and various other avenues of life.
How does this work?
People think that “native speaker” is a natural category of language user who learned a language from birth.
They label others as “(non-)native.”
They make judgements and assumptions based on these labels, ignoring differences in how people identify and use language.
These processes are tied to race, nationality, (dis)ability and more.
What can we do?
Everyone can:
Be accepting of differences in culture, language, & speech style
Advocate for institutional change in policies that hinge on percieved “nativeness” (e.g. English language requirements)
Ask yourself
Why might you think someone is a “non-native speaker?”
How does this affect the way you and others treat them?
Source
Keynote presentations and community discussion from the 1st ROLE Symposium.
Created by
Emerson Peters
Ready to learn more? Find readings, resources, and more below.
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Citizenship, security and the ‘undecidability’ language | 1st ROLE Symposium | Dr. Kamran Khan
Native Speaker Ideologies and Speech-Language Pathology: A Recipe for Chaos | 1st ROLE Symposium | Dr. Yolanda Holt
Aestheticizing and Racializing (Non)Nativeness in English | 1st ROLE Symposium | Dr. Vijay Ramjattan