“You Speak English, No?”: The Expectations and Experiences of Asian in-service Teachers of English in Australia

Abstract

In this era of globalisation, many bilingual teachers of English are pursuing their postgraduate degrees in English-speaking contexts. However, most teacher training programmes concentrate on providing academic qualifications to these in-service teachers of English, while neglecting their expectations and lived experiences outside class. The current study examines this gap by interviewing and emailing Asian in-service teachers of English who were enrolled in a Master of TESOL programme in Australia. It explores how these in-service teachers’ expectations to improve their spoken English influenced their experiences outside class. This study seeks to understand how these in-service teachers developed as users and teachers of English. Findings suggest that when the participants were in Australia, they actively connected their expectations and their pursuit of content knowledge inside class with their experiences outside class. They also exercised agency in order to achieve their expectations of increasing their English proficiency. Moreover, the participants demonstrated how they developed as users and teachers of English through their strategic thinking and actions. The findings of this study suggest that teacher educators and teacher training programmes need to provide support to enhance Asian in- service teachers’ language proficiency, as well as incorporate empowering discourses and different varieties of English into the courses offered.