| TESOL has been dominated by the native speaker model, which asserts that only a native speaker of English qualifies as a teacher of the English language. Many studies have focused on nonnative-English speaking teachers (NNESTs) in the ESL contexts, but not in the EFL contexts. In this dissertation, I explored four Korean NNESTs' negotiation of the native speaker model in Korean English Language Teaching (ELT). This study was particularly concerned with: (1) how the native speaker model affected the participants' rationale for definitions of native speakers of English, (2) how they observed the native speaker model in Korean ELT, and (3) how they negotiated their status vis-a-vis the native speaker model.;Through analysis of data collected from various sources such as interviews, personal conversations, and classroom observations, I found that the native speaker model has been deeply embedded in Korean ELT, and it has played a crucial role for the participants to negotiate their status as NNESTs. Their perceptions were dominated by the notion of English as a composite world language, which was accompanied by controversial issues: (1) cultural baggage, including instructional balance between the target culture and the Korean culture; (2) choice of educational target variety; and (3) power relations between English and Korean. They considered English a threat to Korean language and culture.;Their professional identity was also found within the notion of English as a composite world language. Since the native speaker model was the only dimension to evaluate teachers, they constructed negative self-images. On the other hand, TESOL training, target cultural experience, and experience as EFL learners helped them reconstruct their positive images as NNESTs. English as an international language (EIL), which is not related to any specific culture and nation, was suggested as an ideal solution of the problems that the native speaker model caused. |
