From Challenge to Catalyst: Reframing NNEST Identity in Global ELT

Abstract

The English language teaching (ELT) profession remains steeped in native-speakerism ideologies that disproportionately marginalize non-native English-speaking teachers (NNESTs), despite their constituting the majority of the global ELT workforce. This paper investigates the systemic challenges NNESTs face, including hiring discrimination, wage gaps, and accent bias, while spotlighting their resilience and transformative potential within the profession. Drawing on recent empirical research and policy developments, this paper reframes perceived professional deficits as sources of pedagogical strength. NNESTs’ multilingual awareness, personal language-learning journeys, and cross-cultural competencies position them uniquely to connect with learners and model realistic paths to English proficiency. This paper explores how native speakerism is embedded in structures of coloniality and neoliberalism. It then highlights emerging shifts—both pedagogical and institutional—that prioritize intelligibility over accent. Ultimately, this paper argues that NNESTs are not only overcoming entrenched bias but actively reshaping what it means to be a credible, effective language teacher in a global context. By asserting their legitimacy, NNESTs   challenge outdated norms and help create a more inclusive, authentic, and learner-centered vision of English education.