Moroccan EFL Learners’ Attitudes towards World Englishes and Native and Non-Native English-Speaking Teachers: Towards a Global Englishes-Informed Pedagogy

Abstract

Today’s changing sociolinguistic reality of English calls for a shift in paradigm in the field of English language teaching. Therefore, this study aims to examine Moroccan EFL learners’ (MEFLLs) attitudes towards World Englishes (WE) and native and non-native English speaking teachers (NESTs & non-NESTs). Firstly, building on the assumption that Kachru’s three Concentric Circles have been treated unequally and that less scholarly research has been published on expanding circle countries, this study seeks to examine the attitudes of MEFLLs towards WE. Overall, although the study’s findings show that MEFLLs tend to prefer inner circle Englishes, the participants surveyed are aware of English language variation and are willing to learn more about varieties of English speech. Secondly, departing from the assumption that EFL learners tend to show a preference for NESTs over non-NESTs and that there is a short supply of research into this phenomenon in Morocco, this study intervenes to explore the applicability of this assumption to MEFLLs. In this regard, the study’s findings show that the participants’ attitudes towards NESTs and non-NESTs are positive. The results also reveal that the Moroccan context seems to be a fertile setting for discussing WE- and NEST/non-NEST-related issues. On the one hand, the participants recognise and appreciate the sociolinguistic variation exhibited in the English language. On the other hand, the participants judge NESTs and non-NESTs in positive ways. Finally, the study concludes with several pedagogical implications for the choice of linguistic model(s) to be employed in EFL classrooms inside and outside Morocco.