"Do you want to sound like a native speaker of English?" : analysis of secondary school students' attitudes towards native and non-native varieties of English

Abstract

The paper concerns the concept of English as a lingua franca (ELF) and its potential implications for ELT practices. The paper aims to present fi ndings of the study conducted among secondary school students, who were asked to express and justify their desires concerning the model of English they wish to follow. The author of the study wants to gather information about students’ preferences concerning varieties of English they want to adopt as models. Are students’ opinions grounded in full awareness of the paradigm shift that has taken place in current ELT methodologies? Or do they simply refl ect the status quo of the language classroom that is still permeated by conservative tenets upheld in the Polish educational system? A questionnaire with six open-ended questions was administered to 120 students from four senior high schools. Attitude patterns that emerge from the responses indicate that standard language ideology is prevalent among the participants. They feel commitment to native-speaker norms and hold conventional beliefs about the English language.