Reflection Article

Gaining Confidence in English
through World Englishes

Eric Hirata
Nagoya University of Foreign Studies
On the last day of the 2015 CUE Conference, I had the pleasure of attending
Tadashi Shiozawa’s plenary presentation, “What does the diversity of learningand teaching environments entail? A non-native speaker’s view.” It was theculmination of the conference theme, Diversity: Communication and Education,
as it focused on the diversity found within World Englishes. Dr. Shiozawa noted
how World Englishes can change the entire English language teaching climate bybetter aligning the goals and attitudes of Japanese learners. In order to accomplish
this, however, it is necessary to first disconnect students from the notion of what
Dr. Shiozawa termed “the spell” or the need to speak English like a native. As
students become enlightened and exposed to World Englishes, they can develop
confidence and become comfortable in their own English to understand thateveryone is entitled to speak their own kind of English.
As Dr. Shiozawa pointed out, World Englishes are slowly gaining acceptancein academia despite the fact that English only from Inner Circle countries,
such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New
Zealand, is considered to be acceptable for classrooms. Dr. Shiozawa explainedWorld Englishes with the analogy of seeing an international judo competition
for the first time and noticing that one of the competitors was wearing a blue
judo uniform rather than the traditional white. Though it is not the image of astandard judo uniform, it is still an accepted form. Such is the case with World
Englishes, as they are slowly gaining recognition in English curricula acrossJapan. In order to better educate our students, he emphasized that we as teachers
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English through World Englishes, OnCUE Journal, 9(3), pages 310-316

must continue to expand the diversity of input that we provide to our students.
As globalization increases, the evolution of English teaching can progress
through the use of World Englishes.
Due to globalization, the Outer Circle (India, Philippines, Singapore) andExpanding Circle (China, Japan, South Africa) of English are becoming more
relevant. Dr. Shiozawa brought up an excellent point of “global intelligibility”
being a key point when considering English instruction. From pre-tertiary
education, most students in Japan are under “the spell” that speaking English
means sounding like someone from the Inner Circle. As a result, the goals thatstudents typically set regarding their English ability are not compatible withhow they will use English in the future. For many, their use of English will belimited to travel or business situations where they are speaking English tosomeone from the Outer or Expanding Circle. I believe that as Japan continues
to send workers overseas to countries such as China and India, rather thancountries that represent the Inner Circle, it is important to modify our curricula
to accommodate student needs. By emphasizing “global intelligibility” over the
traditional belief of speaking English like a native speaker, students can adjust
their language goals to meet more realistic expectations. The goals and needs ofour students are the foundation of our instruction, and if we truly want to giveour students the English that they will use in the future, we must assist them indebunking “the spell” and encourage them to become comfortable in their own
English.
As a native English speaker, I have found that my English continues toexpand as my work environment, colleagues, and social circles change, and in
my opinion we should give our students the same opportunities with their own
English. My own English, for example, is no longer strictly American English
but is now largely American English with Australian English, British English,
and even some Japanese English mixed in. While initially I wasn’t comfortablewith this alteration in the way I spoke, I realized that how I speak is a reflectionof my own experiences and background, which are constantly evolving. Dr.
Shiozawa termed this growth of our own English changing from “My English”
to “My Better English.” He explained this as our “language right” to speak our
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Hirataown variety of English with our own accent. This is applicable to teachers aswell as students since we all speak our own English. Almost every time that I
go back to America and talk about my work at the “uni”, the inevitable question
arises, “When did you start saying that instead of university?” My English is not
the same as it was a few years ago, but it is my English, and we as teachers needto help our students become comfortable with the concept of accepting “My
Better English” being their “language right.” This is not always easy, as university
students have been pre-conditioned that to learn English is to learn and speak
English within the Inner Circle.
In their textbooks, students rarely come across English that is not from theInner Circle, so it is essential to familiarize them with World Englishes. With
regard to English as an International Language (EIL), Dr. Shiozawa pointed outthat we are largely referring to accent and pronunciation as a means of expressing
what type of English is being spoken. The dearth of materials within the textbook
industry that incorporates World Englishes can exacerbate this problem because
teachers, as well as students, do not have the opportunity to experience theaccents involved in World Englishes within their classrooms.
To help fill this need, the textbook Global Activator (Tadashi Shiozawa
and Gregory King, Kinseido, 2015) includes recordings from Japanese, Indian,
Mexican, Korean, Chinese, and French speakers, among others. Some of thelistening activities involve three passages where students must decide how
intelligible the English is. Activities such as these not only allow students tohear and experience a variety of Englishes but ideally will also remind themthat the purpose of studying English is communication, regardless of accent
and pronunciation. For most of the students, these exercises will likely be theirintroduction to English from a non-native speaker. I feel that this exposure isessential, and I hope it will encourage students to develop confidence in theirown English and get away from the native speakerism mentality that many
students in Japan have developed. They need to understand that it is not justacceptable but common for people to communicate with their own English.
Before students can accept being comfortable in their own English and open
to World Englishes, I believe it is imperative that they gain an understanding of
312English through World Englishes, OnCUE Journal, 9(3), pages 310-316

what it is and why it is important.
Most of the courses that I teach are four-skills based courses, so the inclusionof World Englishes can play an important role for students. We can tell ourstudents to be comfortable in their own English and to focus less on form,
but in order to do these things, students need to be given examples of how
people can successfully communicate with their own English. By listening to
two people communicating in English that is outside of the Inner Circle, I canpoint out that, although they will not perfectly produce native level accents,
pronunciation, and grammar, the two people are able to understand each otherand have a conversation. While all of my classes involve Japanese students,
I believe that this point can still be made by having students assess their own
conversations. In one of my classes, we do a six-minute recording on an assigned
topic four times a semester. After doing the recording, the students analyze thecontent of their conversation. They do not look at grammar or form but examinesome of the questions they asked their partner, whether they understood theirpartner, if their partner understood them, and some of the main topics of theirconversation. Dr. Shiozawa said that being comfortable in your own English is a
key element in World Englishes, and by listening to and analyzing conversations
by non-native speakers it is easy to point out to students that the overall goalof successful communication is understanding, regardless of the kind of Englishthat you speak.
Dr. Shiozawa conducted a study to see whether students who went abroadincreased their tolerance towards varieties of English. He found that students,
particularly ones who went to Australia, became more tolerant towards a variety
of Englishes while realizing that the purpose of learning English is not to soundlike a native speaker. This allowed them to become more confident in theirown English while understanding that speaking with an accent is fine. Due toencountering varieties of English, the students became comfortable with theirown English and reexamined their purpose for studying it. The more students
experienced different varieties of English, the greater their acceptance of speaking
their own English became.
While we would like all of our students to spend time overseas, we are313

Hiratawell aware that it is not feasible. So how can we both expose our students toWorld Englishes and get them to feel comfortable with their own English if
they don’t study abroad? Dr. Shiozawa mentioned what he termed pseudo
study abroad programs in Japan, including English lounges, English hours, andhanging around native speakers, which provide opportunities for students toengage in English conversations outside of the rigid and more formal classroom
environment, much like they would if they studied abroad. Where I work, thelanguage lounge is often filled with Japanese students and exchange students
communicating in English, and the students that I have talked to have often said
that it is their favorite place on campus. The language lounge where I currently
teach is a place where teachers are not allowed to enter, and the students focus
on communicating with their peers rather than feeling that they need to focus
on form when speaking to a teacher. The students often gain confidence byrealizing they are being understood when they are using “My Better English.”In my experience, students are always asking for ways in which they can improvetheir English outside of the classroom, and I have found that they are more
willing to do these things as a result of a teacher’s recommendation. Somestudents may either not be aware of such opportunities or misunderstand whatthese English lounges and hours actually are designed for. As a teacher, I havebeen involved in both an English hour and an English lounge that included
teachers, where students come in voluntarily, and, in most cases, the students
have enjoyed themselves so much that it becomes part of their weekly schedule.
These programs set up outside of the classroom are effective ways for students
to be part of a pseudo study abroad program and gain comfort in speaking theirown English.
I believe that it is effective in terms of students who have attended theselounges often cite more confidence in their English, the chance to listen toand speak English outside the classroom, and being able to be understood by
non-teachers. Many students say that the language lounge on campus is theirfavorite place to hang out. If students are finding ways to use English outside of
the classroom and enjoy doing so, then it is an effective way for them to learn.
They are speaking, and they are focusing on communicating rather than overtly314English through World Englishes, OnCUE Journal, 9(3), pages 310-316

focusing on form, which is one major step in being comfortable in your own
English.
Teaching courses that use English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) or
Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) are additionally effective
ways to have the pseudo study abroad experience in Japan. Furthermore, Kanda
University is continuing to develop World English modules which allow students
to select the type of English to listen to through a series of videos and variety ofEnglish situations. These modules are open to anyone through the Internet andcan be used in any teacher’s classrooms. I believe that this is the future of English
instruction, and I am continuing to modify my own courses to include exposure
to World Englishes. For example, with the help of Global Activator and Kanda
University’s modules, I have started to do listening activities from non-Inner
Circle English speakers, some of which are from Global Activator and some that
I’ve been able to record with the international students on campus.
I have also sought other ways to include listening activities from Englishthat falls outside the Inner Circle. One example of this is that I have gotten
some of the international students on campus to do audio and video recordings
to share with my classes. These recordings involve the speakers having a shortconversation about one of the topics in the textbook. In addition to providing
comprehension questions about the conversation, I also ask the students about
the difficulty of understanding the speakers and what some of the reasons may
be for those difficulties. While they typically say accent or pronunciation, theyusually find that it did not really inhibit their understanding as much as they
had thought, since they did answer the comprehension questions correctly. As
the field of World Englishes continues to expand, it is important that we asteachers utilize these types of resources to cultivate students’ awareness of being
comfortable with their own English. As Dr. Shiozawa said, students have the“language right” to speak and be comfortable with their own English, and I feelthat if teachers can include World Englishes in their classrooms, students will
begin to feel this comfort.
As teachers in Japan, we are fortunate to have learners with diverse goals forstudying English, and we strive to help them develop confidence in their language
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Hirataskills. Dr. Shiozawa’s presentation on World Englishes provided strategies todevelop how teachers can build confidence by getting students comfortable with“My Better English.” I believe that the spell of needing to sound like a native
speaker is an ever-present roadblock that prevents many of my students fromglobal intelligibility. One way for me to start chipping away at this roadblock is
to continue emphasizing the importance of World Englishes in my classroom.

Author bio

Eric Hirata is a full-time EFL lecturer at Nagoya University of Foreign Studies.
He has taught at vocational colleges, universities, and technological institutes in
the Nagoya area for the last 11 years. His fields of research include group dynamics,
collaborative learning, and Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL).
eric@nufs.ac.jp
Received: January 18, 2016
Accepted: April 30, 2016316