Sessions

The Problem of Native-Speakerism: Why Haven't We Resolved This?

The "Conference Chair's Panel" is an initiative of this year's conference that we hope will become a tradition. It will take an issue of particular importance or interest to the Conference Chair, and gather some experts to discuss it. This year, the topic is Native-Speakerism. Why Native-Speakerism? Because it's important? Yes. Because it's a complex issue? Yes, that too. It's not because it hasn't been discussed, and neither is it because ELT professionals don't realise native-speakerism is a problem. It's because we — with the 'we' being ELT professionals —haven't resolved this issue to most people's satisfaction. Fortunately, all four members of this panel are all well-equipped to talk about the issue, with each bringing a different perspective. The question that serves as our point of departure will open up into a dialogue that will hopefully offer some fresh insights and take us further down the road to resolving this important problem. Panel Members: Marek Kiczkowiak Robert Lowe Hyun-jung Shin Varinder Unlu Angie White Moderator: Michael Free