Barriers to Teaching English to Non-Native English-Speaking Teachers in Indonesian Secondary Schools: Policy Recommendations

Abstract

In the Indonesian context, English is considered a local subject and there is no mandated curriculum for English in elementary schools. Meanwhile, English has been a compulsory subject taught at the secondary school level. The present study aims to explore barriers to teaching English experienced by non-native English teachers in Indonesian secondary schools and policy recommendations. The study employed a qualitative case study method. Concerning the data collection, the authors garnered the data through semi-structured interviews with six non-native English teachers teaching at private and public secondary schools in Indonesia. The findings of the study reveal that several barriers experienced by non-native English teachers include lack of training in English teaching and learning, academic literacy among non-native English teachers, school facilities, English-relevant materials, student motivation, and English exposure outside of school. Drawing on these results, some policy recommendations to improve English language teaching in the Indonesian context are discussed in this study.