LETs and NETs: Exploring how teachers from diverse cultural backgrounds impact student motivation and preferences

Abstract

This paper, an exploratory case study, examines how students' preferences and motivation to learn English are influenced by their perceptions of teaching practices - both of native English teachers and local English teachers. To better understand the context of this research question, this study adopts a method of triangulation in collecting data: classroom observation, student interviews and teacher interviews. For intrinsic motivation, results reveal that Chinese students prefer a native-English-speaking teacher's approach to communication language teaching. However, for extrinsic motivations, students preferred the curriculum-oriented approach of local teachers due to the relevance to the ultimately-important English examinations.