Attitudes towards Swedish-English - Swedish upper secondary school students' evaluations of Swedish-English accented teachers

Abstract: English can be seen, to some extent, as the second language of most Swedes, even though it has no official status in Sweden. Despite a high proficiency in the language throughout the Swedish population, Swedes seem to have issues identifying with English, as is evident in a widespread resentment towards a Swedish-English accented variety. The current study examines Swedish upper secondary school students’ attitudes towards Swedish-accented teachers in comparison to native-like accented teachers. A matched-guise technique was used where two speakers (one male and one female) were recorded, posing as teachers with a typical Swedish-English accent as well as a native-like accent. In total, 99 students participated in the study and their attitudes to 12 different traits were examined, as well as the teachers’ perceived suitability. The results of the study show that the participants prefer the native-like teachers to a great extent, as they are rated higher in almost every trait. The study also reveals that the students seem to prefer the male teachers over the females. The results presented in this study is interpreted as a sign of native-speakerist tendencies among Swedish upper secondary school students and it is pointed out that further research is needed in this field to support the findings of this study. Also, this study stresses that the native-speaker model needs to be counteracted in order for a model centered on global communication to take hold.