Decolonising the TESOL Curriculum in Thailand through Global Englishes: A Wake-up Call

In Thailand’s schools, after almost 20 years of using the Basic Education Core Curriculum 2008, alarm bells are finally ringing. We know well that native speakerism ideologies are embedded in the curriculum, but we know little about their impact on TESOL practices. Native speakerism stems from colonial power structures, privileging White Western knowledge and culture over non-native perspectives. It perpetuates unjust discrimination and biased values by assuming that native speakers are inherently superior. My study employed the decolonial turn as its theoretical framework alongside Global Englishes (GE) as the conceptual framework to decolonise the Thai TESOL curriculum. I investigated the negative impact of native speakerism ideologies, examined teachers’ need to emphasise GE, and identified barriers to integrating GE into the curriculum. I utilised a qualitative approach, drawing on texts, images, and oral accounts as data sources. The curriculum was analysed to examine language ideology and norm. Eight teachers were interviewed to gain insight into their experiences and perspectives as curriculum users. Images reflecting native speakerism were collected as empirical evidence of their practices to support the interview findings. The data was analysed using grounded theory. The findings confirmed that native-speakerism played a crucial role in language models and teaching culture in implementing the curriculum. Teachers expressed concerns about the resistance to varieties of Englishes in teaching practices and the exclusion of qualified non-native English-speaking teachers in hiring practices at their schools. Their colleagues’ strong preference for American and British English, as well as the school authorities’ firm favouritism towards White native English-speaking teachers, hindered the promotion of GE awareness in the curriculum. This paper is a call for Global Englishes in action to decolonise the TESOL curriculum to better reflect the realities of today’s world.