The native accent fallacy

Abstract The present study investigated Thai speakers’ perceptions of native English accents and Thai-accented English (TaE) in two contexts: language teaching and everyday communication. Using a direct attitudinal approach, data from 125 Thai speakers revealed attitudinal patterns toward native Englishes and TaE. Native accents were viewed as highly desirable in the academic setting and served as models for participants’ aspiration. Unlike Thai teachers with TaE, those with a native-like accent received high levels of acceptance, nearly comparable to native English teachers, despite their non-native speaker status. Thus, having native(-like) accent appears to be a critical factor for suitability as a language teacher to a greater extent than nativeness. In addition, while TaE was generally accepted by most participants, this acceptance did not extend to considering TaE speakers suitable as language teachers. The present study extends the native speaker fallacy by proposing the native accent fallacy which suggests that ideal language teachers are defined by their native(-like) accents. Implications are discussed within the Global Englishes Language Teaching (GELT) paradigm to mitigate native-speakerism and language-based discrimination in teacher recruitment and pedagogy.