Cross-Cultural Classroom Interaction between Native and Non-native Speakers of English

The purpose of this study was to investigate the interactional conversations between the native speakers (NSs) of English and the non-native speakers (NNSs) of English in a culturally mixed classroom. ESL learners need to be exposed to the second language through authentic and face to face interaction when they have opportunities to interact with NSs outside of the classroom (in real-life situations) and inside the classroom (through group work and pair work activities). Data were collected through conducting an ethnographic research in which classroom observation and semi-structured interviews were the primary data collection tools. Participants were eight MA students in the field of English Language Teaching (ELT) in Nottingham Trent University. Results indicated that the participants need to improve cultural awareness and communication skills. In addition, NSs showed that they are willing to join a group work with NNSs as they can learn about other cultures, but in some cases, they find this tiring when the NNSs fail to participate due to certain factors. This might be due to language problems or little knowledge about the topic being discussed.