Chapter 1 Why the mythical “native speaker” has mud on its face

Abstract

The terms “native speaker” (NS) and “non-native speaker” (NNS) continue to be widely used in applied linguistics and foreign language learning and teaching despite a growing wave of criticism about the difficulty in defining them accurately, the (neo)racist ideology they reflect and the deficit view they perpetuate among foreign language learners and teachers. These issues are explored in more detail, focusing on the history of the terms NS/NNS and their enduring perverse social consequences. We consider alternative views and explain the reasoning behind the development of a new terminology: “L1 user versus LX user” (Dewaele 2018). We conclude that the field needs to abandon the toxic terms “NS/NNS” and adopt neutral terms that emphasise the equal status of first and foreign language users - which can often be the same person.

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