Face Value-The Effect of Ethnicity and Gender On Student Expectations of English Language Instructors in The UAE

International Journal of English Language and Translation Studies
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International Journal of English Language & Translation Studies
ISSN: 2308-5460
Face Value: The Effect of Ethnicity and Gender on Student

Expectations of English Language Instructors in the UAE
[PP: 54-68]
Nausheen Pasha Zaidi
Amy Holtby
The Petroleum Inst itute The Petroleum Inst itute
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Ernest Afari
David Thomson
The Petroleum Inst itute The Petroleum Inst itute
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Abstract
Hiring practices of English language teachers often reflect stereotypical perceptions of
nat iveness as an indicator of teacher effect iveness. In this respect, the present study
explores the impact of teachers ethnicit y, as well as student and teacher gender, on student
expectations of English language instructors in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). A total of
337 students fro m three universit ies in t he UAE participated in the study. The students were
each given a photograph of a White, Black and South Asian individual unknown to them and
were asked to rate the individual in terms of instructor effect iveness for a hypothetica l
English language course. The results revealed that there were no main or interaction effects
for teacher ethnicit y or student/teacher gender. However, there was a significant difference in
students percept ions o f the use o f precise English, based on instructor ethnicit y, wit h Whit e
instructors being rated higher than Black or South Asian instructors.
Keywords: Face Value, Teachers Ethnicit y, Emirati Students Perceptions, EFL Teaching,
Expatriate, Gender
The paper received on:
19/01/2014
Accepted after peer-review on: 09/02/2014
Published on:
01/03/2014
Suggested Citation:
Zaidi, N. P., Holtby, A., Afari, E. & Thomson, D. (2014). Face Value: The Effect of Ethnicity a nd
Gender on Student Expectations of English Language Instructors in the UAE. International Journal of
English Language & Translation Studies. 2(1), 54-68. Retrived from http://www. eltsjournal. org
Vol:2, Issue:1, January-March, 2014
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Face Value: The Effect of Ethnicity and Gender on Student Expectations..
Zaidi, N & Others
1. Introduction
The present study addresses student perceptio ns o f teacher effect iveness in the United
Arab Emirates (UAE). With the exception o f Saudi Arabia and Oman, expatriates in the Gulf
Cooperative Council (GCC) countries outnumber the local cit izens (Al Najjar, 2013). In
2006, it was reported that around 80% of the populat ion in the UAE was expatriate
(Kapiszewski, 2006). In a 2006 UN report, Kapiszewski noted some o f the issues that have
impacted the region due to the large expatriate populat ion:
Since the discovery o f o il, [GCC countries], lacking a local workforce, have
been emplo ying a large expatriate labor force. That process has had a ver y
significant impact on the econo my, po lit ics, and the social structure of the GCC
states. It has allowed for a rapid development of these countries, but at the same
time invo lved them in various foreign affairs developments and brought a number
of negative cultural and socio-economic consequences. (p. 1)
This pheno menon is particularly visible in the education sector. Expatriate teachers were
brought in to help establish a range o f academic institutions and continue to have a pro minent
role in the educat ion sector, with more international teachers arriving every year to cope with
the dramat ic increase in student populat ion (Ahmed, 2011). Just over a decade ago, officia ls
were predict ing that the UAE would cont inue to rely on expatriate teachers for a further 50
years (Albawaba News, 2000). In June 2013, the Gulf News reported that some 2,000
internat ional teachers were being recruited by the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) for
public school posit ions (Sankar, 2013); while internat ional schools intend to add more
expatriate teachers. In fact, it has been predicted that almo st 9,000 teachers will be emplo yed
by internat ional schools in Abu Dhabi alo ne in 2015 (Ahmed, 2011).
In addit io n to the populat ion disparit y, between nat ionals and expatriates, there is
also a huge gap between genders. In the UAE, roughly a third of the populat ion is female
(UAE National Bureau of Statist ics, 2010), and similar statist ics are found in Qatar (Qatar
Statist ics Authorit y, 2013). As a rapidly expanding nat ion, the UAE places great emphasis
on education and funds equal educational opportunit ies for both men and wo men. This has
prompted women to take the lead in higher educatio n, account ing for 70% of all graduates in
the country (Al-Oraimi & Zayed, 2011). However, women cont inue to struggle with
emplo yment opportunit ies after graduation (Al-Oraimi & Zayed, 2011; Al-Othman, 2011).
Wit h regard to the educat ional sector, women represent the highest percentage of teaching
staff at the primary and secondary levels, but only 16% o f the posit io ns at one o f the major
UAE universit ies (Al-Oraimi & Zayed, 2011). As more research needs to be done to explore
this discrepancy, the present study addresses the impact of gender and ethnicit y on student
perceptions o f teacher efficacy at the universit y level in the UAE.
2. Background to the Study
As the UAE and other GCC countries host an internat ional co mmunit y o f expatriates,
English has become the lingua franca in the region. This is especially important in higher
education inst itutions in the UAE where English is often the primary language o f instruction.
According to the Kachru Model (1986), English language speakers fall into three categories:
Inner Circle, or native speakers fro m Western countries such as- the United States, Canada
and the United Kingdo m; Outer Circle, speakers fro m countries such as India, Pakistan,
Bangladesh and Nigeria where English is one o f the officia l languages alo ng with another
nat ive language; and Expanding Circle, speakers for whom English is a foreign language that
may be used for a variet y o f purposes, such as in China, Russia, and Japan (Kachru, 1986;
Rajadurai, 2007; Alptekin, 2002). Researchers (Ali, 2009; King, 2013) have noted that
English language teachers, that are hired in Gulf countries, mainly fall into the Inner Circle.
This tendency, to hire fewer teachers fro m Outer or Expanding Circles in language teaching
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within higher educat ion, has created a system that often undervalues, or even devalues,
language teachers that do not have the right look or accent. This may be particularly
frustrating for teachers who are nat ive English speakers but have roots in Outer or Expanding
Circles as they are o ften overlooked early in the hiring process in favor of teachers who may
or may not have equivalent qualificat ions, but who fit the criteria o f a native speaker (Ali,
2009) .
The native speaker fallacy (Phillipson, 1992) contributes to the stereotypes of nonnat ive speakers as less able teachers o f English. Bu,t does this fallacy extend stereotypes to
include people of co lor who may or may not have nat ive English fluency? Amin (1997)
found that some English language learners in Canada made assumpt ions of language teaching
abilit y based on race, with White Canadians being considered the authent ic teachers o f
English. The discourse of these ESL programs was such that the majorit y of the students
showed a decided preference for White teachers over non-White teachers (Amin, 1997, p.
580). As physical characterist ics, such as skin color, provide one o f the cues for judging
teachers nativeness and this, in turn, may be limit ing the opportunities for people of co lor to
obtain English language teaching jo bs (Ali, 2009), it is important to explore the kinds of
expectations and preconcept ions that students hold regarding ethnically diverse English
language teachers. This is part icularly relevant for the ELT professio n as hiring practices are
partly based on the belief t hat non-nat ive speakers would hinder language acquisit io n o f
students, despite some studies to the contrary (Al-Nawrasy, 2013; Barlow, 2009).
Go ldthorpe (2012) introduced the concept of Aracism, or Arab racism, which she
defined as xenophobic, racist attitudes of Arabic individuals, towards other races and
ethnicit ies, particularly Black or Indians (p.1). She explained how Aracism contributes to
the format ion of racial hierarchies in which Emirat is are at the highest level, fo llo wed by
Western expatriates, with South Asians and Blacks at the bottom. Any visual cues, such as
skin co lor, are used to determine social standing where darker-skinned people are considered
inferior (Goldthorpe, 2012). As the UAE emplo ys a very high number o f expatriate teachers,
there is a need for more research on the impact that stereotypes may have on the evaluat ion of
ethnically diverse instructors. As very little research o f this kind has been conducted in the
Gulf regio n, the present study focused on student expectations o f English teachers, based on
photographs of White, Black and South Asian individuals, to find out if the nat ive speaker
fallacy extends to racial categories o f English language teachers in the UAE. The fo llowing
research questions guided this invest igat ion:
What is the effect of teacher ethnicit y on student ratings o f English language
teachers?
What is the effect of teacher gender on student ratings o f English language teachers?
What is the effect of student gender on their ratings of English language teachers?
Are there differences between expatriates and UAE nationals relative to ratings of
English language teachers?
Is there a difference in perceived use of precise English relative to teacher ethnicit y?
3. Methodology
3.1 Samples/Participants
Students in three universit ies in the UAE (The Petroleum Inst itute, The Canadian
Universit y of Dubai, and Abu Dhabi Universit y) were surveyed (n=361). Mean age of
students was 20.48 (SD=3.05). Of that number, 24 were excluded for missing data, leaving a
total of 337 respondents. Students ranged fro m ages 15-35 (M = 20.37, SD = 3.00). There
were more male students (57.6%, n = 194) than female students (42.4%, n = 143). Regarding
educational status, 30.9% were below freshman status; 64.2% (n = 226) were freshmen to
seniors; and 2.1% (n = 7) were graduate students. See Table 1.
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Zaidi, N & Others
Table 1 Educational Status

Educational Status
N
%
Below
104
30. 9
freshman
Freshman
90
26. 7
Sophomore
50
14. 8
Junior
34
10. 1
Senior
52
15. 4
Graduate
7
2. 1
student
Total
337
100. 0
Regarding nat ionalit y, 49.6% (n = 167) were UAE nat ionals, whereas 50.4% (n = 170) were
expatriates represent ing a number o f nat ionalit ies, including Palest inian, Pakistani, Syrian,
Nigerian, Iranian, Yemeni and Jordanian.
3.2 Pilot Study
People o ften judge character traits of others based on first impressio ns elicited from
facial appearances and other non-verbal cues, such as body language, eye contact, and
gestures. Student expectations of teacher effect iveness in the present study were thus based
on photos of six ethnically-different individuals, three male and three female. Berrys (1990)
research found that people can also make trait judgments, with significant rater agreement,
using only static photographs of individuals presented for ten seconds. As research has found
that people are more likely to recognize faces from their own ethnic group (Sporer & Horry,
2011; Gross, 2009), a pilot study was first conducted to ensure that the photos used in the
current project would accurately represent the ethnicit ies being studied.
Full-face co lor photographs of male and female adults o f White, Black and South
Asian ethnicit y were shown to 75 Emirati students in a universit y in the UAE. Although
race and ethnicit y are dist inguished by their applicat ion to characteristics associated with
either genet ic factors (race) versus socio logical factors (ethnicit y), the current study used
these terms interchangeably. Addit ionally, as researchers use a variet y of labels for racial
categories, so me of which may not be applicable or readily understood in non-Western
contexts where English is not the home language, for the purposes of this study, the term
White was used to refer to people o f European or Caucasian heritage; Black was used to
refer to people fro m an African background, and South Asian was used to represent people
fro m an Indian, Pakistani, or Bangladeshi descent.
Students were asked to ident ify the ethnicit y of the individuals in the photos as White
(European), Black (African), or South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, or Bangladeshi). None o f the
students in the pilot study belonged to any o f the three group affiliat ions in the photographs.
This was done in order to ensure that participants ethnicit y did not interfere wit h the racia l
categories they ident ified in the photos. Exist ing research indicates that the ethnicit y o f the
observer can affect observed racial categories towards in-group preference such that
individuals are more readily able to ident ify people of their own ethnic group (Harris, 2002).
As such, the researchers wanted to verify prior to the actual study that the photos would serve
as representatives o f each racial category to participants who do not belong to the ethnicit ies
being studied. As all students correctly ident ifie d the ethnicit ies o f the individuals in the
photographs, the photos were determined to be acceptable for use in the current study.
3.3 Data Collection Techniques and Procedures
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Students in the present study were asked to rate their expectations o f a hypothetical
English teacher shown in the photograph (see sample quest ionnaire in Appendix A). Six
different iterations of the English teacher were developed and distributed rando mly. Each
student rated only one o f the possible co mbinat ions o f race and gender (White male/female,
South Asian male/female, and Black male/female). A 14-item scale to assess student
perceptions of teacher effect iveness was developed based on the instructor evaluat ions that
are current ly in use at one of the universit ies. The evaluations asked students to rate the
hypothetical English teacher on global qualit ies such as being an excellent instructor for
this course and being an expert in his/her field. The questions also addressed the
hypothetical teachers abilit y to communicate well in English, to motivate students, to grade
fairly, and to show respect to students in general, as well as to the specific student being
surveyed. Finally, the evaluat ion asked students if they would want to be in this teachers
course. All items used a four-point Likert scale (1=strongly disagree, 4=strongly agree) that
forced students to make a judgment based on the limited informat ion provided. The
Perceived Teacher Effect iveness Scale had an adequate internal reliabilit y (Cronbachs Alpha
= .79). The minimum acceptable reliabilit y fo r an instrument is .70 (Brace, Kemp, &
Snelgar, 2009). The Total Perceived Teacher Effectiveness (TPTE) score was obtained by
adding the responses for each item and dividing by the total number of items to maintain the
4-point scale.
Data were analyzed wit h SPSS 15.0 for Windows (2006). The data were determined to
be normally distributed through examinat ion wit h a histogram. Two three-way ANOVAs
were used to answer all research questions except one; a one-way ANOVA was conducted to
answer the research quest ion regarding student perceptions o f the use of precise Englis h
relat ive to teacher ethnicit y.
4. Data Analysis and Discussion
4.1 Results of the Analysis
4.1.1 Impact of Teachers Ethnicity, Student Nationality and Student Gender
Means for teacher ethnicit y, student gender, and student nat ionalit y are presented in Table 2.
Table 2: Group Means for Teacher Ethnicity, Student Gender, and Student Nationality
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Zaidi, N & Others
Dependent Variable: Teacher Efficacy

Gender
Male
Teacher Ethnicity
White
South Asian
Black
Total
Female
White
South Asian
Black
Total
Total
White
South Asian
Black
Total
Nationality
UAE National
M
3.12
SD
.37
N
35
Expatriate
3.01
.49
32
Total
3.07
.43
67
UAE National
2.98
.45
35
Expatriate
3.12
.60
33
Total
3.05
.53
68
UAE National
2.98
.49
35
Expatriate
3.07
.50
24
Total
3.02
.49
59
UAE National
3.03
.44
105
Expatriate
3.07
.53
89
Total
3.05
.48
194
UAE National
2.83
.51
21
Expatriate
2.98
.28
30
Total
2.92
.39
51
UAE National
3.05
.40
19
Expatriate
3.13
.66
27
Total
3.10
.56
46
UAE National
2.96
.47
22
Expatriate
2.89
.47
24
Total
2.92
.47
46
UAE National
2.95
.46
62
Expatriate
3.00
.49
81
Total
2.98
.48
143
UAE National
3.01
.45
56
Expatriate
2.99
.40
62
Total
3.00
.42
118
UAE National
3.01
.43
54
Expatriate
3.13
.62
60
Total
3.07
.54
114
UAE National
2.97
.48
57
Expatriate
2.98
.49
48
Total
2.98
.48
105
UAE National
3.00
.45
167
Expatriate
3.04
.51
170
Total
3.02
.48
337
Impact of student gender and teacher ethnicity

There was no main effect for teacher ethnicity, F (1, 336) = 1.27, p = .28. Students did
not rate White teachers significant ly different from South Asians or Black teachers. There
was also no main effect for student gender, F (1, 336) = 1.83, p = .18. There were no
significant student gender differences relat ive to ratings o f teacher efficacy in English. There
was no significant interaction between gender and teacher ethnicit y, F(2, 336) = 1.18, p = .31.
Impact of student nationality and student gender
There was no main effect for nat ionalit y, F (1, 336) = 0.74, p = .39. There were no
differences between expatriates and UAE nat ionals relative to ratings of teacher efficacy in
English. There was no significant interaction between gender and nat ionalit y, F (1, 336) =
0.01, p = .91. There was no significant interaction between teacher ethnicit y and nationalit y,
F (2, 336) = 0.34, p = .71. There was no significant interaction between gender, teacher
ethnicit y, and nat ionalit y, F (2, 336) = 1.43, p = .24.
The results showing the main effects and interaction for teacher ethnicit y, student
nat ionalit y and student gender are shown in Table 3.
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Table 3: ANOVA Summary Table for Teacher Ethnicity, Student Gender, and Student
Nationality
Observed
Source
df
F
p
Power(a)
Gender
1
1. 83 . 18 . 01 . 27
Teacher Ethnicit y
1. 27
. 28 . 01 . 28
Nationalit y
0. 74
. 39 . 00 . 14
Gender * Teacher Ethnicit y
1. 18
. 31 . 01 . 26
Gender * Nationalit y
0. 01
. 91 . 00 . 05
Teacher Ethnicit y * Nat ionalit y
0. 34
. 71 . 00 . 10
Gender * Teacher Ethnicit y * Nat ionalit y

Error
2
1. 43 . 24 . 01 . 31
336 ( 0. 23)
Note. a) Computed using alpha = .05, Value in parenthesis represents mean square error. Dependent variable =
Teacher Efficacy.
4.1.2 Impact of Teachers Gender, Student Nationality and Student Gender

Means for student gender, student nationalit y, and teacher gender are presented in Table 4.
Table 4: Group Means for Teacher Gender, Student Gender, Student Nationality
Dependent Variable: Teacher Efficacy
Gender
Male
Nationality
UAE National
Expatriate
Total
Female
UAE National
Expatriate
Total
Total
UAE National
Expatriate
Total
Teacher Gender
Male
M
2.96
SD
.42
Female
3.10
.45
53
Total
3.03
.44
105
Male
3.02
.56
46
Female
3.12
.50
43
Total
3.07
.53
89
Male
2.99
.49
98
Female
3.11
.47
96
Total
3.05
.48
194
Male
2.88
.55
33
Female
3.03
.33
29
Total
2.95
.46
62
Male
3.03
.57
42
Female
2.98
.40
39
Total
3.00
.49
81
Male
2.96
.56
75
Female
3.00
.37
68
Total
2.98
.48
143
Male
2.93
.48
85
Female
3.07
.41
82
Total
3.00
.45
167
Male
3.02
.56
88
Female
3.05
.46
82
Total
3.04
.51
170
Male
2.98
.52
173
Female
3.06
.44
164
Total
3.02
.48
337
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Zaidi, N & Others
Impact of teacher gender

There was no main effect for teacher gender, F (1, 336) = 2.58, p = .11. Students did
not rate male teachers as more effect ive teachers of English than female teachers.
Impact of teacher and student gender.
There was no significant interaction between student gender and teacher gender relat ive
to teacher efficacy in English, F (1, 336) = 0.42, p = .52. There were no student gender
differences relat ive to ratings of male and female teacher efficacy in English.
Impact of student nationality and teacher gender.
There was no significant interaction between nat ionalit y and teacher gender, F (1, 336)
= 1.15, p = .28. There were no differences between expatriates and UAE nat ionals relat ive to
ratings o f male and female teacher efficacy in English. There was no significant interaction
between student gender, nationalit y, and teacher gender, F (1, 336) = 0.62, p = .43.
The results showing the main effects and interactions for teacher gender, student
gender and student nationalit y are shown in Table 5.
Table 5: ANOVA Summary for Student Gender, Student Nationality, and Teacher Gender
Source
df
Observed Power(a)
Gender
1. 77
. 18
. 01
. 26
Nationality
0. 80
. 37
. 00
. 14
Teacher Gender
2. 58
. 11
. 01
. 36
Gender * Nationality
0. 01
. 92
. 00
. 05
Gender * Teacher Gender
0. 42
. 52
. 00
. 10
Nationality * Teacher Gender
1. 15
. 28
. 00
. 19
Gender * Nationality * Teacher Gender
0. 62
. 43
. 00
. 12
Error
336
( 0. 23)
Note. a) Computed using alpha = .05, Value in parenthesis represents mean square error. Dependent variable =
Teacher Efficacy.
4.1.3 Impact of Teacher Ethnicity and the Use of Precise English

There was a significant difference in students perceptions of the use of precise English (item
#2 on the Perceived Teacher Effect iveness Scale) relat ive to teacher ethnicit y, F(2, 336) =
10.57, p < .001. Scheffe post hoc comparisons revealed that white teachers (M = 3.16, SD =
0.67) were rated significant ly higher than South Asian (M = 2.71, SD = 0.87) and Black
teachers (M = 2.84, SD = 0.76). This is illustrated in Figure 1.
Figure 1. Means Plot for Uses of Precise English by Teacher Ethnicity
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4.2 Discussion
Hiring practices o f English teachers in Gulf nations o ften fo llow stereotypical lines
wherein individuals that appear to be nat ive speakers, or have names that reflect Inner Circle
categories, are given preferent ial treatment. As it is difficult to truly ascertain the English
language pro ficiency and teaching abilit y o f a candidate through a CV, hiring co mmittees
often make interview decis io ns based on the candidates ethnicit y as determined by name or
appearance (Ali, 2009). The basis o f these unwritten discriminatory po licies seems to be a
notion that students will beco me more proficient in the English language if t hey are taught by
nat ive English speakers. Thus, instructors who are not fro m Inner Circle categories, or those
who do not stereotypically appear to be nat ive English speakers, o ften co mplain about lack o f
emplo yment opportunit ies in the TESOL field (King, 2013; Ali, 2009) as well as
discriminat ion in other skilled and unskilled labor sectors (Salama, 2005).
4.2.1 Ethnicity and Teacher Effectiveness
The present study was conducted to determine if ethnicit y or gender affect students
perceptions of teacher efficacy based on their impressions o f a photograph showing a
hypothetical English teacher. Consumers often make judgments on service providers based
solely on facial informat ion found in advertisements (Naylor, 2006). So inferences based on
static photographs are relevant and co mmon in everyday life. Addit io nally, exist ing literature
suggests that facial cues in photographs may provide accurate first impressio ns (Berry, 1990;
Berry, 1991; Berry & Wero, 1993; Naylor, 2007). As noted, there was no statist ically
significant impact of eit her gender or ethnicit y on student perceptions of the effect iveness o f
English teachers in t he UAE. Regarding ethnicit y, the mean teacher effect iveness scores in
the current study show that, overall, South Asian instructors were rated higher than White
instructors. This is particularly interest ing considering that the extant literature on hiring
practices in the GCC countries shows a preference for native English speakers, which, in the
ELT profession, is often equated with being Whit e (Sahin, 2005; Raddaoui, 2005; Ali, 2009;
Golo mbek & Jordan, 2005; Amin, 1997). However, the results support existing literature on
student preferences for English teachers in the Gulf regio nnamely t hat ethnicit y or
nat iveness of the teacher does not necessarily play as important a role in the minds o f
students as administrators may contend. Teaching qualit y, on the other hand, and studentteacher fit may be more important factors in the classroom (Ali, 2009).
4.2.2 Ethnicity and English Language Fluency
The present study did find a statist ically significant difference, in terms o f perceptions
of English language fluency, based on ethnic background. Students perceived that Whites are
more likely to use precise English than either South Asians or Blacks. This is supported by
exist ing research which shows the perception that nat iveness and Whiteness often go hand
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Zaidi, N & Others
in hand in the ELT profession (Sahin, 2005; Raddaoui, 2005; Ali, 2009; Go lo mbek & Jordan,
2005; Amin, 1997). As accents may be detected in as little as 0.03 seconds (Flege, 1984),
and even detected in a foreign language (Major, 2007), it is plausible that students may
perceive non-native speech patterns or accents as less precise than nat ive English speech.
Subsequently, students may impart this percept ion to ethnically diverse individuals who do
not fit stereotypical percept ions o f a nat ive Englis h speaker. In fact, Rubin (1992) found that
physical appearance can create a foreign accent, even when one is not present, leading to
the evaluation of the speaker as less co mpetent. Furthermore, this perceived accent can have
an effect on teachers evaluat ions (Rubin & Smit h, 1990).
As pronunciat ion and accent can influence intelligibilit y (Derwing & Munro, 2005),
this percept ion may be linked to the belief that native English speakers are easier to
understand. However, in internat ional contexts, intelligibilit y may be more related to the
types of accents that English language learners are most likely to hear in their environment,
rather than to native or non-nat ive speech patterns in general (Jenkins, 2000). Several studies
(e.g., Munro & Derwing, 1995; Derwing & Munro, 1997) have shown that alt hough some
features of an accent are highly salient, they do not necessarily interfere wit h intelligibilit y
(Derwing & Munro, 1997, p. 11). In other words, it is entirely possible to have a non-native
accent and be co mpletely intelligible, or to sound more nat ive-like and not be intelligible
for other reasons, such as mumbling. Jenkins (2000) advocates English language teaching
that promotes mutual intelligibilit y in internat ional contexts where a variet y o f accents
funct ion in a dynamic space for communicat ion to occur. In the UAE, where a mult itude of
nat ionalit ies use English as the lingua franca, many different accents may be heard.
Addit io nally, as native English speech varies depending on the country and even regio n fro m
which a speaker co mes, it is difficult to ascertain which nat ive English accent is considered
the most desirable, the most intelligible, or the most precise in this glo bal context. More
research needs to be done in order to gain a better understanding of this.
So, if White instructors are more valuable for their perceived abilit y to use precise
English, this presupposes the notion that productive skills, such as nat ive Englis h
pronunciat ion, are highly valued in ELT classrooms. This is supported by exist ing research
in the field (Xiaoru, 2008; Derwing, 2003; Jenkins, 2005). Derwing (2003), for example,
found that adult English language learners in Canada considered nat ive English pronunciat ion
to be a desirable object ive, despite the fact that acquiring nat ive-like pronunciation may be a
rare feat for those learning the language past early childhood (Flege, Munro, & Mackay,
1995; Scovel, 2000).
As accent, along wit h other indicators of dialect, is a marker of social ident it y and
belo nging, the findings in the present study raise questions about ownership of the Englis h
language. Despite a push for greater diversit y in ELT, teachers fro m Outer or Expanding
Circles may st ill feel ambivalent about their own accents as native English pronunciat ion
continues to hold greater prestige in the field (Jenkins, 2005; Go lo mbek & Jordan, 2005).
Jenkins (2005) noted that even though instructors who are non-native English speakers
report being proud of their accents as a link to their nat ive country or culture, they consider
nat ive English pronunciat ion to be correct, proficient, co mpetent, and real, whereas a
non-nat ive accent is incorrect and deficient (p. 541). Addit ionally, as accent is
intertwined wit h racial categorizat ion in the ELT professio n and teachers are often judged by
appearance as well as pronunciat ion, Golo mbek and Jordan (2005) emphasize the importance
of teacher training programs that can help create alternative professional images of ELT
educators that are more reflect ive of English as a world language.
4.2.3 Gender and Teacher Effectiveness
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Wit h regard to gender preferences, the present study did not find any statist ically
significant differences in student perceptions of the effect iveness o f eit her male or female
instructors. When considering the mean scores for teacher gender, the trend appears to be a
slight preference for female teachers by both male and female students. As language
teaching may invo lve more interact ive act ivities that focus on developing students
communicat ive co mpetence, students may feel mo re comfortable wit h female instructors who
are often stereotypically considered warmer and more lenient, as evidenced in Anderson and
Smiths (2005) study. This trend supports the notion that students in the Gulf universit ies do
not discriminate against women working in universit y classrooms wit h students o f eit her
gender. This percept ion is particularly important as women cont inue to become increasingly
more invo lved in working outside the ho me in tradit ionally patriarchal societ ies (Al-Othman,
2011; Al-Oraimi & Zayed, 2011)
The UAE, in particular, cont inues to evolve in terms o f womens part icipat ion in socia l
and po lit ical life (Al-Oraimi & Zayed, 2011). Tradit ionally, the econo mic system was based
on a mix of trading, fishing, and pearl diving. This system was governed by family units wit h
males as head o f househo ld. Labor was divided according to the natural capacit ies o f each
member o f the househo ld and wo men shared in the responsibilit y of the househo ld. Wit hin
these constraints, however, women were allocated roles for economic participat ion based on
necessit y, rather than a clear divis io n of duties. In this context, gender roles were not defined
as a social construct. However, once oil was discovered and the region entered a new era of
production and wealt h, womens roles in the public sphere diminished. This trend has only
recent ly begun to change. Alt hough the UAE does not discriminate against women in legal
terms, social pressures cont inue to limit wo mens roles (Al-Oraimi & Zayed, 2011; AlOthman, 2011). The increase o f women in higher education in the UAE may foreshadow the
social changes occurring in the country. The present study, thus, supports the participat ion of
both men and women in higher educat ion faculty posit ions and the slight preference for
women in such positions may be a reflect ion of the changing times.
5. Findings and Conclusion
The current study sought to provide a glimpse o f students expectations o f facult y
effect iveness wit hin the English language teaching field based on phys ical appearance and
gender. The study makes a significant contribution to the extant literature by providing
quant itative evidence o f the percept ions of students in three major universit ies in the UAE
with regard to teacher efficacy. As evaluat ing instructional effectiveness is a daunt ing and
often po lit ically-charged task, so me o f the traditio nal tools used for this purpose include
student evaluat ions, grade reports, and student test scores. As student expectations are o ften
used to validate hiring decisio ns in TESOL in favor of nat ive English speakers, and those
who fit stereotypical notions of a nat ive English speaker, it is imperative to explore what
students actually believe regarding what constitutes effect ive teaching.
As the present study focused on student perceptions o f teacher effectiveness, a
number o f variables were not addressed. The extant literature is severely lacking in terms o f
quant itative evidence to support whether nat ive English speakers or non-nat ive Englis h
speakers are actually more effective teachers in the pedagogical sense. Alt hough the present
study supports prior research to indicate that students do not perceive one as more superior to
the other, it did not delve into the assessment of specific teachers at any o f the universit ies
invo lved. Addit io nally, even though the exist ing literature suggests that facial cues in
photographs may provide accurate first impressions (Berry, 1990; Berry, 1991; Berry &
Wero, 1993; Naylor, 2007), the present study did not assess the teacher effect iveness o f
actual English language teachers or how students first impressio ns may change throughout a
course.
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Zaidi, N & Others
Students in the present study made the assumpt ion that White teachers would use more
precise English than either South Asian or Black instructors. However, as students were
asked to make judgments of hypothetical English teachers, based on a photograph without
any addit io nal aural informat ion, it is difficult to know if students would have rated teachers
different ly had they had the opportunit y to hear a variet y o f accents associated wit h the
photographs. As the extant literature indicates that students may not necessarily know the
difference between nat ive and non-nat ive speakers, as these categories are determined by
ELT professio nals (Ali, 2009; Alseweed, 2012), addit ional research needs to be done to
determine if students in the UAE can judge nat ive versus non-nat ive speech, and if this makes
a difference in terms of their percept ions o f teacher efficacy.
The present study supports the notion of a more ethnically and linguist ically diverse
workforce in English language teaching wit hin the UAE. As English is considered the lingua
franca in Gulf nat ions, and as there are a variet y of English language pronunciat ions that are
evident in the internat ional populat ion, it is important to look beyo nd an elit ist view o f
English to a more inclusive definit io n that reflects the realit y of language use in the regio n. In
doing so, ELT may truly get closer to represent ing the varied cultures o f the world that share
English as their co mmon language.
About the Authors:
Nausheen Pasha-Zaidi is an Assistant Professor in the General Studies Depart ment of the
Petroleum Inst itute in Abu Dhabi. She ho lds PhD in Internat ional Psycho logy fro m the
Chicago School of Pro fessio nal Psycho logy. Her research interests focus on cultural
psycho logy and socio linguist ics with an emphasis on stereotypes and percept ions.
Amy Holtby is current ly a lecturer of English at the Petroleum Inst itute in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
She completed her M Ed (TESL) in 2010 and has been teaching abroad ever since. Her
research interests include assessment, test preparation, washback, teachers and students
perceptions o f curriculum and assessments, and curriculum development.
Ernest Afari is a mathemat ics lecturer at the Petroleum Inst itute in the UAE. He ho lds a PhD
in Mathemat ics Educat ion fro m Curt in Universit y, Perth, Australia. His research interests are
as fo llows: The study o f learning environments, quant itative research methodology
(Psycho metrics; Structural equat ion modeling; Raschmodeling), ICT in Educat ion
(Technology acceptance and adoption; e-learning).
David Thomson is an English Lecturer at the Petroleum Inst itute in Abu Dhabi, United Arab
Emirates. He has taught English to speakers of other languages for over 25 years in the US,
Japan, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. He has an MA in TESOL fro m the School for
International Training in Brattleboro, Vermont, USA. He is particularly interested in English
for Academic Purposes.
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Appendix A
Sample Questionnaire (White Female English Instructor)
Imagine that next semester you are assigned to an English class that is
taught by the professor in the photo. This professor has recently joined from
another university. Although you do not know this person, please rate your
level of agreement with the statements below.
Put a tick in the box that most correctly describes your expectations of the
professor.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
The instructor is an expert in his/her field

The instructor will speak clearly and use
precise English
The instructor will motivate me to succeed in
the class
The instructor will assess my work fairly
The instructor will treat me with respect
The instructor will treat me fairly
The instructor will expla in the lessons clearly
The instructor will treat students with respect
The instructor will treat students fairly
The instructor will motivate students to
succeed in the class
The instructor is inter ested in student success
The instructor will encourage students to ask
questions and participate in class
This person will be an excellent instructor for
this course
I want to be in this instructors class
Strongly
disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strong
ly
Agree
4
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
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Table of Contents
Sr.
No
1
Paper Title / Author(s) / Country
Pages
Editorial
-Mustafa Mubarak Pathan, Libya
03
A Model for Cognit ive Process of Neologisms Translation
04-19
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
-Seyed Moha mma d Moghadas and Masoud Sharififar, Iran

Abels Identity Crisis and his Journey to his Native S elf in House Made of
Dawn: A Critical Analysis Perspective
-Irem S eklem, Germany
Diversity vs. Differ ence: A Critical Analysis of Hybridity and Cultural Identity
Crisis in the Novels of Cheikh Ha midou Kane and Chinua Achebe
-Alassane Abdoulaye DIA, Senegal
Exploring the Struggle for Survival and Clashes of Generation Gap and Racial
Pride in Lorraine Hansberrys Raisin in the Sun
-Dr. C. N. Baby Maheswari and Dr. Katyayani Sanga m, Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia
Face Value: The Effect of Ethnicity and Gender on Student Expectations of
English Language Instructors in the UAE
-Nausheen Pasha Zaidi, Amy Holtby, Ernest Afari and David Thomson, UAE
Guidelines for Effective TAP (Translation for Academic Purposes) Tutorial
Courses
-Elha m Yazdanmehr and Sara Shoghi, Iran
Learn and Unlearn: Drama as an Effective Tool in Teaching English Language
and Communication
-Shiba ni Ba nerjee, India
Reading Stories to Enhance English Grammar Intake:Correlational Analysis
-Yoseph Gebr ehiwot Tedla and Mekwanent Tilahun Desta, Ethiopia
School-Aged Childr en and Adult Language Production in an Indonesian TV
Show
-Kisno and Dr. Sangga m Siahaan, M.Hum, Indonesia
Situated Motivation: A Framework for how EFL Learners are Motivated in the
Classroom
-Truong Sa Nguyen, Vietnam
Teaching English Idioms through Mnemonic Devices at SSC Level in Pakistan
Sidra Mahmood, Pakistan
Teaching Unplugged: Applications of Dogme ELT in India
-Sadeqa Ghazal and Dr. Smriti Singh, India
The Usefulness of Translation in Foreign Language Learning: Students Attitudes
-Ana B. Fernndez-Guerra, Spain
The Uses of bahi as a Discourse Marker in Daily Libyan Arabic Conversations
-Kha deja Mujtaba Ahmed, USA
Trauma of War as a Paradigmatic Discourse in Doris Lessings Martha Quest and
A Proper Marriage
-Dr. Deepti Dharma ni and Anu Sheoka nd, India
Trevor Griffithss Comedia ns from Marxist Perspective
-Jayalakshmi B. , India
www.eltsjournal.org
20-30
31-44
45-53
54-68
69-78
79-91
92-105
106-119
120-129
130-140
141-152
153-170
171-181
182-189
190-197

Face Value-The Effect of Ethnicity and Gender On Student Expectations of English Language Instructors in The UAE

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International Journal of English Language and Translation Studies

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International Journal of English Language & Translation Studies