Issue date: 4/7/05 Section: Opinions

Prajwal Sharma

Teaching English as a second language is a fad these days. Many of these teaching jobs require little qualification - as long as English is your mother tongue, little else matters. A college degree might make some difference, but it's not as important as having spoken English since birth. Some students just take a couple of classes, and bang - they are qualified.

English is not my first language. I learned it when I was 3. I now am more comfortable with it than I am with other languages. But it's not my mother tongue.

Wanting to participate in Teaching English as a second language courses, I, too, decided to apply at a job-placement center. The perks were great and the options endless. The center even had several job opportunities in South Asia. One could teach English in countries such as Bhutan, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

All was well until I received a reply that said I did not qualify because English is not my mother tongue.

Ahem - I have taught English as a spoken language, Test of English as a Foreign Language and spoken English classes since I was 17, and I was told in a curt e-mail that spelled explanation as "explination" that I could not do it now because I am a non-native speaker.

I have never faced discrimination of any type in the United States. Show me a person who says he was denied a job on the basis of his foreignness, and I will show you a bloody loser and liar. This is the fairest country in the world. Of course, this not-being-able-to-teach idea was something.

OK, I still can't get my tongue to twist at the right place when I pronounce "hereditary" or "memorabilia" as I cannot pronounce a hundred other words. A colleague just remarked I say "occur" funny. I know a major chunk of these English classes is spent teaching students correct pronunciation, so I understand why only native speakers qualify.

But c'mon, I'd be far more able to teach English as a second language to people whose mother tongues are the same as mine. I mean, I'd understand why I'd not be a potential applicant for teaching English in Mexico, but this was in South Asia.

Sally Cook, assistant professor of linguistics, who also teaches the teaching English as a second/foreign Language course, said she is aware of the preference given to native speakers and that it is not totally understandable.

"Many of my colleagues in Indiana University who had excellent English were screened out of the process, which was sad because the program would've benefited from the experience and knowledge of the [non-native speakers] who have gone through the same process of learning the language as the students," she said.

So now you know this is one area where all the experience in the world does not make a difference - all you need is to have English as your mother tongue, so what if you say, "I was laying down"? You don't need a great GPA or an impressive résumé. Which is why you should take advantage of the teaching English as a second language programs. It's a privilege - a privilege you, an American and a native speaker, can take advantage of. You travel and learn a lot.

You, above all, give a lot in return - learning good English could mean the difference between poverty and a decent lifestyle for people in so many countries. You will raise so many people's standards of living by teaching them English. You truly will make a difference.

Just what Cook did when she was in Malaysia. And she said she learned a lot.

"It was such a defining moment in terms of where I am now," she said. "[The students] had to be on my terms in the classroom. The minute you walk out, it changes. That is a very healthy experience for a teacher."

Consider teaching English as a career option. If nothing, it's one great way of serving the world simply by virtue of having English as your mother tongue. It's all easy, isn't it?

Prajwal Sharma is a junior communication major from Gangtok, Sikkim.

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