Presentation

A Comparative Study of the Perception of Itas by Native and Nonnative Undergraduate Students

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Abstract

With the growing number of international teaching assistants (ITAs) at American universities, concerns have increased about the communication between these ITAs and their students (Damron, 2003). Research on native undergraduate students’ reactions to ITAs has revealed that even international teaching assistants who have near native-like pronunciation may still be highly stigmatized by North American undergraduates (Rubin, 1992). When it comes to nonnative students’ perception of ITAs, however, little research has been done (Lima, 2011). This study investigates the perception of ITAs by native and nonnative undergraduate students with focus on both language and social factors. Eighty- six students, 45 international and 41 Americans, enrolled in cross-cultural first-year composition classes watched a four-minute videotaped lecture under one of two guises related to the nationality of the speaker. The participants then rated the speaker based on six variables: accent, speed, comprehensibility, likeability, teaching ability, and teaching style. This paper discusses how the ratings differ between the two groups depending on what participants are told about the nationality of the speaker. It also looks into the relationship between the ratings for accent and comprehensibility assigned by each group. Findings show that the groups rated the speaker differently only on the variable teaching style; also, the attributed nationality of the speaker did not seem to have a large impact on either native or nonnative students’ perceptions of the ITA.

How to Cite:

Lima, E. F., (2011) “A Comparative Study of the Perception of Itas by Native and Nonnative Undergraduate Students”, Pronunciation in Second Language Learning and Teaching Proceedings 3(1).