Barriers to Teaching English to Non-Native English-Speaking Teachers in Indonesian Secondary Schools: Policy Recommendations

Abstract

<p style="text-align: justify;">In the Indonesian context, English is considered a local subject and there is no mandated curriculum for English in elementary schools. Meanwhile, English has been a compulsory subject taught at the secondary school level. The present study aims to explore barriers to teaching English experienced by non-native English teachers in Indonesian secondary schools and policy recommendations. The study employed a qualitative case study method. Concerning the data collection, the authors garnered the data through semi-structured interviews with six non-native English teachers teaching at private and public secondary schools in Indonesia. The findings of the study reveal that several barriers experienced by non-native English teachers include lack of training in English teaching and learning, academic literacy among non-native English teachers, school facilities, English-relevant materials, student motivation, and English exposure outside of school. Drawing on these results, some policy recommendations to improve English language teaching in the Indonesian context are discussed in this study.</p>

The Effects of Leadership Style, Resource Allocation, and School Culture on Teacher Job Satisfaction and Retention Rates in Indonesian High Schools

“…The heterogeneous geography of teacher experiences in Indonesian secondary schools is influenced by differences in school cultures, disparities in resource allocation, and variations in leadership styles. A lack of academic literacy, limited facilities, and lack of training are only a few of the challenges faced by non-native English speakers in teaching (Marlianti et al, 2017;Wahyuningsih et al, 2023). There is a need for greater training since English teachers in rural locations confront difficulties relating to sociocultural issues, student backgrounds, and instructional settings (Fadilah et al, 2023;Riristuningsia et al, 2017).…”