Abstract:

This paper draws on a qualitative study that investigated how and why English language learners experience linguistic shame and shaming (LSS) practices, and how these practices are mitigated in classrooms. The study employed semi-structured interviews to obtain perceptions from 16 ELT practitioners on the classroom manifestation of the phenomena of linguistic shame and shaming in disadvantaged ESL settings in the Sri Lankan context. Data were analysed through the lens of phenomenography. Participants’ perceptions represented wider ESL teaching-learning backgrounds within the state funded secondary and tertiary educational systems. The study identified not only the structural and systemic causal factors that embed learners' experiences of shame into the language learning process, but also the emotional, personal, and societal processes that diversely encourage learners as well as practitioners to embrace shame in using English in the classrooms. Findings revealed that different affects, such as fear, guilt, envy, and complexes, manifest practices of LSS in classrooms, and these manifestations are operative mostly in a tacit, but a detailed way. Rather than the manifestation of the phenomenon of shame being seen as simple outcomes of negative learning differences of ESL learners or problematic nature of the country's ELT system, practitioners could be more concerned about the pedagogical strategies to counter them effectively. These findings have significant implications for ESL teachers, teacher educators, ESL learners, curriculum developers, and material writers, and therefore have great capacity to inform teacher education programs nationally as well as in other countries with linguistic ecologies similar to Sri Lanka.

Keywords:

English language teaching (ELT), English as a second language (ESL), L2 pedagogy; linguistic shame and shaming, teacher education, Sri Lanka