Power relations in Brazilian English language teaching

This article explores Non-native English-speaking teacher (NNEST) beliefs regarding Native English-speaking teachers (NEST) stemming from a recent study into Brazilian teacher beliefs and practices. Two private English as a Foreign Language (EFL) schools in Northeastern Brazil provide the sites for this mixed methods research. The major findings from this study include a rejection on the part of NNESTs of NESTs as superior language teachers, a perceived asymmetrical power relationship between Brazilian teachers with experience living abroad and those without this experience, and a potential relationship between what I label language ideologies and teacher beliefs. Implications of these findings for English as a Second Language and EFL teachers and teacher educators include recommendations for modification of teacher education, including making teacher beliefs about language teaching and learning central to the curriculum. The article concludes with a call for further research into questions surrounding EFL teacher beliefs, particularly in the private EFL milieu.