‘Speak like a native’, ‘how to get rid of your accent’, ‘get instant access to native speakers’—these are just a few of the shocking articles, headlines, videos and social media posts I’ve seen while researching this post.
If you’ve spent more than five minutes in the online language world, it should come as literally no surprise. Schools have been pushing this toxic messaging to boost sales for decades.
But it’s 2024. You’d think that by now we’d have woken up to the damaging effects of such copy—especially in an industry that’s built on cross-cultural communication.
Yet, the rise of online learning platforms has brought with it a resurgence of native speaker messaging. Instead of using their budgets and influence to reshape the narrative, they too are shamelessly tying the value of their services to the nationality of their teachers.
But… why? Where did this come from? And why are we still clinging to these outdated, unrealistic, and harmful claims?
As a language nerd and messaging strategist I’ve always been curious to find out. So, in this post I’m exploring where the obsession with native speakers came from, why it still persists and what we can do about it.
Quick disclaimer: it was hard to find much information online, so I’ve pieced together what I could find to try and unpick it. Forgive me (and please let me know) if anything’s inaccurate.
So, where did native speaker marketing come from?
As far as I can tell, the use of native speakerism in language school marketing can be traced back to 1880, when Maximillian Berlitz introduced the immersive learning method.
Built on the belief that the best way to learn a language is through total immersion, this marked a drastic shift away from the grammar translation method. And a few years later, it became a defining feature of the revolutionary ‘Berlitz Method’.
But that wasn’t the end of it.
This new focus on speaking gave rise to two toxic ideas:
- That native speakers are the best or ‘most authentic’ tutors
- That sounding like a native was the ultimate goal
Soon enough, native speakerism started appearing in Berlitz’s marketing messaging (here’s a slightly disturbing example). Other schools followed suit, and it quickly became the norm in language school marketing, instilling an industry-wide belief that ‘native is best.’
Three types of native speaker marketing
#1 The unrealistic goal
INCLUDES: Speak like a native; achieve native-like fluency; master native pronunciation
This kind of copy oversimplifies meaningful language learning goals. It promotes the harmful idea that success means eliminating your accent and erasing part of your identity, while putting native speakers on a pedestal.
It also sets unrealistic standards that leave many students feeling frustrated, insecure and discouraged as they chase an impossible ideal.
#2 The not-so-unique selling point
INCLUDES: Native-speaking teachers; native-level teachers; access native speakers; learn with native speakers
These phrases show up in both job ads and as selling points on many schools’ websites. They purposely exclude non-native speaking teachers from applying for positions they are qualified for. They then claim this as a reason that their courses are somehow superior. Ironic, considering most of their competitors are saying it too.
#3 The (un)desirable benefits
INCLUDES: Learn to speak to natives; impress native speakers
These phrases may not seem all that bad at first glance. But look again. They suggest that one of the main reasons we might learn a language is to be able to speak to a native.
Don’t get me wrong, being able to speak to people in their first language is rewarding. But that’s not a goal or benefit in and of itself. And it’s not what motivates people to learn.
It’s what the learner wants to gain from those conversations that matters. Freedom? Relationships? Financial stability? It could be anything. Except for speaking to a native for the sake of it.
A response to learner demands… or an excuse?
Many schools and teachers will justify their decision to use these phrases by saying that their students want to learn from or sound like a native speaker.
They’re not doing anything wrong; they’re just responding to demand. It’s what the people want!
But this is like a personal trainer claiming they help customers reach a size zero. It ignores the client’s actual goal and promotes a damaging idea of success instead.
And that’s on us, not the students.
Plus, their goals are rarely as superficial as sounding a certain way.
A woman I interviewed for a recent copywriting project said it best: “I don’t want to sound like a native speaker. I want to sound like me!”
And that’s what most language learners want, isn’t it? To achieve a level of fluency that allows us to fully express ourselves.
The problem is, before they reach that point, many students may struggle to articulate exactly what they want. So it’s often easier to summarise their goals by saying ‘I want to speak like a native’.
But that doesn’t mean we should take it as read and move on. As school owners, teachers or marketers, it’s our job to find out whether what they actually mean is:
- Feeling more settled in another country
- Getting a new job and a higher salary
- Or connecting with people from different places
Because something is motivating them to invest in the language. And it’s not the dream of sounding like a native.
What about people who want to learn with native teachers?
While most students don’t actually want to sound like a native speaker, some do say they want to learn from one. So… is it okay to use it as a selling point then?
No. It’s never okay.
Aside from the fact that this is discriminatory, it doesn’t address students’ motivations for choosing a certain school or teacher.
Because again, there’s almost always a deeper reason they’re searching for a specific type of person.
Take my client’s students, for example. They’re actively seeking to learn with British teachers because they used to live or study in the UK. Now, they want to emulate the same experience they had there without needing to travel.
Whether or not they would learn with a non-native English teacher is their choice. But it’s the school’s job to focus on the students’ connection to the UK. Not the nationality of its teachers.
This doesn’t only help the student make a more informed decision on who to learn with. It also shows how well the school understands them. And that’s the key to good marketing.
So, why are companies still pushing this message?
Honestly? Because it’s easy.
Writing specific, empowering copy takes time, effort and in-depth market research, which most people aren’t willing to do. It’s way quicker to summarise varied and nuanced goals with this catchy one-liner. And if no one’s complaining, why change it?
But that’s exactly the problem.
If no one is bold enough to try something new, nothing will change. Companies will continue putting native speakers on a pedestal, students will still be encouraged to pursue an unhealthy ideal, and teachers who don’t fit the ‘native speaker’ criteria will keep losing out.
Every time we sit down to write copy, we have a choice to do better. A chance to do our bit in creating a new narrative that acknowledges our students’ goals and celebrates our teachers.
After all, if marketing was powerful enough to create this belief, it’s surely powerful enough to dismantle it. Right?
A friendly note
Are you using native speaker messaging in your marketing? If so, this isn’t an attack! I think the narrative has become so ingrained that many people are using it without realising the harmful effects.
If you’d like some advice on what to do instead, feel free to drop me an email. I believe the only way we can start to change it is by exploring the alternatives—together.
September 11, 2024
Hmmm. I don’t mention the “native speaker” angle in my copy because I don’t feel it’s necessary. (I have a bio on my website where I mention that I’m from the uk, but I don’t think that counts)
However, I completely respect the wishes of those learners who want to seek out native teachers for whatever reason – and many of those reasons are absolutely valid. I often see discussions about non-native teachers on social media, and it seems to me that some posters push the non-native teacher narrative to the point of overlooking the fact that most learners are intelligent individuals capable of independent thought who can form their own opinions about how they want to learn a language, regardless of the messaging they have seen on social media. In fact, I find some of these posts quite insulting to learners; they often prioritise the interests of non-native English teachers over and above the needs of the learners themselves. It’s wrong to assume that a learner is wrong for wanting a native teacher.
It’s wrong to assume a learner is wrong for wanting to learn with any kind of teacher. They can and should be able to make their own decisions. The way I see it, our job as the people writing copy is to help them make a decision based on their needs and goals, which is why I suggest we should be speaking to the core reason they want to learn. And that applies to everyone.