ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the results of the study addressing the first research issue regarding the participants’ perceptions of the paradigm of World Englishes (WE): “To what extent are English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students teachers aware of the paradigm of WE”? It analyzes the content of participants’ responses to the interview questions concerning the definition of WE, the status of WE in the world, the legitimacy of nativized Englishes, and the ownership of English. Throughout the interviews and while the participants were trying to define the paradigm of WE, the acknowledgement that English has achieved the status of an international language reoccurred. With the ever-increasing numbers of English as an additional language speakers and consequently new WE, distinguishing varieties of English from interlanguages has been a challenge. Despite the fact that many of the participants recognized the emergence and existence of English varieties, not all participants perceived all emergent Englishes as legitimate varieties of English.
