English Shaming on TikTok: A Window into English Language Ideologies in Indonesia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15408/bat.v31i2.37490Abstract
Purpose
In Indonesia, positive opinions of English are frequently linked with instances of mockery aimed at those thought to have poor English skill, a practice known as English shaming which has gained importance in the modern era of social media. This study aims to identify English language ideologies in Indonesia through the lens of online English shaming.
Method
Using a qualitative research approach based on virtual ethnography, this study draws on the theoretical frameworks of language ideology. Analysis of 417 comments on TikTok is carried out using a three-stage inductive coding process drawn from the Constructivist Grounded Theory methodology.
Results/findings
The findings suggest that there are four key English language ideologies in Indonesia: 1) non-standard English is unacceptable; 2) English is an index of educational level; 3) non-standard use of English in international forum is national disgrace, and 4) non-standard English is acceptable.
Conclusion
These findings highlight the dominant role of "Standard English" as a social marker in Indonesia, the harmful effects of online English shaming on individuals and national identity, and the need for embracing linguistic diversity. The study also demonstrates the potential for resistance against dominant ideologies and the importance of fostering inclusive language policies, as well as respectful online discourse.
References
Amadi, C. E. (2022). The effect of language shaming on second language learner’s self-confidence. Interdisciplinary Journal of African & Asian Studies (IJAAS), 8(1).
Amalia, S. D., Laila, M., & Adityarini, H. (2017). The place of Javanese English among globally known varieties of Englishes in Asia. URECOL, 123–128.
Ammon, U. (2006). Language conflicts in the European Union: On finding a politically acceptable and practicable solution for EU institutions that satisfies diverging interests. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 16(3), 319–338. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1473-4192.2006.00121.x
Dardjowidjojo, S. (2000). English teaching in Indonesia. EA Journal, 18(1), 22–30. https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/aeipt.113365
Dewi, U. P. (2009). “The pronunciation is too much”: Indonesians ideologies toward English-Indonesian code-switching. International Seminar Prasasti III: Current Research Linguistics, 845–850.
Dewi, U. P., & Kariko, A. A. T. (2017). Dialect prejudice: Language attitude of English teachers toward local dialect of spoken English in EFL class. The 2nd International Conference and Linguistics on Language Teaching (I-COLLATE), 182–187.
Fauziah, E. R. (2017). Errors in pronunciation of English segmental sounds by Javanese students. Retain.
Gal, S. (1998). Multiplicity and contention among language ideologies: A commentary. Language Ideologies: Practice and Theory, 317–331.
Garrett, P. (2010). Attitudes to language. Cambridge University Press.
Harsanti, H. G. R., & Manara, C. (2021). “I have to teach the ‘English’ English”: Native-speakerism ideology among the English teachers. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 11(2), 330–340. https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v11i2.26379
Haugh, M., & Bargiela-Chiappini, F. (2009). Face and interaction. Face, Communication and Social Interaction, 1–30. Equinox Publishing.
Heuman, A. (2022). Trivializing language correctness in an online metalinguistic debate. Language and Communication, 82, 52–63. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.langcom.2021.11.007
Hine, C. M. (2000). Virtual ethnography. Virtual Ethnography, 1–192.
Irawati, R. A., Sujatna, E. T. S., & Yuliawati, S. (2023). Strategi ketidaksantunan sarkasme warganet pada kolom komentar Instagram Ganjar Pranowo. Diglosia: Jurnal Kajian Bahasa, Sastra, Dan Pengajarannya, 6(3), 911–930. https://doi.org/10.30872/diglosia.v6i3.739
Istiqomah, N. (2016). The Analysis of Javanese accent interference in students’ English pronunciation (sound/g/) and its application in teaching speaking at the fourth semester of English Education Program of Purworejo Muhammadiyah University in the academic year of 2015/2016. Undergraduate Thesis. http://repository.umpwr.ac.id:8080/handle/123456789/2554
Kemendikbudristek. (2023). Capaian pembelajaran Kurikulum Merdeka. https://kurikulum.kemdikbud.go.id/kurikulum-merdeka/capaian-pembelajaran. Accessed 10/12/2023.
Kroskrity, P. V. (2000). Language ideologies in the expression and representation of Arizona Tewa identity. Regimes of Language: Ideologies, Polities, and Identities, 329–359. School for Advanced Research Press.
Kytölä, S. (2012). Peer normativity and sanctioning of linguistic resources-in-use—on non-standard Englishes in finnish football forums online. In Dangerous multilingualism: Northern perspectives on order, purity and normality (pp. 228–260). Springer.
Latifa, A. (2020). The impact of local language dialect toward the teacher’s language attitude in EFL class room in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications (IJSRP), 10(3), 740–750. https://doi.org/10.29322/IJSRP.10.03.2020.p9990
Lauder, A. F. (2020). English in Indonesia. The Handbook of Asian Englishes, 2008, 605–627. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118791882.ch26
Lestari, T. I. (2017). Javanese Accent in English Pronunciation of Harris Hotel Batam Employees: A Phonological Analysis. IALLTEACH (Issues In Applied Linguistics & Language Teaching), 1(1), 20–26.
Lippi-Green, R. (2012). English with an accent: Language ideology, and discrimination in the United States. In English with an Accent (Second edi). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003332886
Liyanage, I., & Canagarajah, S. (2019). Shame in English language teaching: Desirable pedagogical possibilities for Kiribati in neoliberal times. Tesol Quarterly, 53(2), 430–455. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.494
Lumbanbatu, I. M. F., Zen, E. L., Rachmajanti, S., & MR, E. R. (2023). Language ideology and attitudes toward English among Multilingual families in Indonesia. 20th AsiaTEFL-68th TEFLIN-5th INELTAL Conference (ASIATEFL 2022), 291–302. https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-054-1_24
Milroy, J. (2001). Language ideologies and the consequences of standardization. Journal of Sociolinguistics, 5(4), 530–555. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9481.00163
Milroy, J. (2007). The ideology of the standard. The Routledge Companion to Sociolinguistics, 133. Routledge.
Milroy, James; Milroy, L. (2012). Authority in language: Investigating standard English (First, Ed.). Routledge.
Nababan, P. W. J. (1991). Language in education: The case of Indonesia. International Review of Education, 37, 115–131. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00598171
Nguyen, H. D. (2019). Language shaming practices on YouTube: Ideologies of English in Vietnam. Master’s thesis. JYX University of Jyväskylä. https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/64883
Ott, B. L. (2017). The age of Twitter: Donald J. Trump and the politics of debasement. Critical Studies in Media Communication, 34(1), 59–68. https://doi.org/10.1080/15295036.2016.1266686
Phyak, P. (2015). (En)Countering language ideologies: language policing in the ideospace of Facebook. Language Policy, 14(4), 377–395. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10993-014-9350-y
Piller, I. (2017a). Anatomy of language shaming. Retrieved from https://www.languageonthemove.com/anatomy-of-language-shaming/. Acessed 10/12/2023.
Piller, I. (2017b). Explorations in language shaming. Retrieved from https://www.languageonthemove.com/explorations-in-language-shaming/. Acessed 10/12/2023.
Rismaya, R., Wahya, W., & Lukman, F. (2022). Kata bahasa Indonesia penanda register Twitter: Suatu kajian morfologi. In Diglosia: Jurnal Kajian Bahasa, Sastra, dan Pengajarannya (Vol. 5, Issue 2, pp. 511–526). https://doi.org/10.30872/diglosia.v5i2.411
Rumsey, A. (1990). Wording, meaning, and linguistic ideology. American Anthropologist, 92(2), 346–361. https://doi.org/10.1525/aa.1990.92.2.02a00060.
Schaffer, D. (2010). Old whine online: Prescriptive grammar blogs on the internet. English Today, 26(4), 23–28. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266078410000398
Sharma, B. K. (2014). On high horses: Transnational Nepalis and language ideologies on YouTube. Discourse, Context and Media, 4–5, 19–28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcm.2014.04.001
Statista. (2023). Countries with the largest TikTok audience as of October 2023 (in millions). Retrieved from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1299807/number-of-monthly-unique-tiktok-users/. Accessed 10/12/2023.
Sugiharto, S. (2015). Translingualism in action: Rendering the impossible possible. Journal of Asia TEFL, 12(2).
Thornberg, R., & Charmaz, K. (2014). Grounded theory and theoretical coding. The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Data Analysis, 5(2014), 153–169. Sage.
Vogl, U. (2012). Multilingualism in a standard language culture. Standard Languages and Multilingualism in European History, 1–42. John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Wardani, N. A., & Suwartono, T. (2019). Javanese language interference in the pronunciation of English phonemes. Celtic: A Journal of Culture, English Language Teaching, Literature and Linguistics, 6(2), 14–25.
Woolard, K. A. (2020). Language ideology. In The International Encyclopedia of Linguistic Anthropology (pp. 1–21). Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118786093.iela0217
Zein, S. (2020). Language policy in superdiverse Indonesia. Routledge.
Zein, S., Sukyadi, D., Hamied, F. A., & Lengkanawati, N. S. (2020). English language education in Indonesia: A review of research (2011–2019). Language Teaching, 53(4), 491–523. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444820000208
Zhang, W., & Hu, G. (2008). Second language learners’ attitudes towards English varieties. Language Awareness, 17(4), 342–347. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658410802147337
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Nakita Febiola Vesya, Mohammad Umar Muslim
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
