The 33rd MELTA International Conference

Resisting Algorithmic Nativespeakerism: Prompt Design for Learner Agency in English as an Additional Language (EAL) Writing

The 33rd MELTA International Conference was held on September 13–14 at Brickfields Asia College in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. This year’s theme was “The Agentive ELT Professional: Driving Innovation and Impact.” More details about the conference can be found on the official website: 33rd MELTA International Conference.

I presented a session titled “Resisting Algorithmic Nativespeakerism: Prompt Design for Learner Agency in English as an Additional Language (EAL) Writing.” Through a qualitative analysis of five university-sanctioned prompts, the presentation identifies two distinct approaches: "Prompts of Subordination," which use authoritative personas to reinforce nativespeakerist norms, and "Prompts of Agency," which employ collaborative personas and strategic constraints to foster learner autonomy. It argues that prompt design is a powerful tool for resisting hegemonic language ideologies and concludes by advocating for critical AI literacy and LLM prompt proficiency to empower EAL writers.