No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the author.
Bringing Context and Methodology Together
Abstract
Responds to comments made by Jeremy Harmer about an earlier article written by the author that argued the dominance of communicative language teaching (CLT) has led to the neglect of one crucial aspect of language pedagogy, namely the context in which that pedagogy takes place. (Author/VWL)
... Secondly, the critical role of teachers and socio-cultural context in mediating the spread of a new methodology such as the case of CLT has been well recognised (Bax, 2003a(Bax, , 2003bEllis, 1996;Harmer, 2003;Kramsch & Sullivan, 1996;Larsen-Freeman, 1999), which has driven the idea of methodological appropriateness (e.g. Holliday, 1994). ...
... This conflicts with the learner-centred concept of learning assumed by CLT and TBLT (Hu, 2005b;Rao, 1996), a concern many native-speaker English teachers in Vietnam also expressed (Bock, 2000;Ellis, 1996). Although one may argue that the underlying concepts of education need to be changed before change to CLT may successfully take place, it is advisable that teachers and practitioners should adapt rather than adopt the new approach (Bax, 2003a(Bax, , 2003bCanh, 2004;Larsen-Freeman, 1999;Li, 1998;Lee, 2005;Jarvis & Atsilarat, 2004). Carless (2004) suggests that there is a need for "adaptation and a flexible situated version of task-based teaching" (p.595). ...
... Researchers, applied linguists, and educators have proposed various ways of reconciling research and practice. Some are concerned with the role of context and teachers" existing beliefs and practice in language teaching and teacher training (e.g., Bax, 2003aBax, , 2003bBreen, 2006;Kumaravadivelu, 2006;Jarvist & Atsilarat, 2004;Johnson, 2006). Others have maintained that it is imperative for teachers to reflect on theory from their perspectives. ...
Although research into language teacher learning and cognition and teaching innovations oriented to communicative tasks has been abundant, little has addressed EFL teachers’ learning and conceiving of SLA principles underlying task-based language teaching. The study reported in the present thesis aims to fill this gap, specifically investigating teachers’ learning and conceiving of the notions of rich comprehensible language input, and authentic output and interaction, referred to as ‘SLA facilitating conditions’. The study explores three issues: teachers’ conceptions of the SLA facilitating conditions based on their practices in the tertiary English classroom; teachers’ perceptions of implementing the conditions, including factors affecting the implementation; and teachers’ perceived learning or change as a result of the process. Data for the study were obtained from six Vietnamese EFL lecturers who voluntarily participated in two short professional development workshops focusing on language input, and output and interaction. The data collection process was cumulative, beginning with pre-workshop interviews, followed by collection of lesson plans, lesson-based interviews, reflective writing, observation of lesson recordings, and a questionnaire. Analysis and interpretation followed a process of triangulation, and drew on the author’s knowledge of the context and the teachers’ backgrounds. The results showed that the six teachers held contextualised conceptions of language input, and output and interaction. Although they believed that these conditions are important for language learning, their conceptions based on their implementation of the conditions reflected a synthetic product-oriented view of language learning and teaching. The teachers demonstrated an accommodation of the notion of comprehensible input into their existing pedagogical understanding, and revealed a conception of language output oriented to accuracy and fluency of specific target language items. Tasks and activities for interaction were mainly to provide students with contexts to use the target language items meaningfully rather than to communicate meaning. Most teachers delayed communicative tasks until their students were acquainted with the language content of the day. Such conceptions and practices had a connection with both conceptual/experiential and contextual factors, namely their prior training and experience, time limitations, syllabus, and students’ characteristics. The study also showed that although the teachers’ perceptions of the feasibility of promoting rich language input and authentic output and interaction were neutral, they thought promoting these conditions was relevant to students’ learning, congruent with their pre-existing beliefs about teaching English, and this granted them a sense of agency. The teachers also reported they became more aware of input, and output and interaction in teaching, confident, and purposeful in actions, and some reported a widened view of English language teaching. The study confirms that teacher learning and cognition is conceptually and contextually conditioned (Borg, 2006). In terms of this, it provides a model of how EFL teachers’ learning SLA is constrained by prior pedagogical beliefs and contextual conditions. In conjunction with previous research, the study provided evidence to suggest that communicative and task-based language teaching would appear to run counter to existing beliefs about teaching and practical conditions in Asian EFL situations. This lends support to a more flexible organic approach to employing tasks, perhaps considering the extent to which and in what ways communicative tasks are pedagogically useful to the EFL classroom. An implication is that for any new approaches like task-based language teaching to be incorporated into teachers’ existing repertoire, teachers’ conceptions of language input and interaction, and the conceptual and practical constraints influencing their thinking and practice should be considered and addressed. In a broader sense, approaches to teacher education and development should take a constructivist perspective on teacher learning, taking into account the local context of teaching and teachers’ existing cognition.
... And when set against the threat posed by the National Examination, the realities look even more worrying. Therefore, the government needs to consider context at the centre of language teaching (Bax, 2003a(Bax, , 2003b, and the ecological approach (Tudor, 2002), which considers various human and contextual factors into a course design. The last constraint is the fact that the genre based approach does not contribute significantly to students in terms of being able to do the National Examination. ...
... The school-Level Curriculum which attempts to appreciate the schools' own contexts should not be contradicted with and deterred by the National Examination which exerts a uniform standard of competence on such diverse contexts of Indonesia. At the level of EFL teaching, the genre-based approach needs also to be reconsidered to include contexts as suggested by Bax (2003aBax ( , 2003b. Tudor (1993) also holds that simply adopting a method used in one cultural context in another is unlikely to be successful. ...
Abstract
The genre-based approach has been known to characterize pedagogical practices during the implementation of the 2006 school-level curriculum. Despite its prevalent use and overwhelming support by school stakeholders, the efficacy of this approach was nonetheless questionable. This paper aims to revisit the 2006 School level curriculum, its plausibility and compatibility with individual contexts and its bearing on EFL practices. It also discusses the Genre-based approach in terms of its underlying paradigms, and possible variables and contextual factors which might have impinged on its implementation. Some research findings on the adoption of the approach in Southeast Asia context are also presented to provide insights into how the Genre-based approach could be efficiently adopted. This essay concludes with some ideas for the amendment to the 2006 school- level curriculum and how the genre-based approach might still be relevant in the context of teaching writing skills at tertiary education.
... Different aspects of teachers' needs in language teaching context (Bax, S. 2003;Block, D.1994;Bright, J. A. & McGregor, G.P, 1978;Brookes, B.C. 1964;Crandall, J.1998) for engineering students and innovations in the teaching-learning process as in studies conducted by Brookfield, 1988;Cope & Kalantzis, 1993;Crandall, 1998;Curry, Sherry, and Tunney, 2003;Ellis, R. 2005;El-Okda, 1991, Halliday, 2005Mohamed, 2006, Mehisto, 2007 are explored. The studies conducted on how teachers conduct examinations and assessment has also been considered (Wellington, 2002;West, 2002). ...
... Teacher training institutions would have to consider the needs of the teachers, whilst still adhering to government policy. Bax (2003) would call this the synthesis of context and methodology, where the emphasis is deliberately focused more on the context. ...
This qualitative study focuses on the adoption of learner-centeredness in the English language classroom, and whether it is mediated by culture. With the use of observations, and interviews, and using a socio-cultural framework, this investigation examines primary school teachers' perceptions of learner-centered teaching, how they implement that teaching in the classroom and how this is negotiated by culture. Students' perceptions of their learning are also reflected upon. The research findings reveal that most teachers were able to demonstrate aspects of learner-centered teaching; however, they were not proficient in explaining theory. They emphasised that their effectiveness was impacted by a lack of confidence, a perceived deficit of pronunciation ability, the lack of opportunities to use English outside the classroom, a shortage of qualified English teachers, and excessive extracurricular activities at schools. Students liked to learn English, although the teachers regard their students as lacking in confidence. Students particularly like playing games, singing songs, working in groups and prefer their teacher to mark their work. This research has possible ramifications for teacher training, as there may be a requirement for the local context and culture, and the involvement of all stakeholders in the education process when implementing successful educational change.
... This approach conflicts with the learner-centered approach to learning generated by TBLT (Bock, 2000;Ellis, 1996;Hu, 2005b;Rao, 1996). Although it is advisable that teachers and practitioners adapt rather than adopt a new approach (Bax, 2003;Canh, 2004;Larsen-Freeman, 1999;Li, 1998;Lee, 2005;Jarvis & Atsilarat, 2004), arguably, educational conceptions need to be impacted and shifted before a methodological shift can start. The assumptions and values underlying TBLT are likely to conflict with the prior knowledge, beliefs and experiences of EFL teachers who are probably still accustomed to transmission teaching style, and a discrete-item teaching perspective such as the PPP procedure. ...
Task-based language teaching (TBLT) is one of the contemporary approaches which attracts a vast amount of research in the past decades. Research on the dissemination of TBLT, however, has provided abundant evidence of hindering factors in various educational contexts, especially in Asian cultures. Two major groups of factors were reported. One is directly associated with the teachers, namely their language proficiency, understanding of TBLT, and beliefs about language pedagogy. The other group involves the social, cultural, and educational forces which indirectly militate against the teachers' implementation, including assessment policy, large mixed-ability classes, social accountability, and instructional time constraint. This situation reflects an existing gap between what second language acquisition research has to say and classroom realities, in which the teacher plays a crucial bridging role. The current paper draws on studies on TBLT published within two to three recent decades to argue that teachers' belief is a key mediator of their practice which interacts with their classroom experiences and contextual factors. Based on this position, the paper attempts to depict a conceptual framework that captures the interaction to provide PASAA Vol. 59 January-June 2020 | 155 implications for future research and work on EFL teachers' education and development.
... In order for this to happen, teacher training institutions would have to be sympathetic to the needs and skills of the teachers, whilst still adhering to the policy laid down by the government. This correlates with whatBax (2003) would call the bringing together of context and methodology, where there is the synthesis of context and methodology, but where the emphasis is intentionally more on the context.To this end understanding local contexts of teaching in Thailand including aspects of Thai culture and the problems Thai teachers face on a daily basis are important. This could lead to a more dynamic approach to English to improve communicative competence through student engagement, scaffolding and an understanding of the relationship that Thai culture has with this learner-centered pedagogy promoted by the Thai government. ...
This research explores the relationship between Thai culture and the learning and teaching of English in north-eastern Thailand, by focusing on the adoption of learner-centeredness in the English language classroom, and whether it is mediated by Thai culture. This qualitative study employs observations, and individual/group interviews, using a socio-cultural framework to investigate primary school teachers’ perceptions of learner-centered teaching, how they implement learner-centeredness in the classroom and how this is negotiated by Thai culture. In addition, students’ perceptions of their learning preferences, and how they relate to learner-centeredness are both investigated in relation to Thai culture.
The research findings reveal that most Thai teachers of English taking part in this investigation were able to demonstrate aspects of learner-centered teaching, for example, engaging students, varied use of content, a learner-centered environment, some student autonomy, and assessment to reach student goals; however, they were not particularly adept at explaining theory during their interviews. Teachers highlighted a lack of confidence, a perceived deficit of pronunciation ability and the lack of opportunities to use English outside the classroom as having an influence on their effectiveness. In addition, a shortage of qualified English teachers, and excessive extracurricular activities in schools were also emphasised as having an impact.
Furthermore, the students liked to learn English by singing songs and playing games, and preferred their teacher marking their work, and working in groups, although teachers believed that their students also lacked confidence in using English.
This research has possible implications for teacher training, in that there may be a requirement for Thai culture, as well as the local context, to be taken into consideration when implementing educational change, including the involvement of all stakeholders in the educational process if it is to succeed.
... . importance of social context' (Bax, 2003 andColeman, 1996); calls for 'third way pedagogies' (Pennycook, 2008); and for 'cultural mediation' (Ellis, 1996) suggest that local responses have influenced global academic discussions about CLT. ...
... . importance of social context' (Bax, 2003 andColeman, 1996); calls for 'third way pedagogies' (Pennycook, 2008); and for 'cultural mediation' (Ellis, 1996) suggest that local responses have influenced global academic discussions about CLT. ...
... Harmer sums up the reasons for the tepid success of CLT in India when he says 'Stephen Bax's article is a timely reminder that the social context in which learning takes place is of vital importance to the success of the educational endeavour'. Methodology was actually acting 'as a brake' (Bax 2003b: 295) on teachers and the misreading of context by the CDC was complicating the teaching paradigm. ...
This feature offers a chance for readers to contribute to the discussion of a topic raised in an article or review published in the Journal. Contributions should be no more than 1,250 words and should be sent to the Editor for review in the normal way.
... These challenges involve the teacher, the students, the educational system, and the communicative language teaching approach itself (Li, 1998). There have been many attempts to develop the communicative approach in which some of the scholars, such as Bax (2003), have argued that the communicative language teaching approach has a negative effect on learning due to the absence of an explanation of what the teacher should do while dealing with this approach. Taking these drawbacks into account, Jarvis and Atsilarat (2004) propose an alternative model that focuses on the importance of context and placing context on top of everything else as it is exemplified in 2 below. ...
This paper focuses on the impact of the organization of teaching approaches on the effectiveness of training for Jordanian EFL teachers. The sample for this study is drawn from all government schools in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The study uses a mixed-method approach whereby findings are triangulated throughout (in interviews, observations, and questionnaires). The study finds that most of the in-service training courses for EFL teachers are not properly organized. Moreover, taking into account different approaches, this study shows that a serious problem hinders the effectiveness of the in-service training courses.
The chapter proposes that the honing of teacher efficacy is a necessary prerequisite for the implementation of post-method pedagogy (PMP). The application of PMP requires an autonomous practitioner who undertakes an experimental approach to teaching English as a second language. Hence, it is justifiable that teachers would need a high self-assurance in their capabilities to make comprehensive judgments regarding their selection, and effectual employment of teaching practices. The chapter examines how teacher agency is negated by three factors – practitioners' operation as passive implementers of dicta, a product-focussed school context that discourages teachers' self-directed instructional approaches, and teachers' overreliance on teaching resources such as the textbook. Finally, the chapter provides PMP criteria for teachers' effective engagement of textbooks which practitioners could competently apply providing they have achieved their efficacies.
The chapter proposes that the honing of teacher efficacy is a necessary prerequisite for the implementation of post-method pedagogy (PMP). The application of PMP requires an autonomous practitioner who undertakes an experimental approach to teaching English as a second language. Hence, it is justifiable that teachers would need a high self-assurance in their capabilities to make comprehensive judgments regarding their selection, and effectual employment of teaching practices. The chapter examines how teacher agency is negated by three factors – practitioners' operation as passive implementers of dicta, a product-focussed school context that discourages teachers' self-directed instructional approaches, and teachers' overreliance on teaching resources such as the textbook. Finally, the chapter provides PMP criteria for teachers' effective engagement of textbooks which practitioners could competently apply providing they have achieved their efficacies.
This study investigates Korean English teachers’ responses to the current English Language Teaching (ELT) policies and reveals the attributes of their professional identity from their responses. Data collected from different narratives demonstrate that the teachers value the principles of communicative language teaching, but are not supportive of teaching English in English and do not regard oral competence as a prerequisite for ELT professionals, both of which are the main concern of the current policies. The teachers emphasise human education, having practical knowledge and willingness to learn something new, and using different methods or materials depending on the students’ needs and levels. These understandings of the meaning systems of their professional identity provide some implications for the establishment of professional standards and desirable pedagogies, as well as the reform of the English curriculum. First, broader attributes of the teachers’ qualities need to be reflected into professional standards. Second, the state needs to form a partnership with the teachers that leads to producing a more feasible and coherent curriculum. Third, to be accredited as professionals, English teachers’ active reflection on their own teaching is indispensable.
Research has shown that teachers' beliefs about language teaching are shaped by a myriad factors, among them, their own experiences as language learners, their pedagogical training, and the contexts in which they work (Borg, 2003; Fang, 1996; Freeman, 2002; Lortie, 1975). How their beliefs influence their practice has also been studied, and it has been found that whether teachers consistently put these beliefs into instructional practice varies considerably. For example, while some research on reading and literacy instruction has demonstrated a clear relationship between teachers' theoretical orientations and what they do in their classes, other research has found this relationship to be weak, with teachers tending towards inconsistency; in other words, not doing what they believed was appropriate (Fang, 1996). Contextual factors are cited as the main reasons why inconsistency tends to occur. This research, part of a larger case study project tracking the outcomes of an overseas 4-month program of language and pedagogy designed for Japanese junior and senior high school teachers, used an adapted version of Gorsuch's (2001) questionnaire which was designed to explore the beliefs of Japanese teachers of English (JTE) about the appropriateness of communicative language teaching (CLT), audio-lingual, and grammar-translation activities. The questionnaire was given to 10 JTEs participating in an overseas pedagogical program to determine if consistency existed between their beliefs and practices prior to the commencement of the program. This study's results revealed similarities to Gorsuch's original research with regards to JTEs holding positive attitudes about CLT activities; however, it also revealed both consistencies and inconsistencies between teachers' beliefs and reported practices for a number of reasons, largely relating to do with the contexts in which JTEs worked.
Reflexivity is the key concept underpinning a view of teacher education that binds together the orientations of action research and personal development in a way that establishes common ground, common purpose, and common experience between teachers and teacher educators.
Traditionally, learning to teach was viewed as applying discrete amounts of teaching knowledge in one context and developing teaching skills in another context. However, in recent years, there has been a paradigm shift in teacher education focusing on the specific teaching context that shapes the reality of classroom practice. According to Freeman and Johnson (1998), the teaching context such as schools and classrooms are the sociocultural terrains in which the work of teaching is conceptualized, implemented and evaluated (Freeman & Johnson, 1998, p. 408). This paper attempts to fill the gap in the effects of contextual factors on the teaching practice of a new EFL teacher in Japan. Thus the research question for this study is, 'What role does the teaching context play in the teaching practice of a beginning TESOL teacher in the Japanese classroom?' Elbaz (1983) has demonstrated that teachers' knowledge is largely held tacitly in holistic, often narrative, forms, suggesting that narratives of teaching will allow new ways to understand the experience of L2 classrooms. Through a narrative inquiry of my teaching experience in Japan, I attempt to show that the teaching practice of TESOL teachers in Japan is influenced by contextual factors such as students' linguistic proficiency and learning attitudes, the institution learning culture, mentors in the out-of-classroom context, teaching philosophy and the sociolinguistic context of teaching. It is intended that this study will add on the knowledge of contextual influences on teaching practice in teacher education.
TESOL-related theories and pedagogy developed in the West are increasingly predominating the field of English language teaching worldwide including in Asian countries. From an analysis of problems arising in the commonly seen practice in Asia, whereby L2 experts from Western ESL countries are hired to provide professional development training to EFL teachers, this paper critically examines issues of contextual relevance of Western TESOL-related knowledge and challenges the tendency to adopt Western applied linguistics wholesale in defining and developing Asian ELT. Linking critical applied linguistics and teacher cognition theory, this paper argues for a reconceptualization of Asian ELT as a discipline embedded primarily in its own historical, social, and cultural contexts that draws on its indigenous knowledge and ways of teaching. The paper proposes a framework of relevance for undertaking ELT and its teacher education in Asia, with implications drawn for program planning and course designing.
This paper uses one case study at a Saudi Arabian university to illustrate the effects of
competing Discourses on the identities of English language teachers in this context.
Through an unpacking of their language teaching narratives, the notion of'global'English
language teaching emerges as a way of potentially resolving the conflicting
identities/Discourses.
The principles of many international language teacher education programmes are grounded in a relatively homogenous set of ‘Western’ cultural values, even though their participants come from a wide range of different cultural backgrounds. This paper addresses some of the issues surrounding the role of culture in language teacher education and discusses the ways in which cultural phenomena are defined and recognised on such programmes. It argues that language teacher education should acknowledge difference on the part of both language teacher educators and participants on language education programmes. Above all, it argues that language teachers need to develop the competence to function in a range of cultural contexts and to be critically aware of the relationship between culture, context and pedagogic practice.
ResearchGate has not been able to resolve any references for this publication.