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Maximizing learning potential in the communicative classroom
Abstract
If, as research reveals, even those teachers who are committed to communicative language teaching (CLT) fail to create genuine communication in their classrooms, it is partly because teacher educators have not given them the necessary tools to achieve their desired goals. This paper proposes that a framework of five macrostrategies offers a possible tool to make the communicative classroom genuinely communicative. The paper presents a classroom observational study to assess whether the macrostrategies framework will help CLT teachers maximize learning potential in the classroom. An analysis of two classroom episodes taught by two committed CLT teachers featuring the same group of learners revealed that one episode was evidently more communicative than the other. The relative success in maximizing learning potential witnessed in one episode and the relative failure witnessed in another is attributed to the use and non-use of the macrostrategies framework. The study shows that given appropriate tools CLT teachers will succeed in making their classes genuinely ycommunicative.
... Studies in the field of EFL learning and teaching such as Harmer (1982) and Kumaravadivelu (1993) have appealed for maximizing language learning opportunities through engaging students in tasks where they use English and encouraging students' use of English in and outside the classroom. This emphasis on exposing EFL students to English in and outside classroom confirms its significance in foreign language acquisition. ...
... What we can get from this argument is that even if the teachers believe in communicative language teaching approach, there is still a need for training them how to teach communicatively and providing them with strategies that help them to create interaction in classroom. Kumaravadivelu (1993) argued that the research studies like Guthrie (1984), Nunan (1987) and Walz (1989) revealed that even those teachers who are committed to CLT may fail to create opportunities for genuine communication in their classrooms. He attributed such failure to two major reasons, namely "the mismatch between teacher intention and learner interpretation" and teacher educators' lack of success "in providing classroom teachers with strategies minimally required to cope with the challenges of a communicative classroom" (p. ...
... These strategies came from classroom experience where CLT committed teachers were provided with these strategies to utilize in their teaching and it resulted in a more communicative classroom. Kumaravadivelu (1993) concluded his discussion by arguing that CLT teachers will succeed in making their classroom genuinely communicative if they are provided with these strategies, trained on implementing them in their teaching and motivated to invent more microstrategies of their own. Thornbury (1996) referred to Nunan's (1987) and Kumaravadivelu's (1993;) studies of classroom discourse and how their studies revealed that even those CLT committed teachers sometimes fail to create opportunities for genuine communication in their classrooms. ...
This study was designed to investigate the spoken communication difficulties encountered by the fourth-year EFL students of some rural faculties of Aden University and the factors that might negatively contribute to their poor acquisition of spoken communication proficiency during their learning of English in these faculties to reach some suggestions and solutions that may help in changing the current situation and enabling the concerned EFL programs produce proficient speakers of English. The data were collected through varied instruments, namely students’ questionnaire (n = 120), teachers’ questionnaire (n = 23), students’ interviews (n = 30), speaking skill teachers’ interviews (n = 4), students’ spoken communication proficiency assessment rubric (n = 42), classroom observations (n = 6), and an assessment of speaking skill syllabi. The collected data were analyzed by using the SPSS 21st version and manually. The results revealed that the majority of the students encounter fluency and automaticity related difficulties and lack of communication strategies. Moreover, some students also share one or more difficulties with these two major ones, such as phonological difficulties, comprehension difficulties, sociocultural difficulties, lack of discourse knowledge, affective difficulties, and lexical and grammatical difficulties, respectively. Though the majority of the students seem to have mastered a somehow sufficient level of grammar and vocabulary, many of them cannot put their lexical and grammatical knowledge into use orally. It has also been revealed that several factors are responsible for students’ poor acquisition of spoken communication proficiency. These factors can be categorized into five types, namely a. factors related to the students themselves, namely students’ lack of language learning strategies to develop spoken English and lack of integrative motivation, b. factors related to student’s past education, namely students’ poor English level when they joined the concerned faculties in addition to the traditional learning habits they brought from their pre-tertiary education, c. factors related to students’ environment, namely lack of exposure to spoken English provided by the environment, d. factors related to teaching methodology, such as lack of communicative activities, majority of the students are rarely engaged in spoken activities, mother tongue use in English classes, no language laboratory or ICTs, low qualifications of some teachers, i.e. a semi-traditional teaching setting is still dominant in most classes, and e. curriculum-related factors, namely lack of time devoted to teaching spoken communication skills and the overuse of non-English subjects. As per the results, this study has provided some suggestions and solutions that will help in changing the current situation and enabling the concerned EFL programs to produce proficient speakers of English.
((This is a summary of the thesis. If you want to get a soft copy of the thesis, mail me on sabri-t2010@hotmail.com ))
... This is how that process came to be. Nunan (1987) and Kumaravadivelu (1993) state, "Methods are not realized in their pure forms." The author found this to be true, and other practitioners with whom she shared regularly expressed the same observations. ...
... In this example of the Mini Lesson, Nunan (1987) and Kumaravadivelu (1993) are proven right on the idea that methodology is often implemented in a format different from that which was taught. In, the author's experience, the revision of the method made it more successful. ...
... Students' involvement in classroom activities is a primary condition for developing their speaking proficiency as classroom can be the only place where FL learners can get exposure to their target language. For this reason, the EFL classroom teaching and learning classroom should be as much communicative as possible to allow language acquisition to take place and this can be achieved through various communicative activities and tasks that engage students in communicative language use (Broughton et al., 1978;Canale, 1983;Ellis, 1994;Harmer, 1982;Harmer, 2001;Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Littlewood, 1981;Nunan, 1987;Prabhu, 1987;Oxford, 2006;Richards & Rodgers, 2014;Savignon, 2002;Thornbury, 1996). Even in contexts where EFL learners are beginners and they may lack linguistic knowledge, teachers should engage them in pre-communicative and communicative activities that help them to develop their linguistic system and use it for communication simultaneously (Broughton et al., 1978;Harmer, 2001). ...
... Even in contexts where EFL learners are beginners and they may lack linguistic knowledge, teachers should engage them in pre-communicative and communicative activities that help them to develop their linguistic system and use it for communication simultaneously (Broughton et al., 1978;Harmer, 2001). They should exploit any opportunity for language use created by learners and work hard in motivating students to interact in English (Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Thornbury, 1996). They should also encourage English use in classroom leisure time and classroom discipline as such a language use is viewed to be a kind of genuine and purposeful communication similar to the communication existing outside classroom (Littlewood, 1981). ...
This study investigated Yemeni EFL learners’ involvement in classroom oral activities and its
correlation to their speaking proficiency development with a reference to three rural faculties of education
affiliated to Aden University. The data was collected through a questionnaire which targeted 120 fourth-year
EFL learners. The results revealed that the students’ involvement in classroom activities is pretty low. It has been
unveiled that pair work and group work activities are not implemented in a regular basis and it is limited to a few
students. The findings also showed a significant correlation between learners’ involvement in classroom oral
activities and their speaking proficiency (p. value < 0.05%). As per these findings, this study recommends the
concerned faculties to implement communicative language teaching in their EFL programs to ensure students’
engagement in classroom activities and promote their oral proficiency.
... Primero, se ha encontrado que los docentes tienen con-cepciones incompletas del Enfoque Comunicativo y no lo implementan de manera apropiada (Karavas-Doukas, 1996;Lewis & McCook, 2002;Savignon & Wang, 2003). Igualmente, otros estudios han concluido que, aunque los docentes se identi can con el Enfoque Comunicativo, sus prácticas no re ejan la implementación de este enfoque (Guthrie, 1986;Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Long & Sato 1983;Mitchell, 1988;Nunan, 1987). Por el contrario, los docentes tienden a usar metodologías tradicionales en el aula (Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Nunan, 1987;Shulz, 2001). ...
... Igualmente, otros estudios han concluido que, aunque los docentes se identi can con el Enfoque Comunicativo, sus prácticas no re ejan la implementación de este enfoque (Guthrie, 1986;Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Long & Sato 1983;Mitchell, 1988;Nunan, 1987). Por el contrario, los docentes tienden a usar metodologías tradicionales en el aula (Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Nunan, 1987;Shulz, 2001). Esta diferencia entre lo declarativo y lo procedimental pone de mani esto la necesidad de explorar las creencias y prácticas de los docentes en diversos contextos. ...
... Research findings have shown more or less the same concerns that have already been identified in the literature review. Regarding the use of the imported methods, although the participants did not disregard the importance of methods in ELT, they talked frequently on the limitations of methods and have shown almost the same concerns that have already been recorded by some researchers (Nunan, 1987;Kumaravadivelu, 1993a) that methods are not realized in their pure forms. The findings also support the concerns of other researchers (Prahbu, 1987;Chick, 1996;Shamim, 1996;Yu, 2001;Sato, 2002) that it is difficult to practice a pedagogy successfully until it considers the contextual variations such as socio-economic, religious and cultural issues. ...
... There are so many instances where classroom research has been conducted to evaluate the importance of a method (especially in the context of CLT) in teaching of English as a second or a foreign language (see for instance Kumaravadivelu, 1993a, Nunan, 1987, Thornbury, 1996, Prahbu, 1987Chick, 1996;Shamim, 1996;Yu, 2001;Sato, 2002). There is also a need to conduct research on the use of the post-method frameworks as suggested by Stern's three-dimensional framework (1992), Allwrigth's exploratory framework (1991) and Kumaravadivelu's post-method framework (1994). ...
Method-based pedagogies are commonly applied in teaching English as a foreign language all over the world. However, in the last quarter of the 20th century, the concept of such pedagogies based on the application of a single best method in EFL started to be viewed with concerns by some scholars. In response to the growing concern against the concept of a method, some scholars started to offer alternatives to a method in different forms. Kumaravadivelu is one of the scholars who offers his post-method macro-strategic framework as an alternative to method-based pedagogies. This small-scale study explores English language practitioners’ experience and their views about applying method-based and post-method pedagogies. Semi-structured pre- and post-interviews were conducted from eight participants. The pre-interviews investigated the teacher-participants’ views about the method-based pedagogies in practice and the post-interviews aimed at knowing the prospects and concerns in the application of post-method pedagogies in their context. Although participants were skeptical of the concept of methods, they considered them useful in making contribution towards learning and teaching English. They found post-method pedagogies as more preferable option to method-based pedagogies in ELT on the ground; the post-method pedagogies, according to them, give broad directions while specific methods make teachers to work within narrow guidelines. However, they showed certain concerns in the application of such pedagogies in their context.
... This study uses qualitative research, especially observational, to obtain the data. As Kumaravadivelu (1993) defined, an observational study presents the interaction in the classroom to inform how the teaching-learning process is done. Accordingly, in this research, an observational study used to know how and which components of the literature circle were applied in the classroom by considering the class interaction. ...
Online literature circles have attracted many English teachers to be used in reading classes. This research aimed to describe the interactions of online literature circles with EFL university students. The participants in this research are the students from critical reading and literacy class in one of the Islamic universities in Yogyakarta. The data were collected through the classroom observational method which the transcription data obtained from the discussion of each group at the zoom meeting. This research used the instruments adapted from Daniel (2022) about the roles of literature circles and the interactions from Guiller, Durndell, and Ross (2007) to analyze the group discussion. The finding of this research shows the students were engaged in online literature circles. Each group performs interactive discussions. Furthermore, each group member plays their role in accordance with the task description. Therefore, in this Covid-19 era, online literature circles are good to do in online classes. In addition, the lecturers are able to join the group discussion, and the presence of lecturers will provide motivation where the class will be more critical.
... But the reality is that most teachers never care about what method they use (Bell, 2007: 135). Several studies have been conducted on this issue, yielding four facts that contradict this myth (Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Nunan, 1987;Swaffar, Aren, and Morgan, 1982). First, teachers who claim to apply certain teaching methods, but do not meet the theoretical principles and procedures that must be carried out in the classroom from that method. ...
The postmodern paradigm has developed very broadly. It has not only become a discussion in the field of philosophy but also influenced almost all fields of science, especially the socio-cultural sciences, including language teaching. This study aims to review how postmodernism affects language teaching and what effects it has on the language teaching and learning process, be it teaching a second or foreign language or teaching a first language. This is an analytic study using a literature review approach from written sources to describe the results and draw research conclusions. The results show that postmodernism has influenced language teaching, especially with the emergence of criticism of existing teaching methods and the raising of the critical question of whether teaching languages should use existing teaching methods or whether language teaching does not need to follow these methods. Criticism then gives birth to an understanding method of pedagogy that is based on communicative language teaching (CLT). Postmodern philosophy suggests that language teaching can be done with a combination of several existing methods or can also add new methods or techniques.
... Comparing the model with the actual classroom transcription, the discourse analysis was made and the interpretation and recommendation were finally put in the study. Kumaravadivelu (1993) promotes a classroom dynamic where the teacher and students take on more equal roles as participants in the lesson. In this spirit, the classroom from which the data in the paper was taken didn"t promote equal roles for teacher and students. ...
This paper was aimed to investigate a classroom discourse and find out its uses for the teaching of English as a FL/SL. To achieve the purpose, the researcher made a classroom observation as a tool of data collection. The class was randomly selected from Kokebe Tsibah Secondary and Preparatory School, Grade 11. After having simply the record, transcription was made. Based on the transcription, among the models of classroom discourse, the Sinclair and Coulthard (1975) model was selected as a sign post of this classroom based discourse analysis. Comparing the model with the actual classroom transcription, the discourse analysis was made and the interpretation and recommendation were finally put in the study. Based on the analysis it was confirmed that the classroom from which the data in the paper was taken didn"t promote equal roles for teacher and students. Teacher was dominating the class and students were not fully participating in that classroom. Additionally, there were unequal amount of moves and exchanges between teacher and students. All the moves, acts and exchanges between them were unequal. The class was teacher dominated. The initiation was from the teacher. There was no room for students to begin or initiate the conversation. When we see the lines from the transcription, teachers talk is about 10 lines more than that of students talk. Finally, it was recommended that teachers should give sufficient time for their students to make them practice the language and students are also needed to fully participate in the classroom in English lessons.
... target of the study. In communicative language teaching, learners use "authentic texts" (those written in the target language for purposes other than language learning) (Kumaravadivelu, 1993). In addition, students learn in two ways: the continuous use of the language inside and outside the classroom, and interaction with colleagues and teacher (Li, 1998). ...
... Although the questionnaires indicate that most teachers felt they were successful in adopting various kinds of language teaching approaches, the interviews suggested that most of the respondents were still following more traditional approaches that focused on teacher-dominated, textbook-based teaching, grammar-translation teaching and task-based teaching without or using very few communicative activities in English classes. This is in line with established research findings that although teachers often claim to follow a more communicative teaching approach, most of them are still employing a traditional teaching approach rather than communicative teaching in classes (Long and Sato 1983;Guthrie 1984;Nunan 1987;Walz 1989;Kamaravadivelu 1993;Hu 2005). It seems that student-centred teaching and communicative language teaching as suggested by the revised curriculum standards is not yet fully understood or embraced. ...
Abstract This chapter sets out to examine the revised English Curriculum Stan- dards, looking critically at the direction of travel of this educational reform and reports upon the results of research to find out how teachers have understood and fared the changes in the curriculum. This is an issue of considerable importance because across the PRC there are in excess of 9 million full-time teachers of English working within the compulsory education system, so any change to the roles and expectations of those teachers represents a huge endeavour of reform. Another pur- pose of the chapter is to guide English language readers through an important ministry of the education policy document. In educational research relating to Chinese edu- cation, there is often insufficient attention given to what the Chinese Government is actually saying and instituting.
... Embedded in this idea of teacher-as-facilitator and as the ultimate source of knowledge is the notion of questioning as a standard, decontextualized skill devoid of social and cultural contexts. According to Kumaravadivelu (1993), Oplatka (2006), and Palincsar (1986), this way of seeing questioning as a context-neutral, individual skill might have negative consequences for ELLs, because teachers adopting this model tend to miss opportunities to engage students in community resources and incorporate diversity to transform education. ...
Using questioning and discussion techniques to drive instruction and meet the needs of diverse
learners has been at the forefront of the current standards-based reform in the United States, where
learning standards are used to determine academic expectations. The general goal of standardsbased education is to ensure that students are acquiring the knowledge and skills that are deemed to
be essential for their success in higher education and careers (Great Schools Partnership, 2017). From
kindergarten to higher education, questioning has been viewed as a multifaceted strategy that
animates learning, improves the quality of classroom instruction, and cultivates students’ higher order
thinking (Conley, 2011; Danielson, 2011; McLaughlin & Overturf, 2012; Porter, McMaken, Hwang, &
Yang, 2011). Given the importance attributed to the role of questioning in students’ academic and
career success, how questions are incorporated into classroom teaching/learning practices to provide
a well-structured, effective instruction for all learners, including English language learners (ELLs),
deserves to be extensively studied. As a preliminary comparative study, this paper compares and
contrasts Common Core Standards (CCSS) (CCSS, 2011) and Philosophy for Children (P4C) (Lipman,
1991) classroom practices as two approaches to questioning, with a special focus on classroom roles
created for students in each approach. The goal is to demonstrate that opportunities afforded by
different classroom roles have profound implications of equity and inclusion for ELLs in classroom
inquiry communities.
... Over the last 30 years, the relevance of approaches to classroom interaction that emphasize social aspects of learning has become apparent (Kumaravadivelu, 1993(Kumaravadivelu, , 1999Seedhouse, 2004;Sert, 2015Sert, , 2017; van Lier, 1988;Walsh, 2006Walsh, , 2013. In the same way, perspectives that include interaction as a crucial component of second language acquisition (SLA), such as conversation analysis (CA; Kasper & Wagner, 2011), have informed second language (L2) and related pedagogy. ...
The language choices that teachers make in the language classroom have been found to influence the opportunities for learning given to learners (Seedhouse, 2004; Walsh, 2012; Waring, 2009, 2011). The present study expands on research addressing learner-initiated contributions (Garton, 2012; Jacknick, 2011; Waring, Reddington, & Tadic, 2016; Yataganbaba & Yıldırım, 2016) by demonstrating that opportunities for participation and learning can be promoted when teachers allow learners to expand and finish their overlapped turns. Audio recordings of lessons portraying language classroom interaction from three teachers in an adult foreign language classroom (EFL) setting were analyzed and discussed through conversation analysis (CA) methodology. Findings suggest that when teachers are able to navigate overlapping talk in such a way that provides interactional space for learners to complete their contributions, they demonstrate classroom interactional competence (Sert, 2015; Walsh, 2006). The present study contributes to the literature by addressing interactional features that increase interactional space, and an approach to teacher and learner talk that highlights CA’s methodological advantages in capturing the interactional nuances of classroom discourse.
... He claims that while teachers have never abandoned instructional approaches based on grammar, newer approaches have not made any lasting impression on the current status of English language teaching. Studies such as Burns (1990), Kumaravadivelu (2006) and Nunan (1987) have also suggested that although teachers may declare commitment to a particular method or approach such as Communicative Language Teaching, the issues that underlie these approaches are rarely practiced in the classroom. Classroom teaching therefore seems to carry on unaffected by the development on the theoretical and research front. ...
... Heller (1988) points out that the participants in discussions should be able to identify places where the next speaker may come in whether nominated or not and learning ways of nominating the next speaker, and learning some important formula for interruption or conversational tools. Kumaravadivelu (1993) also pointed out that ESL/ EFL students should be initiated to ask for information, ask for clarification, and reflect their agreements or disagreements with their fellow students and teachers. Among other researchers who have explored speakers' turn taking patterns in communication are namely Taddese (1997), Girma (1999), and Yohannes (2008). ...
This study aims to investigate the turn taking patterns of final year undergraduate students who are average achievers in an oral interaction test. The scope of this study focuses on profiling the students’ oral interactive ability in terms of their turn taking patterns in a small group discussion. In order to examine this, the oral test of 14 group discussion tasks in the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Test of English Communication Skills (UTMTECS) for graduating students were video recorded after consent was sought from the students before the recording took place. The recordings were then transcribed for analysis using an adapted version of Allwright (1988) model of turn taking patterns. From the transcribed files, it is observed that the average achievers mostly gave turns through ‘Neither’ turn giving pattern and gained turns through ‘Take’ turn getting pattern. From the findings, the average achievers in UTMTECS oral test are profiled as moderate speakers of English language. Nevertheless, they are still able to interact with other candidates in the group discussion with functional level of communication skills. This study also provides more insights into the setting of a benchmark to evaluate graduating students’ oral English communication competency and preparedness for the workplace.
... According to applied linguistic point of view ''vocabulary is not a goal of itself.'' We learn vocabulary for effective communication "Nation, [15]." CLT was introduced as a main language teaching approach in our country (Ethiopia) two decades ago. ...
... He claims that while teachers have never abandoned instructional approaches based on grammar alternative approaches have not made any lasting impression on the current practice of English Language Teaching (ELT). Studies [10], [11] and [12] have suggested that although teachers may profess commitment to a particular method or approach such as Communicative Language Teaching, the principles that underlie these approaches are rarely enacted in the classroom. Classroom teaching therefore seems to carry on unaffected by the development on the theoretical and research front. ...
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is the most recent development in Language Teaching which has been termed effective for communication skills needed to meet the demands of today's fast-paced global world. The principles of CLT have been tried and compared with other methods and particularly adopted in Bangladesh to credit its success worldwide. When compared with traditional methods of teaching such as Grammar Translation we have identified CLT as the most effective method in Second or Foreign Language Teaching. We carried out a comparative study between the Secondary and Tertiary Level English Language Teaching in Bangladesh to determine whether CLT is being implemented in actuality in either of the levels, to what extent and with what outcomes. The findings will try to give a clear indication of English Language Teaching in urban Bangladesh and the expected success of this methodology. While researching, a qualitative approach had been taken and a careful literature review was done to construct a theoretical framework.
... Thus, despite their desire to implement the principles of CLT, attempting to promote the performance of western CLT practices, a number of situational factors (i.e., matching in group work) can result in conflict. An increasing number of studies that focused on classroom-based practical communicative language practice have concluded the existence of a lack of opportunities to employ authentic communicative language in a foreign language classroom, including by those committed to CLT (Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Nunan, 1991). This is due to a considerable number of factors, including: traditional examinations; large classes; cultural constraints characterized by beliefs; ...
This study investigated the perceived knowledge and actual practice of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) among post basic education teachers in Omani schools, along with the influence of gender and length of teaching experience years on teachers’ practice of this approach. It also explored the different challenges faced by teachers when implementing CLT. A total of 122 EFL Omani teachers took part in this study. The respondents completed the following: (1) a twenty-five item questionnaire concerning CLT principles; and (2) a questionnaire regarding the challenges of CLT. The results revealed that Omani EFL teachers have a high degree of awareness of the principles of CLT. However, they practice this approach at a moderate level, while their gender and length of teaching experiences have little impact on their actual practice of this approach. The findings further indicated that the implementation of CLT in Omani classrooms is hindered by: (1) teachers’ lack of training in CLT; (2) lack of time to prepare communicative activities; (3) students’ low levels of proficiency in English; (4) large class sizes; and (5) difficulties assessing the linguistic aspects of the language. This resulted in the drawing up of a number of recommendations.
... Whitley (1993) argues that the needs of teachers have not been well researched and that CLT approaches have not been disseminated in ways which are sensitive to the problems teachers confront in local programs and classrooms. Kumaravadivelu (1993) concludes that teacher trainers sometimes simply fail to equip teachers with the skills and techniques they need for implementing CLT in their classrooms. ...
The aim of the study is to investigate EFL teachers’ use of Communicative Language Teaching techniques (CLT) in teaching speaking skills at schools from teachers’ perspectives. The participants were from the intermediate schools located at Al-America District in Baghdad. The total number is 29 EFL male and female teachers. A questionnaire was used to collect the data of the study. Validity and reliability of the questionnaire were computed. The findings reveal that the English language teachers sometimes use CLT Techniques and strategies in teaching speaking skills, and even the students are evaluated even by paper and pencil test more than oral test.
... Without any concern for teachers' knowledge and daily practices, reform is considered as imposition of something on teachers regardless of its perceived importance (Villegas-Reimers, 2003). In order to enable teachers to implement innovative methods and techniques, teacher education programs need to "empower teachers with the knowledge, skill, attitude, and autonomy necessary to devise for themselves a systematic, coherent, and relevant alternative … method that is informed by principled pragmatism" (Kumaravadivelu, 1993as cited in Zheng, 2012. As a result, the Chinese government has been offering financial support to in-service training programs to sustain continuous professional development of teachers' practices (Hu, 2005). ...
Teacher professional development enhances the theoretical knowledge and practical experience of teachers. By reviewing previous studies related to secondary EFL teacher professional development in China, this review paper reports on the development and importance of English, the value of secondary EFL teacher professional development, and the actual practices of EFL teacher professional development in the context of China. It also highlights the need for stronger practices in the professional development of teachers, and the financial supports in particular.
... The applied action-oriented approach supports the cooperation between students, it teaches them independent thinking and indicates different possibilities of acting in the target and first language context. Key words: specialized translation, foreign language teaching, the Italian language, language for specific purposes Kumaravadivelu (1993Kumaravadivelu ( , 2006. W pierwszej części artykułu zostaną zilustrowane pokrótce najważniejsze zagadnienia teoretyczne dotyczące tematu, takie jak: podejście działaniowe i nauczania w epoce post-metodycznej oraz zakres pojęcia tłumaczenia specjalistycznego, następnie w drugiej części znajdą się przykłady konkretnych rozwiązań dydaktycznych wraz z krótkim omówieniem i podsumowaniem. ...
... Although it is not possible to make strong claims of generalizability, the evidence seems to suggest that MLO, FNI, MPM, FLA, CLI, and PLA are the macrostrategies that have a strong influence on the teaching and learning of English in this context in Bangladesh. In fact, those teaching principles (specially, MLO, FNI, CLI) are common features of a range of teaching methodologies as also discussed in Kumaravadivelu's (1993). In this respect, this study seems to support Ur's (2013) and Bell's (2003) claim that PMP is not actually free from the features of conventional method (such as CLT), and is in fact derived from the local level of CLT. ...
This article aims to investigate the evidence of postmethod pedagogic practices from the Bangladeshi English teachers’ reported classroom practices. Kumaravadivelu’s (2001, 1994) idea of postmethod pedagogy presents the view that the conventional method-based pedagogy has limitations, as the method based pedagogy arguably undermines the peripheral knowledge base of teaching-learning primarily because of its top-down approach, hence calls for the actualization of location-specific English teaching methodologies. Data of this study was collected through semi structured open-ended interviews, and twelve English teachers of High schools of Bangladesh took part in the interviews. Findings of this study suggest that although the participant teachers’ described classroom teaching characterizes various aspects of the applications of postmethod pedagogy, those teaching practices are not necessarily indicative of the teachers’ true understanding (or their ability to apply) of all the constructs of the postmethod pedagogy. Though not in explicit way, some subtle references of reflective as well as transformative practices of teaching are evident in the data. Finally, on the basis of the findings, a three layered model (dominant, developing, incubating) is proposed for the future reference of the actualization of postmethod pedagogic principles in the Bangladeshi context. This model tends to rank the degree of application of varied teaching strategies that can be aligned with Kumaravalivedu’s (1994) concept of macrostrategic framework. The key implication of this study is the necessity for a review of the organizational constructs of the macrostrategic framework to actualise it in the Bangladeshi context. Another implication is that teacher education provided for ELT practitioners in Bangladesh should incorporate the theoretical ideas of how to help the prospective teachers to articulate their beliefs on teaching.
... When teachers design tasks or activities, they can consider the characteristics of the learning process. Kumaravadivelu (1993) suggests that when teachers are designing learning tasks, they must follow some psycho-linguistic principles. According to the characteristics of the learning process and the language teaching, there are four basic principles of designing tasks that teachers need to follow. ...
With the increasing of frequent international contact, people pay close attention to the cultivation of communicative competence in foreign language learning. Grammar course deserves a primary status on the curricula for English teaching reform. In order to improve students’ grammar skills, the National New English Curriculum Syllabus advocates that Task-Based Language Approach should be adopted in English classroom, which has become popular since the mid-1980 in grammar teaching. When compared with traditional teaching method, TBLA could effectively settle the existing problems in grammar teaching. Therefore, this paper is to confirm that the application of Task-based Approach has a great impact on English language teaching and learning. Based on the theory of tasked-based approach, the paper summarizes the design principles of teaching tasks, teaching process and contexts. In the end, it encourages teachers to apply Task-based approach into English grammar teaching in junior high schools.
... In this respect, the Netherlands is not dissimilar to many other parts of the world where structure-based teaching methods remain ubiquitous even though these are generally considered to be less effective (Lyster & Sato, 2013;Newton, 2016;Spada et al., 2014;Ur, 2011) than communicative approaches with a contextualised and meaningful form-focused component (for a discussion of communicative language teaching see Dörnyei, 2009;Gatbonton & Segalowitz, 2005;Spada, 2007;Thornbury, 2016). Similarly, the discrepancy between espoused beliefs in favour of communicative teaching and teaching practices that seem incompatible with such beliefs is well documented and geographically widespread (Karavas-Doukas, 1996;Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Nunan, 1987;Sato & Kleinsasser, 1999. ...
... Kumaravadivelu (2006a) problematises CLT in terms of its "authenticity, acceptability and adaptability" (p.62). The authenticity of CLT is questioned as communication practised in the classroom cannot represent real world interaction (Kumaravadivelu, 1993). The acceptability of CLT as a "revolutionary step" (Kumaravadivelu, 2006a, p.62), in the historical record of language teaching is doubted because it merely follows the same basic concept of language teaching as "the linear and additive view of language learning" (p.63) which assumes language learning goes through progressive movements. ...
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... This is supported by Mangubhai, Marland, Dashwood and Son (2007) who maintain that "many teachers remain uncertain about what CLT is" (p. 1). Some classroom-based studies (Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Nunan, 1987) have shown that communicative classrooms are uncommon, with most of the teachers asserting usage of communicative approach, but following the traditional approaches to language teaching. ...
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) has as its fundamental goal, the promotion of communicative competence. It supports teaching practices that cultivate learners’ abilities to effectively communicate in a second language. Over the last two decades, many ESL classrooms have adopted CLT into their curricula. Much of this research notes that teachers’ beliefs play a critical role in their understanding and their implementation of CLT in their classrooms. There were however, only a small number of studies that focused on teachers’ beliefs of ESL specifically in the context of the Philippines. This small-scale research project attempts to address this by exploring Filipino primary language teachers’ beliefs toward CLT, their practices in implementing CLT and the challenges they encountered in using CLT.
Qualitative research methodology was used in this study. A descriptive online survey was distributed to 17 primary language teachers from a private school to gather data pertaining to teachers’ beliefs, practices and challenges in implementing CLT. The data was analyzed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). The findings reveal that teachers claimed they do not always use CLT in teaching the English language. Whilst they claimed they use CLT in their classroom instruction, when examined, their beliefs were at times incompatible with CLT theory. This made their conceptual understanding of CLT ambiguous. The challenges identified by participants mainly concerned the preparation of materials, students’ inability to take an active role in their own learning and the uncontrolled use of the first language during classroom activities.
... One of them is communicative competence. As claimed by Kumaravadivelu (1993), anything related to language learners (e.g. materials, tests, curriculum guidelines) placed communicative competence in the center of learning process. ...
This study aimed to explore 100 English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students' readiness in learning English as a foreign language through a quantitative approach. Data were gathered by means of Learner Autonomy Readiness Instrument (LARI) (Koçak, 2003). Results showed that participants were not only extrinsically motivated but also intrinsically motivated in some cases. They also perceived to apply some metacognitive strategies and their perceptions about taking responsibility were dependent on the task. Finally, they appeared to be willing to engage in outside class activities to learn the language.
... Language educators therefore communicate with the existing, underlying communicative competence and creative intelligence that their students bring with them, and which can be transferred to new language. There is an important moral principle here-that what students bring with them is a significant and major resource, for example, in Kumaravadivelu's (1993) criteria for good teaching, in Canagarajah's (2004) description of students subverting educational structures, and Norton and Williams's (2012) and Warschauer's (2011) accounts of learning digital literacy in under-resourced education settings. Students may not, however, be aware that they have these resources; and the role of the educator is to help them to recover and externalise that experience and learn how to employ it in new language domains. ...
There are a number of principles to be considered in the design of intercultural education courses. The existing intercultural experience that participants have built from early childhood must be recognised as a major resource. Interculturality is a reflexive awareness of Self and Other in a crossing of boundaries which resonates with C. Wright Mill’s “sociological imagination.” A critical cosmopolitan notion of the third space concept is employed as an open rather than an intermediary space—a creatively investigative space which enables us to work on finding ourselves as new and even more enriched selves across boundaries, and where all of us are hybrid. The focus should be on self among others rather than the nature of difference between national or other large cultures. This resonates with the radical agenda of cultural studies, where there is critical intervention against structures of prejudice, with particular attention to countering what I refer to as powerful essentialist West as steward and “West versus the rest” discourses of culture. There is therefore a postmodern and constructivist interrogation of ideological constructions of the intercultural that commonly push the recognition of important cultural realities to the margins. These principles are applied along with the need to learn how to avoid essentialist blocks and choose threads from our personal cultural trajectories that draw us together. The paper concludes with suggestions for intercultural education events that apply these principles. This is written in the inclusive third person to signal a final principle that intercultural educators are joining with their participants in working out their own interculturality.
... The practical implementation of the neo-Vygotskian sociocultural approach as defined by such researchers as Lantolf (1996), Lantolf & Thorne (2006) and Storch (2002Storch ( , 2004 is very challenging, even in potentially receptive cultures. However, there is a preponderance of anecdotal evidence from practitioners and research by academics outside of Japan (Kumaravadivelu 1993, Donato 1988, Kubota 2004) that support more general Vygotskian understandings of classrooom interaction. When taken together they strongly suggest that ELA is best supported by the use of pairs or small group interactions. ...
... (EFL) contexts over the past 40 years. However, some scholars have noted that CLT has failed its intended goals, especially in many EFL settings, because it did not consider different contextual constraints in which language teaching occurs (Bax, 2003;Humphries & Burns, 2015;Kumaravadivelu, 1993;Li, 1998). Unlike ESL environments, EFL contexts provide few opportunities to use English outside of class time. ...
Although many educators have recently discussed the positive effects of flipped learning, there is little empirical evidence about whether this approach can actually promote students’ English learning. This study was undertaken in four sections of the same College English 1 (E1) course over two consecutive semesters at a South Korean university. A total of 79 students enrolled in the E1 course participated in the study. Of the participants, 39 learned English using a communicative language teaching approach, whereas 40 studied English in a flipped learning manner. Data were gathered from the students’ achievements in three major tasks, their responses to three surveys, and the instructor's notes on the students’ engagement in the process of their English learning. Findings demonstrate that the students in the flipped classroom achieved higher average scores in their final three tasks than those in the non-flipped classroom, but only the final examination mean score indicated statistical significance. However, surveys indicated that most students in this study seemed to enjoy learning English in a flipped learning environment. Also, the instructor found the students in the flipped classroom to be more engaged in the learning process than those in the non-flipped classroom. Pedagogical implications for effective English teaching are discussed.
... Despite the fact that various modern teaching methods and techniques, such as Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) and Task Based Language Teaching (TBLT) have stressed the importance of communication in language learning (see Hall, 2011), "there is growing evidence that, in communicative classes, interactions may, in fact, not be very communicative after all" (Nunan, 1987, p. 144). In the words of Kumaravadivelu (1993), "Even teachers who are committed to Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) can fail to create opportunities for genuine interaction in their classrooms" (p. 13). ...
This article investigates the dialogic aspects of discourse in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) classrooms. A more dialogic pattern of classroom discourse indicates that many participants, for example, students as well as the teacher, are involved in generating the whole classroom discourse. For the purpose of determining the level of dialogicality in academic English classes, twenty four lessons of four different teachers were audio- and video-recorded for an entire academic year. The classroom discourse was transcribed and the level of dialogicality was coded based on principles suggested by Nystrand (2003). The principles cover the authenticity of the questions asked by the teacher and the occurrence of uptake. Accordingly, different modes of classroom discourse are observed in each of these classes which are monologic, recitation, and occasionally dialogic. The cases analyzed in this article reveal that it is not just the type of the questions that can lead to establishment of a dialogic mode, but there are some other teacher moves which can be either facilitative or interruptive. These moves are identified and labeled as encouraging student’s participation (ESP) and discouraging student’s participation (DSP). It is argued that these moves can influence the formation of ground rules and consequently the establishment of a dialogic mode.
... (4) Conversely, beliefs may result in the emergence of new teaching principles which produce grounded alternatives to the "accepted wisdom" passed on by methodologists who may be far removed from actual classrooms (Kumaravadivelu, 1994;Pennycook, 1994;Phillipson, 1992). ...
This study sought to compare Iranian EFL teachers regarding their ethical beliefs at Iranian English language institutes and universities. To this end, first, the grounded theory method was used to conduct some interviews with 40 EFL teachers (20 male, 20 female). They were randomly selected from about 140 teachers working at institutes and universities in Fars province, Iran. After coding the obtained data, some categories were recognized, a model was designed, and exploratory factor analysis was conducted. The results confirmed the existence of social, collaborative, emotional, and managerial impacts. Then, a questionnaire was designed and developed based on grounded theory procedures, literature results, and the results of the qualitative studies. 140 EFL teachers filled it out and then the collected data underwent both descriptive and inferential statistics. The obtained results indicated that there was a significant difference between teachers regarding their ethical beliefs in universities and institutes. Moreover, it was revealed that the male and female teachers were significantly different. The mean scores of the female teachers and the male ones are 79.2500 and 75.2500 respectively. The findings of the current study can be useful for teachers, educators, teacher trainers, policymakers, and evaluators to make appropriate decisions and judgments.
The purpose of this study was to compare Iranian EFL teachers in English language institutes and universities based on ethical and cultural values. The study was conducted in two phases. First, 40 EFL teachers were interviewed individually and the elicited responses were transcribed and coded using the three codification processes in grounded theory. Then, the interviewee's responses were discussed based on the categories obtained as the result of applying the grounded theory. Then, a questionnaire was developed based on the literature, the theoretical frameworks and the results of the qualitative phase of the study. The questionnaire was in Likert-scale format, containing 20 items altogether and its reliability was examined in a pilot study with 40 participants using Cronbach's alpha. It was filled out by 140 EFL teachers from institutes and universities (70 male, 70 female), with age ranges 20 to 65, working at institutes and universities in Fars province, Iran, 2021. The participants were selected conveniently as going through random sampling was not possible. The validity of questionnaire was tested by conducting an exploratory factor analysis on all the 140 participants of the study and three factors emerged under the main category of Teachers' Values for Iranian EFL teachers. The findings of this study revealed that: (a) university teachers have higher levels of values than institute teachers (b) university teachers have higher levels of social and emotional dimensions than institute ones (c) and that there is no significant difference between Iranian EFL institute and university teachers due to ethical dimensions.
Classroom discourse is considered an important aspect of learning and teaching the new language. The turn sequence is one type of classroom discourse and it’s considered as an important way to learn the skill of speaking the English Language, and one type of classroom discourse is the (IRF) pattern. IRF pattern is an abbreviation for (teacher initiation, students’ response, and feedback or follow up by (teacher or student). This research focuses on discussing classroom discourse and the (IRF) pattern as an important way to discover the role of it in learning the English Language. It also focuses on the teacher's role, as the dominant power of discourse inside the classroom and how to use the (IRF) pattern to encourage students to participate in different activities inside their classes. Data were collected from a regular English Language Learning classroom, and then the data were transcribed and analyzed to show how the (IRF) pattern was used in the classroom. The results showed that the use of turn sequence and the IRF pattern was very useful to stimulate and encourage students and learners of English Language to participate by talking about different things inside the classroom either between their teacher and themselves or between the students but by the help of the teacher.
Abstrakt: Cílem tohoto příspěvku je formulovat vybrané teoretické a metodologické závěry a doporučení, které vyplývají z výsledků konstrukčního výzkumu učebnice pro výuku angličtiny pro specifické účely realizovaného ve spolupráci Ústavu jazyků Fakulty elektrotechniky a komunikačních technologií Vysokého učení technického a Institutu výzkumu školního vzdělávání Pedagogické fakulty Masarykovy univerzity v Brně. Jednotlivé kapitoly zde diskutují optimální charakteristiky učebnice pro výuku angličtiny pro specifické účely vyplývající z výzkumného zjištění za současné validace stávajících teorií tvorby učebních materiálů pro výuku anglického jazyka. První kapitola popisuje, jakým způsobem by mělo být v učebnici prezentováno učivo, aby byla zajištěna přehlednost učebnice a usnadněno osvojení učiva. Druhá kapitola řeší problematiku integrace řečových dovedností v souvislosti s teoriemi osvojování cizího jazyka a s akcentem na trend směřující k modelu procesního přístupu, které je třeba při tvorbě učebnic pro výuku angličtiny pro specifické účely zohlednit. Třetí a čtvrtá kapitola se zaměřují na různé způsoby osvojování slovní zásoby a jazykových prostředků v učebnicích angličtiny pro specifické účely. Text příspěvku je doplněn ilustrativními příklady úloh a aktivit z učebnice English for Information Technology, která byla předmětem konstrukčního výzkumu.
The ongoing debate concerning the best method to apply in language teaching, especially in English as Second Language and
Foreign Language context has been lasting for about forty years now. The first side of debaters is the supporters of form-focused
language teaching method, and the other side is the supporters of function-focused method. In teaching practice, the form-focused method
views teaching grammar and all its grammatical rules as an absolute requirement while the function-focused method believes that
acquiring good communicative skill in target language is the ultimate goal in second language learning. Both sides claim that the method
they use in the teaching practice as the best way to make learners acquire the target language well. Despite the advantages offered by each
method, some researchers, however, find out that each method is actually not free from weaknesses. By realizing the weakness of each
method, it seems rational for not standing on one method only in the language teaching practice. Perhaps, by combining the two methods
in the teaching practice, language teacher will gain advantages and omit weaknesses owned by each method. A new method can be formed
by applying formal instruction in communicative activities.
Although there are many educational contexts that allow the freedom of an out-of-the-box approach in the transactions of teaching and learning, there are still many systems that are quite prescriptive. The very nature of teacher preparation, particularly in the Western world, lays out a prescriptive methodology that educators are told should be implemented in order to achieve results. Educators find it difficult to construct their own pedagogy given an unfamiliar context for fear of deviating from the way it should be done or has always been done. This chapter explores how educators can modify prescribed methodologies, as well as conceptualize and construct “intuitive pedagogies” based on Kumaravadivelu's three Ps: particularity, practicality, and possibility.
This study contributes towards understanding the classroom practices of Korean public school English teachers by introducing and applying an observation protocol which analyzes how teachers' pedagogic activities relate to curricular recommendations for English education such as having student-centered, meaning-focused, and communicative English classes. The study included three classes each from two experienced and two novice primary school English teachers. The analysis showed that the experienced teachers' classes were much more communicative and student-centered than the novice teachers' classes were (e.g., 40% to 64% of class time spent on communicative activities versus 8% to 25% for the novice teachers), but that both novice and experienced teachers focused mostly on language forms rather than meaning in their lessons, and that none of the teachers used any task-based activities. The study concludes with implications and recommendations for future research based on these results.
The current study details the development and validation of a measuring instrument for the teachers' willingness to implement postmethod pedagogy principles in the Iranian context. Three postmethod components were identified after (1) undertaking a comprehensive review of the literature on the postmethod pedagogy and second language (L2) teacher education and (2) conducting interviews with domain experts and practicing language teachers. In Phase 1 of the study, an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted with a randomly selected and nationally representative sample (N = 255) of Iranian EFL teachers, resulting in three internally consistent factors: (a) Teacher Sense of Social Justice, (b) Teacher Autonomy, and (c) Teacher Sense of Academic Enthusiasm. In Phase 2 of the study, a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was completed with a new sample (N = 648) of practicing teachers. Strong model fit estimates in Phase 2 confirmed the factor structure of Phase 1 and resulted in a final 29-item scale called "Postmethod Scale" (PMS).
Teacher talk has a strategic role in foreign language teaching and learning. The need to equip foreign language teacher trainees with reflective pratice on their use of teacher talk is, among others, to sensitize and raise their awareness on the interactional aspects of their classroom teaching simulation, in addition to the methodological aspects that they receive in their training. The present study aims to describe four teacher-trainees' views on their use of SETT (Self Evaluation of Teacher Talk) framework as it is incorporated into microteaching/ peer-teaching practicum sessions. The study employs case study and gathers its data from interview, observation of trainees' teaching practices and their teacher talk evaluation employing SETT framework. The findings of the study advocate the importance of providing comprehensive induction and systematic integration of SETT framework into the peer-teaching practicum for better development of trainees' awareness towards SETT metalanguage to facilitate the reflection and evaluation of their use of teacher talk.
perdebatan mengenai metode terbaik untuk diterapkan dalam pembelajaran bahasa, terutama di dalam konteks bahasa Inggris sebagai bahasa kedua dan bahasa asing, telah berlangsung selama sekitar empat puluh tahun. Kelompok pertama adalah pendukung metode pengajaran bahasa yang berfokus pada bentuk, sedangkan kelompok kedua adalah mereka yang mendukung metode yang berfokus pada fungsi. Dalam praktik pembelajaran, metode yang berfokus pada bentuk (form-focused) memandang pembelajaran gramatika dan semua aturannya sebagai syarat mutlak, sedangkan metode yang berfokus pada fungsi (function-focused) percaya bahwa pemerolehan keterampilan komunikatif yang baik dalam bahasa target adalah tujuan akhir dalam pembelajaran bahasa kedua. Kedua belah pihak mengklaim bahwa metode yang mereka gunakan dalam praktik pembelajaran sebagai cara terbaik untuk membuat peserta didik memperoleh bahasa target dengan baik. Terlepas dari keuntungan yang ditawarkan oleh masing-masing metode, beberapa peneliti menemukan bahwa setiap metode sebenarnya tidak bebas dari kelemahan. Dengan menyadari kelemahan dari setiap metode, tampaknya rasional untuk tidak berdiri di satu metode saja dalam praktik pembelajaran bahasa. Mungkin dengan menggabungkan dua metode dalam praktik pembelajaran, guru bahasa akan mendapatkan keuntungan dan menghilangkan kelemahan yang dimiliki oleh masing-masing metode. Sebuah metode baru dapat dibentuk dengan menerapkan pembelajaran formal dalam kegiatan komunikatif . Kata kunci: pembelajaran bahasa, metode berfokus pada bentuk, metode berfokus pada fungsi
This article reports on a four-year-long ethnographic study on a curriculum innovation project introducing a weak form of communicative language teaching (CLT) at a Chinese secondary school. A total of ten teachers, who taught twelve project classes were observed across five stages of the project: the pre-project stage, the top-down stage, the bottom-up stage; the exam preparation stage, and the post-project stage, in an attempt to explore the changes that took place in the teacher's receptivity and classroom behaviors. Focusing on a focal informant (Marian, pseudonym), this paper illustrates how teacher cognition changed in accordance with the project goal and highlights how the trajectory of change was much more tangled and complicated than what was initially expected. Changes in the project teacher's teaching practices reflect the consistency between teacher cognition and classroom practices at the pre-project, the bottom-up and the post-project stages. In contrast, at the top-down and the exam stages of the innovation project, changes in teachers' cognition did not conform to changes in her classroom practices. These findings suggest the external pressure caused by top-down imperatives and high-stake exams might have caused the cognition-practices incongruence, which deserves language teacher educators' and administrators' further attention when promoting curriculum innovation.
This paper explores the possibility of expanding the focus group interview into the field of English as a Second Language (ESL), where this research methodology is yet to be thoroughly explored. Specifically, it aims to challenge popular criticisms about the reliability and validity of the focus group as a qualitative research methodology. It does this by first setting up a list of five main criticisms of the focus group interview drawn from current literature on research methodology within the social sciences and education. Based on transcripts of interactional data gathered from focus group interviews carried out among ESL students in a formal ESL context, it then provides a direct and detailed response to each criticism. The arguments put forward demonstrate that the focus group interview, as a method of data collection, may be particularly relevant in gathering the viewpoints and opinions of participants who have traditionally not been well represented through the more conventional and common methods currently employed in ESL research studies. Furthermore, the paper raises conscious awareness about the potential of the focus group as a viable and verifiable tool in qualitative research methodology.
In this chapter, the second language classroom is characterized by the ways in which teachers and learners jointly construct meanings through the ‘talk’ that they produce. Understanding and language acquisition do not simply ‘happen’; they are negotiated in the give-and- take of classroom interaction. In order to gain an understanding of classroom discourse, a variable approach is proposed, which views any lesson as a series of complex, dynamic and inter-related micro-contexts. There are three reasons for adopting a variable stance. Firstly, all L2 classroom discourse is goal-oriented and related to teachers’ unfolding pedagogic goals; secondly, the prime responsibility for establishing and shaping the interaction lies with the teacher; thirdly, pedagogic goals and language use are inextricably linked.
At the age of 80, Fred enrolled in a beginner German course which I was teaching once a week at an adult education centre. He set out to learn the language with a great deal of enthusiasm, and made reasonable progress. After attending classes for about six months he went on a coach trip to Germany, and in the next class told us how he had ordered — in German — a hotdog from a stall. When he offered to pay for it, he was told by the hot-dog seller that he could have it for free because he had spoken in German. The rest of us shared his delight in what obviously felt like a major achievement in actually using the target language.
This chapter explores how the worldwide web can be used to support teachers involved in developing professionally through further study at Masters level. The study upon which the chapter is based was a two-year qualitative research project, which examined how teachers interacted with a website, http:// www. philseflsupport. com,set up to support their studies.
Paul Seedhouse's
The Interactional Architecture of the Language Classroom: A Conversation Analysis Perspective is the fourth volume in the Language Learning Monograph Series. The volumes in this series review recent findings and current theoretical positions, present new data and interpretations, and sketch interdisciplinary research programs. Volumes are authoritative statements by scholars who have led in the development of a particular line of interdisciplinary research and are intended to serve as a benchmark for interdisciplinary research in the years to come. The value of Seedhouse's interdisciplinary focus in the present volume is clear. He synthesizes research from second language acquisition (SLA), applied linguistics, and conversation analysis and helps us to see connections among language pedagogy, classroom talk, and the structures of social action. The reader is reminded that there have been other book-length treatments of second language classroom discourse from the perspective of conversation analysis, but these other books have focused on a small number of lessons or on a small number of classes. Another original contribution of the present volume is that Seedhouse recognizes the tremendous diversity of second language classrooms: Learners differ in their first language(s), whether they speak the same first language or multiple languages, their age, their geographical location, the cultural context of instruction, and so forth. And there are just as many relevant teacher variables. Seedhouse recognizes that diversity by incorporating seven distinct databases of classroom conversations in this study. By comparing talk across many classroom contexts he is able to show that irrespective of that diversity, the reflexive relationship between the pedagogical focus of the lesson and the organization of turn-taking, sequence, and repair holds. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
While a great deal has been written on the theory and practice of communicative language teaching, there have been comparatively few studies of actual communicative language practices. A classroom-based study of communicative language practice revealed the persistence of non-communicative patterns of interaction. A follow-up study demonstrated that it is possible for teachers to foster more communicative language use. These studies demonstrate the importance of validating theory against what actually happens in the classroom.
This paper looks briefly at the beginnings of what has come to be known as communicative language teaching (CLT), then discusses current issues and promising avenues of inquiry. The perspective is international. CLT is seen to be not a British, European, or U.S. phenomenon, but rather an international effort to respond to the needs of present-day language learners in many different contexts of learning.
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Recent explorations in task-based pedagogy have pointed out that learning outcome is the result of a fairly unpredictable interaction between the learner, the task, and the task situation. From the teacher's perspective, then, achievement of success depends largely on the degree to which teacher intention and learner interpretation of a given task converge. The narrower the gap between teacher intention and learner interpretation, the greater are the chances of achieving desired learning outcomes. It is thus important that we understand potential sources contributing to the mismatch between teacher intention and learner interpretation. The present study attempts to identify potential sources of mismatch by exploring the learner's and teacher's perceptions of the nature, the goals, and the demands of selected language-learning tasks, and comes out with a list of ten sources: cognitive, communicative, linguistic, pedagogic, strategic, cultural, evaluative, procedural, instructional, and attitudinal. It is argued that a knowledge of potential sources of mismatch between teacher intention and learner interpretation will help us sensitize ourselves to interpretive density of language-learning tasks and help us facilitate desired learning outcomes in the classroom.
Context and contextualized language
- J Walz
Walz, J. 1989. 'Context and contextualized language