Curricularizing Language Teaching and Learning: Navigating Sociocultural Dilemmas in Teacher Education
Webre, Anne-Coleman
2020
Abstract
This dissertation explores sociocultural factors which influence the choices of language teacher educators deciding what to include in coursework and programs. The term “curricularizing” is used to describe the complex process of selecting, planning, and delivering teacher education content. Conflicting social values create dilemmas for teacher educators curricularizing language teaching and learning (LTL) in their practice. Three sociocultural domains of influence affect their work: their national environment, their professional field, and their individual experiences and beliefs. The two stand-alone studies in this dissertation each focus on a different domain and explore the following question: How do language teacher educators curricularize language teaching and learning for teacher learners? The first study examines a German as a Second or Foreign Language (Deutsch als Zweit/Fremdsprache - DaZ/DaF) pre-service teacher education program in southwest Germany in which the future teaching-contexts of graduates is not yet determined. Data include observation fieldnotes and artifacts from fifty class sessions taught by three teacher educators in one semester of the DaZ/DaF bachelor’s program. The study asks the research question: How do DaZ/DaF teacher educators curricularize content-specific aspects of teaching and learning the German language in their practice for teacher learners? The analysis and findings focus on how teacher educators present LTL in their practice through defining language, situating instructional methods in a teaching-context, and relating language teaching and learning to other connected topics. The discussion examines ways in which the factors from the national environment influence the curricularizing choices of DaZ/DaF teacher educators. The second study explores an in-service teacher training program in Australia which prepares teachers to use a functional theory of language to support English literacy in the primary/secondary school context and centers the domain of the professional field. The study asks the following question: How do members of the ‘community of explanation’ (Freeman, 2016) implementing functional grammar and the Lexis program in schools, separated by geographical and professional distance, understand the factors which affect that work? Interviews with twelve educators involved in implementing the training program from Lexis Education were analyzed for common factors they discussed. The educators have various professional roles and live in different Australian states, but findings show they are connected as a community of explanation by a shared understanding of the theory of language and the curriculum materials, as well as factors which relate to those social facts. Findings also reveal factors related to the setting of implementation as the school context. The discussion explores dilemmas which are resolved through having a contextualized theory of language in teacher education and standardized materials and dilemmas which remain as a result of implementing the program in schools. The final chapter explores how the same curricularizing framework was used to explore different research questions, diverse sociocultural influences on the work of teacher educators, and dilemmas specific to the teacher educators and programs in the studies by focusing on different domains. Future areas of research as presented, including the need to examine alignment between the curricularizing of language teaching and learning and the future teaching-contexts of teacher learners. The concluding remarks address the need for teacher educators to reflect on the ways in which they navigate sociocultural dilemmas and consider how small changes in their practice might help them work toward their goals in language education.Subjects
teacher education language teacher education sociocultural research on teacher education second language teacher education
Types
Thesis
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