Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons^™

What Efl Student Teachers Think About Their Professional Preparation: Evaluation Of An English Language Teacher Education Programme In Spain, Juan De Dios Martínez Agudo

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Given the importance of programme evaluation in the EFL teacher education, this research paper of exploratory-interpretive nature mainly focuses on both strengths and weaknesses identified through the analysis and/or critical evaluation of an EFL teacher education programme carried out in Spain. Both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies were used in the study. The current TEFL programme has several strengths, but also certain significant shortcomings in light of the high percentage of undecided responses. The TEFL programme was evaluated positively by participant student teachers in general, in terms of pedagogic competence and promotion of reflection, although more input on English proficiency …

The Contextual Motivational Conditions For L2 Pedagogy: A Case Study From The Arabian Gulf, Muhammad Athar Shah

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This article reports on a mixed-method research study into situated motivational conditions available for the English language (L2) pedagogy at a university in Saudi Arabia. The current study evaluated the L2 Learning Experience of the students by focusing on the key contextual factors that included teachers’ pedagogical practices, group dynamics in the classrooms, and English language course. Framed within the interpretive paradigm, the study utilised a structured questionnaire, followed by open-ended interviews with purposefully chosen language learners for data collection. The conceptual framework of the study was based on Dornyei’s (2005, 2009) L2 Motivational Self System – one of the …

Quality Teaching Practices As Reported By Aboriginal Parents, Students And Their Teachers: Comparisons And Contrasts, Brian Ellis Lewthwaite, Helen Boon, Tammi Webber, Gail Laffin

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper summarizes the findings from the first phase of a three-part project which, overall, investigates what Aboriginal¹ students perceive as the qualities and actions of effective teachers and subsequently seeks to determine the impact of the enactment of these identified qualities on educational outcomes. This first phase of the research was centered on gathering accounts of quality teachers and teaching practice from students, parents and their teachers from phenomenologically aligned interviews. Similar and contrasting themes among these three groups are presented, with the intention of exposing potential mismatch in perception of the construct of ‘quality’ teaching. Finally, we …

Exploring Models Of Team Teaching In Initial Foreign/Second Language Teacher Education: A Study In Situated Collaboration, Malba Barahona

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The demonstrable potential of team teaching as a productive mechanism for developing collaborative teacher learning is now broadly understood in the field of teacher education. However, there is less evidence of the use of such collaborative teaching as a means of strengthening initial foreign/second language teacher education. This paper reports on the findings of a multiple case study in Chile that explored team teaching in a foreign language teacher education program. The study is illuminated through the lens of cultural historical activity theory framework (CHAT) and draws on the analysis of semi-structured interviews, work shadowing observations and reflections. The outcomes …

“I Learned Quite A Lot Of The Maths Stuff Now That I Think Of It”: Māori Medium Students Reflecting On Their Initial Teacher Education, Ngārewa Hāwera, Merilyn Taylor

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Research involving preservice or initial teacher education (ITE) indicates that mathematics education is a vital component of study. Little is known however, of indigenous student views of their compulsory mathematics education courses for a teaching degree. This research contributes to that knowledge space as it explores Māori medium ITE students’ perceptions of mathematics education in Aotearoa New Zealand. A thematic and qualitative analysis of a focused group discussion provides insights into key factors that students reported as significant links between their university and practicum experiences (teaching practice in schools). Some suggestions for strengthening that programme were also expressed. Findings indicate …

Any Time, Any Place, Flexible Pace: Technology-Enhanced Language Learning In A Teacher Education Programme, Jocelyn M. Howard, Adèle Scott

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Ongoing developments in e-learning, improved internet accessibility and increased digital citizenry provide exciting opportunities to integrate effective classroom pedagogies with online educational technologies, creating mixed-mode courses to enhance student engagement and facilitate greater autonomous learning. This research examines pre-service teacher education students’ perceptions of the effectiveness of experiential and digitally-mediated tools which take them beyond the constraints of traditional lecture-type delivery. Quantitative and qualitative results from distance and face-to-face cohorts show the value the students ascribe to tools employed in a modified language course. These are discussed in relation to reported changes in students’ proficiency in the target language and …

Cook Islands Students' Attitudes Towards Physical Education, Aue Te Ava, Christine Rubie-Davies

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Teacher education has the potential to bring changes within educational systems that can shape the knowledge and skills of future generations. Teaching in a culturally responsive manner is an important part of developing teachers to serve as key change agents in transforming education and society through research, from the perspectives of student learning and achievement in health and physical education. It was expected in this study that students’ recognition of cultural activities could inspire them to engage in physical education. The aim of the study was to examine student awareness of teaching that included cultural activities, with an emphasis on …

Feedback On Second Language Pronunciation: A Case Study Of Eap Teachers’ Beliefs And Practices, Amanda Baker, Michael Burri

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In the modern English language classroom,

Abstract: In the modern English language classroom, teachers are often faced with the challenging task of supporting students to achieve comprehensible pronunciation, but many teachers limit or neglect giving students feedback on their pronunciation for a variety of reasons. This paper examines the case of five experienced English for Academic Purposes (EAP) instructors who strive to provide feedback on specific features of pronunciation that negatively affect students’ comprehensibility. Results derived from semi-structured interviews, classroom observations and stimulated recall interviews reveal that the teachers use similar approaches to select and provide feedback on problematic features …

Cross-Cultural Communication In Teacher Education, Aijing Jin, Maxine Cooper, Barry Golding

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper presents a case study of the experiences and reflections of four fourth year pre-service teachers from Federation University Australia who completed their three-week teaching placement in Anshan, Liaoning Province, China, in April 2014. The study also explores the perspectives and opinions of both the Chinese mentor teachers and Chinese students towards the Australian pre-service teachers. The research confirms the mutual benefits of cross-cultural teacher education professional experiences for pre-service teachers, Chinese mentor teachers and Chinese students. The teaching experiences revealed major differences in educational concepts and teaching strategies and approaches between the two systems because of the different …

Investigation Of Teacher Education Delivery Of Bicultural Education, Chris J. Jenkin

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The national bicultural early childhood curriculum in New Zealand, Te Whāriki, and the Graduating Teacher Standards require that graduating teachers are competent in Māori language as well as English, and have an understanding of aspects of Māori knowledge. However, research shows that teachers are not yet proficient in the skills needed to deliver the bicultural curriculum effectively. This paper explores the role of teacher-education providers in equipping their graduates to deliver that curriculum. Framed by an appreciative inquiry approach, data were collected from courses displayed on the websites of ten early-childhood tertiary teacher-education providers, followed by interviews with four participants …

The Washback Of The Toefl Ibt In Vietnam, Melissa Barnes

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Washback, or the influence of testing on teaching and learning, has received considerable attention in language testing research over the past twenty years. It is widely argued that testing, particularly high-stakes testing, exerts a powerful influence, whether intended or unintended, positive or negative, on both teachers and learners. This article investigates the washback effects of a high-stakes English language proficiency test, the Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-Based Test (TOEFL iBT), in Vietnam. Vietnam, a developing country whose educational philosophies differ from those underpinning the TOEFL iBT, provided a unique context to explore the test's washback. In the …

Navigating The Challenges Of Becoming A Culturally Responsive Teacher: Supportive Networking May Be The Key, Nina L. Nilsson Ph.D., Ailing Kong Ph.D., Shantel Hubert

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Research shows graduates of teacher education programs do not always transfer, or apply, the best practices they learn to instructional practice due to factors related to course features, the student, and workplace environment (e.g., Brown & Bentley, 2004; de Jong et al., 2010). This study examined the challenges a secondary-level English teacher in the United States encountered when she attempted to implement culturally responsive teaching practices she learned from a graduate course to her class with ELLs. Findings indicate she faced strategy- and language-related challenges due to student culture and school environment factors (“external challenges”), as well as her own …

‘Knowing Your Students’ In The Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Classroom, Robyn Moloney, David Saltmarsh

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The population movement of globalization brings greater cultural and linguistic diversity (CALD) to communities and education systems. To address the growing diversity in school classrooms, beginning teachers need an expanded set of skills and attitudes to support effective learning. It is an expectation today that teachers know their students and how the students learn. It follows that lecturers and tutors should also know something of the cultural and linguistic profile of their pre-service teacher education students. This article reports a study in a university which examined its teacher education practice in this light. It assessed the curriculum provision of material …

Imagination And Aspiration: Flames Of Possibility For Migrant Background High School Students And Their Parents, Loshini Naidoo

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper aims to show how imagination is an important tool in the formation of aspiration and ethnic capital for young high school students and their parents in the city of Blacktown, New South Wales, Australia. Through semi-structured focus group interviews with parents teachers and students, the data from the demographic space of the school revealed that despite the limitations in economic capital there was social and cultural capital in migrant families, which provided reinforcement for the realisation of various goals, especially through education and “hard work”. The students from migrant backgrounds had an opportunity to aspire and imagine a …

Seeking A Pedagogy Of Difference: What Aboriginal Students And Their Parents In North Queensland Say About Teaching And Their Learning, Brian Ellis Lewthwaite, Barry Osborne, Natalie Lloyd, Helen Boon, Linda Llewellyn, Tammi Webber, Gail Laffin, Megan Harrison, Cathy Day, Codie Kemp, Jennifer Wills

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Abstract: This study presents the outcomes of the first phase of a three phase research initiative which begins by identifying, through the voices of Aboriginal¹ students and community members, the teaching practices that influence Aboriginal student engagement and learning. The study occurs within the Diocese of Townsville Catholic Education schools in North Queensland, primarily in the Mount Isa area. Through open-ended interviews, Aboriginal students and community members express their views of the characteristics of effective teachers and effective teaching. Considering that the national education discourse in Australia is monopolised by discussion on teaching and teacher quality, we problematize this discourse …

Effective Teaching Practices For Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Students: A Review Of The Literature, Natalie J. Lloyd, Brian Ellis Lewthwaite, Barry Osborne, Helen J. Boon

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper presents a review of the literature pertaining to the teacher actions that influence Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander student learning outcomes. This review investigates two foci: the identification of teacher actions influencing learning outcomes for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander students and the methodological approach to how the influence of teacher behaviours on student learning has been determined. The literature review identifies that published literature in the effective teaching area is predominantly in the ‘good ideas’ category; that is assertions are made by authors with no research-based evidence for supporting such claims, especially through quantitative research which seeks …

I Know How To Add Them, I Didn't Know I Had To Add Them, Jyoti R. Jhagroo

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Abstract: Ten non-English speaking immigrant students shared their lived experiences in their secondary school mathematics classrooms in New Zealand. Through the voices of these students some understandings of the challenges they experienced as second language learners are brought to the fore. The students’ perspectives of the language-related challenges that they faced, how they made sense of learning in an environment where the medium of instruction was dissimilar to their first language, and the impact that language-related challenges may have had on their perceptions of their ability in their new environment compared to their home country, form the basis of this …

Epistemological Considerations For Approaching Teaching In An On-Line Environment Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Teacher Education Program: Reconsidering Tpack, Brian Ellis Lewthwaite, Cecily Knight, Max Lenoy

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This research inquiry explores teacher educator knowledge, understandings and beliefs informing their teaching in a web-based Australian teacher education program for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. Through the use of a phenomenologically aligned interview process, the study investigates instructors’ consideration of practice for teaching in an on-line environment. Using the TPACK framework (Mishra & Koehler, 2006) as a lens for analysis, what emerges from the data is how lecturers’ knowledge and beliefs about students influences the roles they adopt as educators, and how this influences, in turn, what and how technology is used to support student learning. The …

Developing Culturally Competent Teachers: An International Student Teaching Field Experience, Michelle Salmona, Margaret Partlo, Dan Kaczynski, Simon N. Leonard

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study offers a theoretical construct for better understanding how experiential learning enables student teachers to acquire social and cultural variation skills, develop cultural empathy in the K-12 classroom, and the transference of these skills to new educational situations. An Australian and United States research team used a phenomenological approach to explore the connections between the skills student teachers acquire and the application of these newly developed skills to professional practices. Participants were a group of United States pre-teachers who enrolled in a 5 week teaching experience in Australia. Findings show that participation in cultural based events is part of …

Navigating Discourses Of Cultural Literacy In Teacher Education, Kelsey Halbert, Philemon Chigeza

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Pre-service teachers’ understandings, skills and dispositions as global, culturally literate citizens and agents of change have arguably never been more important. Professional standards, systemic policies and frameworks and a broad range of scholarly perspectives on culture position pre-service teachers to take up cultural education in sometimes conflicting ways. It is these orientations to culture within a teacher education program and how they sit alongside potentially incongruent policies, practices and worldviews that are the focus of this paper. The practitioner research draws on cultural identity theories, policies and student experiences in the teaching and learning of an undergraduate education subject entitled …

Autoethnography And Teacher Education: Snapshot Stories Of Cultural Encounter, Maureen F. Legge

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In this paper I discuss how I framed and wrote an autoethnographic personal narrative of my lived experience as a New Zealand physical education teacher educator in the presence of two cultures, Māori and Pākehā. Central to my qualitative study was writing as a method of inquiry. Using this method I wrote a series of descriptive ‘snapshot stories’ derived from field experiences, over an 11 year period, that involved close and prolonged encounters with physical education teacher education (PETE) students in tertiary classrooms and 4 day marae stays. The storied accounts served as data for self-reflexivity about my role as …

Engaging In Deep Cultural Learning Through The Intersection Of Multiple Contexts, Maria Northcote, Peter Kilgour, Daniel Reynaud, Phil Fitzsimmons

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The type of learning that takes place in teacher education courses typically results in pre-service teachers developing a mixture of knowledge, skills and values that enable them to become effective teachers in schools in the future. During their journey to become qualified teachers, pre-service teachers typically engage in coursework and experiential-based learning.

By engaging in coursework experiences, an overseas practicum and an overseas study tour, students experienced a range of reflection-promoting activities and contexts during which they broadened and deepened their understanding of cultures other than their own.

Using a cross-case analysis approach, the data gathered in these three cases …

The Evolution Of English Language Teaching During Societal Transition In Finland – A Mutual Relationship Or A Distinctive Process?, Riitta Jaatinen, Toni Saarivirta

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study describes the evolution of English language teaching in Finland and looks into the connections of the societal and educational changes in the country as explanatory factors in the process. The results of the study show that the language teaching methodology and the status of foreign languages in Finland are clearly connected to the changes in society and its education system. Since the first decade of the 20^th century, Finnish society has developed from an inward-looking agrarian country into an economically and technologically advanced and industrialized society joining in various ways to the rest of Europe and global …

Teacher Revoicing In A Foreign Language Teaching Context: Social And Academic Functions, Banu Inan

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The aim of this study is to investigate the occurrences of teacher revoicing as a discursive move in English Language Teaching (ELT) literature classes, and to identify its social and academic functions. Teacher revoicing refers to the restatement or incorporation of previous student comments into subsequent teacher statements and/or questions to build an extended discourse based on student contribution. The analysis of more than 25 hours of data of recorded classroom conversation in a university level literature class has demonstrated that teacher revoicing is a very common teacher move in the college EFL literature classroom. Eight functions of teacher revoicing …

Indigenous Students’ Wellbeing And The Mobilisation Of Ethics Of Care In The Contact Zone, Bindi Mary Macgill, Faye Blanch

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Schools have historically been a location of oppression for Indigenous students in Australian schools. Giroux (1992, p. 24) argues it is critical to create a democratic space inside schools and Aboriginal Community Education Officers (henceforward ACEOs) have been employed to achieve this goal. This paper explores the processes of democratising the school space by ACEOs through an Indigenous ethics of care framework. The enactment of Indigenous ethics of care between ACEOs and Indigenous students will be explored, with a particular focus on the use of the Nunga[1] room (Blanch, 2009, p. 66) as a ‘safe-house’ (Pratt, 1991). Pratt uses …

Grammar Teaching Revisited: Efl Teachers Between Grammar Abstinence And Formal Grammar Teaching, Ahmad Nazari, Negah Allahyar

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Abstract: The study of English language teachers’ cognitions and its relationship to teachers’ classroom practices have recently been the focus of language teaching and teacher education (Borg, 2006 & 2010). However, rarely have the studies delved into teachers’ knowledge about grammar (reviewed by Borg, 2001) or investigated the relationships between teachers’ knowledge about grammar and teachers’ actions (Borg, 2003; Sanchez, 2010). Moreover, these studies have been mostly conducted by English native speaker researchers who do not necessarily have the same cultural or linguistic background of the participants in the studies (Andrew, 2001 cited in Sanchez, 2010, p. 45). Also, they …

Putting ‘Maori’ In The Mainstream: Student Teachers' Reflections Of A Culturally Relevant Pedogogy, Steven S. Sexton

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper reports on student teachers experiences of an education program that was explicitly designed to be grounded in both Kaupapa Māori and mainstream pedagogy. This program started from the Kaupapa Māori view to be Māori as Māori. This was then supported by mainstream epistemology of New Zealand focused good teaching practice. A Kaupapa Māori approach was taken in this qualitative study that used participant driven spiral discourse. The paper suggests that this combined Kaupapa Māori and mainstream approach allowed these student teachers to find their place in education. Conclusions suggest that a culturally relevant pedagogy modeled as good teaching …

Behind Cultural Competence: The Role Of Causal Attribution In Multicultural Teacher Education, Yan Yang, Diane Montgomery

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In an attempt to bridge the gap between achievement motivation and multicultural teacher education, this study explored the relationship between causal attribution of cultural awareness and cultural competence among preservice teachers. Participants were 793 preservice teachers from two large public universities who reported their causal attributions of cultural awareness and their cultural competence. Canonical correlation analysis results showed two significant relationships between causal attribution and cultural competence. Personal control over the causes of cultural awareness was found to be positively related to praxis, i.e., behavioral outcome; whereas attributions to internal and stable causes were positively associated with knowledge as major …

Why We Need More Aboriginal Adults Working With Aboriginal Students, Damien Howard

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The culturally shaped communicative context of classrooms has been documented to be an important influence on social and educational outcomes for Indigenous students. There is increasing evidence that it may be a critical factor in the outcomes of Indigenous students with conductive hearing loss (CHL) during their school years. This article describes research that explores social and educational disadvantage associated with conductive hearing loss in two remote schools with wholly Indigenous class groups taught in English by non-indigenous teachers.

Why Indigenous Issues Are An Essential Component Of Teacher Education Programs, Gary Partington

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The extensive failure of Indigenous students in school, particularly during adolescence, is a shameful characteristic of Australian education. Students who have most to gain from a successful school experience are the most likely to leave school with minimal skills and qualifications. The situation has shown little improvement over 30 years, as evidenced by the repetitious nature of articles in, for example, The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education. Government inquiries into Indigenous education, especially those addressing issues such as attendance (Bourke, Rigby & Burden, 2000), identity (Purdy, Tripcony, Boulton-Lewis, Fanshawe & Gunstone, 2000) and achievement (Department of Education, Training and Youth …