Abstract This exploratory study compared the effects of two different mediums of reading—interact... more Abstract This exploratory study compared the effects of two different mediums of reading—interactive e-book reading and paper-based reading—on learners’ reading comprehension. A specific focus was placed on literal vs. inferential comprehension. Thirty Korean middle school English language learners were randomly assigned to an interactive e-book reading (treatment) group or a paper-based reading (control) group. A pre-test and five comprehension tests were administered to both groups over a total of six reading sessions. A survey was also conducted to investigate students’ perceptions of how helpful interactive e-book features were in aiding their reading comprehension. Results from the reading comprehension test scores showed no statistical differences between the groups across the five tests. Analysis of literal and inferential questions also showed no significant difference overall. Findings from the survey data along with researcher observation notes suggest that interactive features that are not designed to aid students’ understanding can distract students from the task of reading which may hinder their comprehension. The overall results of this study suggest that it may not be the medium of reading, but how students engage with each medium that can affect their comprehension of text.
This study investigates how the model of Authentic Leadership applies to language teaching and it... more This study investigates how the model of Authentic Leadership applies to language teaching and its implications for future directions in teacher education programmes. Data was collected from 56 native-speaking English teachers through an online survey consisting of specific open-ended and short answer type questions. The results of the study suggest that currently the concept of classroom leadership is not at the forefront of teachers’ conscious thought, but is, to some extent, embedded in various teaching practices and characteristics. This could be attributed to the absence of explicit discussion of teacher leadership in teacher education programmes despite principles of leadership being strongly connected to the act of teaching itself. It is argued that a clear model of leadership would better help teachers face the unique challenges of EFL teaching and the model of Authentic Leadership provides an excellent framework for this context as the principles of self-awareness, relation...
This study reports the design, implementation, and evaluation of a 3-day intensive short-term tea... more This study reports the design, implementation, and evaluation of a 3-day intensive short-term teacher education program that was specifically designed and implemented with the aims of fostering English as a foreign language (EFL) teacher-learners’ ability to enact dialogic teaching in their teaching practices. Thirty pre-service English teachers from 13 different universities across Turkey participated in the program and their perspectives of the effectiveness of the program in reaching its objectives were investigated to examine: (1) to what extent they felt their ability to implement dialogic teaching practices had improved, and (2) which specific factors from the program they felt specifically contributed to their development. Data were collected over a 4-week period, and included pre/post-course self-evaluation scales, during-course session evaluation forms, post-course evaluation forms, and interviews. Overall, the findings suggest the importance of intensive short-term teacher...
Beyond Good Teaching Practices: Language Teacher Leadership From the Learners’ Perspective, 2019
Teacher leadership has been given increased recognition in general education as a means to empowe... more Teacher leadership has been given increased recognition in general education as a means to empower teachers as professionals and improve educational outcomes. However, it has not received as much attention in the field of English language teaching (ELT), and research that has been conducted in this area has tended to focus predominantly on program management. This study focused on examining learners’ perspectives of language teacher leadership with the aim of contributing to a more complete conceptualization of teacher leadership in ELT. Twenty South Korean university students were interviewed to explore their opinions of what language teacher leadership entails in terms of teacher practices and characteristics. The findings reveal an ensemble of qualities—under the categories of passion, rapport, purpose, and balance and flexibility—that learners believe to be essential to language teacher leadership. The findings also indicate that learners’ ideas about leadership in the language classroom go beyond classroom practices, are distinct from traditional views of leadership, and differ from the way in which many language teachers see leadership in their classrooms.
This paper presents and examines the suitability and effectiveness of an ESP (English for Specifi... more This paper presents and examines the suitability and effectiveness of an ESP (English for Specific Purposes) course entitled 'Developing Effective Teacher Talk' which was designed to meet the occupational needs of Korean secondary English teachers, and also satisfy the aims of the institutional administration and the Korean Ministry of Education. In order to investigate the suitability of the course, feedback data was collected through surveys as well as oral feedback meetings with Korean in-service secondary school English teacher trainees, course instructors, and administrators over the course of 6 one-month intensive training programs at Korea's largest provincial government-supported training center. Further survey data was collected from in-service teachers one month after the completion of the course to investigate its overall effectiveness. Criteria within existing literature were used for systematic review and critical examination, and this included investigating to what extent learners, course instructors, and administrators were satisfied with the course; and to what extent the learners' teacher talk was affected. The results of this investigation found that the 'Developing Effective Teacher Talk' course satisfies various key internal and external evaluation criteria components and thus, may serve as a positive model for similar courses around the world.
In this study we set out to investigate the role that the phenomenological manifestations of teac... more In this study we set out to investigate the role that the phenomenological manifestations of teacher agency in second language (L2) instructional practices play in teacher identity formation. Using classroom observational data collected from public-sector L2 teachers (N = 4) over a year-long period, we explicitly adopt a dynamic perspective to examine what the exercise of agency in the L2 classroom might reveal about developmental processes in teacher identity. We report on salient and representative critical classroom incidents in which teachers exercised agency, then examine how and why this situated adaptivity was enacted by the teachers. Our data indicate that phenomenological manifestations of teacher agency are representations of the capacity to enact classroom practices in accordance with teachers’ own values, beliefs, and goals within the teaching contexts in which they find themselves. We then extend this in a blueprint that outlines dynamic pathways of autobiographical reasoning that culminate in unique identity narratives. Teachers’ agency was deliberately integrated into each teacher’s identity through the formation of analytical narratives that consciously legitimized experiences in the context of their classrooms, their communities, and the circumstances of their teaching. We discuss the contribution of our findings in relation to this domain of L2 research.
Metacognition in Language Learning and Teaching, 2018
We begin this chapter by reviewing the scholarship on teacher metacognition in order to situate o... more We begin this chapter by reviewing the scholarship on teacher metacognition in order to situate our study within the larger discourse and understanding of teachers as metacognitive professionals. We then relate this to what we see as the role of language teachers in the complex social ecology of language classrooms. The study we report in this chapter is part of a larger project designed precisely to explore these notions with language teachers. We investigate the extent to which language teachers can be said to engage in metacognitive thought and action, and examine salient developmental mechanisms that shape this capacity for language teacher metacognition. Throughout, we take a situated and dynamic perspective of teacher metacognition in line with recent calls from both general and language education for a more developmental orientation of studies of the work and lives of teachers (Dörnyei and Kubanyiova 2014; Richardson, Karabenick and Watt 2014). It is our position that exploring the tensions between language teachers’ metacognition and their classroom practice can help address the links between language teachers’ inner lives, their teaching, and their students’ L2 learning, thus contributing new insights for our field.
Teachers' Voices: Obstacles to Communicative Language Teaching in South Korea, Dec 1, 2017
Using focus groups and semi-structured interviews, data were collected to investigate Korean in-s... more Using focus groups and semi-structured interviews, data were collected to investigate Korean in-service English teachers’ attitudes toward the appropriateness and possibility of adopting a communicative language teaching approach within the South Korean secondary school system. The data revealed that many teachers are in favor of CLT, however various obstacles stand in their way of classroom implementation. This study first addresses the six prominent constraints that teachers reportedly face when trying to use CLT approaches, and examines why these difficulties are negatively affecting the possibility and appropriateness of communicative language teaching being applied. Several of the problems articulated suggest that the communicative approach may not currently be appropriate for Korean secondary English classes; therefore, possible solutions to these problems are suggested, as well future directions that may make communicative language teaching more suitable in the South Korean context.
This study set out to investigate Korean in-service secondary English teachers' perspectives on t... more This study set out to investigate Korean in-service secondary English teachers' perspectives on the National English Ability Test (NEAT) with the hopes of addressing some of the issues and concerns that may have resulted in its downfall. Data was initially collected from 86 Korean in-service high school English teachers using an online survey, and followed up with semi-structured discussions in focus groups. The results revealed that the majority of teachers in this study felt that the NEAT could positively affect English education in South Korea; however, at present, key aspects of the education system have not been adequately prepared to deal with the requirements of the new test. This lack of preparation has led to skepticism and resistance, with fears of negative washback outweighing and undermining the potential positive washback of the new test. This has caused a split in support for its current implementation with 47% of teachers supportive, 44% unsupportive and 9% uncertain. Although respondents had major concerns over the current state of affairs, through further analysis of the data, future directions emerged that could assist in mitigating or eliminating worries in the implementation of the NEAT, and/or similar future tests in both the South Korean and other language learning contexts.
This study investigates how the model of Authentic Leadership applies to language teaching and it... more This study investigates how the model of Authentic Leadership applies to language teaching and its implications for future directions in teacher education programmes. Data was collected from 56 native-speaking English teachers through an online survey consisting of specific open-ended and short answer type questions. The results of the study suggest that currently the concept of classroom leadership is not at the forefront of teachers' conscious thought, but is, to some extent, embedded in various teaching practices and characteristics. This could be attributed to the absence of explicit discussion of teacher leadership in teacher education programmes despite principles of leadership being strongly connected to the act of teaching itself. It is argued that a clear model of leadership would better help teachers face the unique challenges of EFL teaching and the model of Authentic Leadership provides an excellent framework for this context as the principles of self-awareness, relational transparency, balanced processing, and internalized moral/ethical perspective have direct links to core concepts in ELT. This article contends that by applying the principles of Authentic Leadership in classroom practice, both novice and experienced teachers will be better able to manage the challenges of language teaching, enhance and enrich their skillsets, and achieve greater professional success.
Abstract This exploratory study compared the effects of two different mediums of reading—interact... more Abstract This exploratory study compared the effects of two different mediums of reading—interactive e-book reading and paper-based reading—on learners’ reading comprehension. A specific focus was placed on literal vs. inferential comprehension. Thirty Korean middle school English language learners were randomly assigned to an interactive e-book reading (treatment) group or a paper-based reading (control) group. A pre-test and five comprehension tests were administered to both groups over a total of six reading sessions. A survey was also conducted to investigate students’ perceptions of how helpful interactive e-book features were in aiding their reading comprehension. Results from the reading comprehension test scores showed no statistical differences between the groups across the five tests. Analysis of literal and inferential questions also showed no significant difference overall. Findings from the survey data along with researcher observation notes suggest that interactive features that are not designed to aid students’ understanding can distract students from the task of reading which may hinder their comprehension. The overall results of this study suggest that it may not be the medium of reading, but how students engage with each medium that can affect their comprehension of text.
This study investigates how the model of Authentic Leadership applies to language teaching and it... more This study investigates how the model of Authentic Leadership applies to language teaching and its implications for future directions in teacher education programmes. Data was collected from 56 native-speaking English teachers through an online survey consisting of specific open-ended and short answer type questions. The results of the study suggest that currently the concept of classroom leadership is not at the forefront of teachers’ conscious thought, but is, to some extent, embedded in various teaching practices and characteristics. This could be attributed to the absence of explicit discussion of teacher leadership in teacher education programmes despite principles of leadership being strongly connected to the act of teaching itself. It is argued that a clear model of leadership would better help teachers face the unique challenges of EFL teaching and the model of Authentic Leadership provides an excellent framework for this context as the principles of self-awareness, relation...
This study reports the design, implementation, and evaluation of a 3-day intensive short-term tea... more This study reports the design, implementation, and evaluation of a 3-day intensive short-term teacher education program that was specifically designed and implemented with the aims of fostering English as a foreign language (EFL) teacher-learners’ ability to enact dialogic teaching in their teaching practices. Thirty pre-service English teachers from 13 different universities across Turkey participated in the program and their perspectives of the effectiveness of the program in reaching its objectives were investigated to examine: (1) to what extent they felt their ability to implement dialogic teaching practices had improved, and (2) which specific factors from the program they felt specifically contributed to their development. Data were collected over a 4-week period, and included pre/post-course self-evaluation scales, during-course session evaluation forms, post-course evaluation forms, and interviews. Overall, the findings suggest the importance of intensive short-term teacher...
Beyond Good Teaching Practices: Language Teacher Leadership From the Learners’ Perspective, 2019
Teacher leadership has been given increased recognition in general education as a means to empowe... more Teacher leadership has been given increased recognition in general education as a means to empower teachers as professionals and improve educational outcomes. However, it has not received as much attention in the field of English language teaching (ELT), and research that has been conducted in this area has tended to focus predominantly on program management. This study focused on examining learners’ perspectives of language teacher leadership with the aim of contributing to a more complete conceptualization of teacher leadership in ELT. Twenty South Korean university students were interviewed to explore their opinions of what language teacher leadership entails in terms of teacher practices and characteristics. The findings reveal an ensemble of qualities—under the categories of passion, rapport, purpose, and balance and flexibility—that learners believe to be essential to language teacher leadership. The findings also indicate that learners’ ideas about leadership in the language classroom go beyond classroom practices, are distinct from traditional views of leadership, and differ from the way in which many language teachers see leadership in their classrooms.
This paper presents and examines the suitability and effectiveness of an ESP (English for Specifi... more This paper presents and examines the suitability and effectiveness of an ESP (English for Specific Purposes) course entitled 'Developing Effective Teacher Talk' which was designed to meet the occupational needs of Korean secondary English teachers, and also satisfy the aims of the institutional administration and the Korean Ministry of Education. In order to investigate the suitability of the course, feedback data was collected through surveys as well as oral feedback meetings with Korean in-service secondary school English teacher trainees, course instructors, and administrators over the course of 6 one-month intensive training programs at Korea's largest provincial government-supported training center. Further survey data was collected from in-service teachers one month after the completion of the course to investigate its overall effectiveness. Criteria within existing literature were used for systematic review and critical examination, and this included investigating to what extent learners, course instructors, and administrators were satisfied with the course; and to what extent the learners' teacher talk was affected. The results of this investigation found that the 'Developing Effective Teacher Talk' course satisfies various key internal and external evaluation criteria components and thus, may serve as a positive model for similar courses around the world.
In this study we set out to investigate the role that the phenomenological manifestations of teac... more In this study we set out to investigate the role that the phenomenological manifestations of teacher agency in second language (L2) instructional practices play in teacher identity formation. Using classroom observational data collected from public-sector L2 teachers (N = 4) over a year-long period, we explicitly adopt a dynamic perspective to examine what the exercise of agency in the L2 classroom might reveal about developmental processes in teacher identity. We report on salient and representative critical classroom incidents in which teachers exercised agency, then examine how and why this situated adaptivity was enacted by the teachers. Our data indicate that phenomenological manifestations of teacher agency are representations of the capacity to enact classroom practices in accordance with teachers’ own values, beliefs, and goals within the teaching contexts in which they find themselves. We then extend this in a blueprint that outlines dynamic pathways of autobiographical reasoning that culminate in unique identity narratives. Teachers’ agency was deliberately integrated into each teacher’s identity through the formation of analytical narratives that consciously legitimized experiences in the context of their classrooms, their communities, and the circumstances of their teaching. We discuss the contribution of our findings in relation to this domain of L2 research.
Metacognition in Language Learning and Teaching, 2018
We begin this chapter by reviewing the scholarship on teacher metacognition in order to situate o... more We begin this chapter by reviewing the scholarship on teacher metacognition in order to situate our study within the larger discourse and understanding of teachers as metacognitive professionals. We then relate this to what we see as the role of language teachers in the complex social ecology of language classrooms. The study we report in this chapter is part of a larger project designed precisely to explore these notions with language teachers. We investigate the extent to which language teachers can be said to engage in metacognitive thought and action, and examine salient developmental mechanisms that shape this capacity for language teacher metacognition. Throughout, we take a situated and dynamic perspective of teacher metacognition in line with recent calls from both general and language education for a more developmental orientation of studies of the work and lives of teachers (Dörnyei and Kubanyiova 2014; Richardson, Karabenick and Watt 2014). It is our position that exploring the tensions between language teachers’ metacognition and their classroom practice can help address the links between language teachers’ inner lives, their teaching, and their students’ L2 learning, thus contributing new insights for our field.
Teachers' Voices: Obstacles to Communicative Language Teaching in South Korea, Dec 1, 2017
Using focus groups and semi-structured interviews, data were collected to investigate Korean in-s... more Using focus groups and semi-structured interviews, data were collected to investigate Korean in-service English teachers’ attitudes toward the appropriateness and possibility of adopting a communicative language teaching approach within the South Korean secondary school system. The data revealed that many teachers are in favor of CLT, however various obstacles stand in their way of classroom implementation. This study first addresses the six prominent constraints that teachers reportedly face when trying to use CLT approaches, and examines why these difficulties are negatively affecting the possibility and appropriateness of communicative language teaching being applied. Several of the problems articulated suggest that the communicative approach may not currently be appropriate for Korean secondary English classes; therefore, possible solutions to these problems are suggested, as well future directions that may make communicative language teaching more suitable in the South Korean context.
This study set out to investigate Korean in-service secondary English teachers' perspectives on t... more This study set out to investigate Korean in-service secondary English teachers' perspectives on the National English Ability Test (NEAT) with the hopes of addressing some of the issues and concerns that may have resulted in its downfall. Data was initially collected from 86 Korean in-service high school English teachers using an online survey, and followed up with semi-structured discussions in focus groups. The results revealed that the majority of teachers in this study felt that the NEAT could positively affect English education in South Korea; however, at present, key aspects of the education system have not been adequately prepared to deal with the requirements of the new test. This lack of preparation has led to skepticism and resistance, with fears of negative washback outweighing and undermining the potential positive washback of the new test. This has caused a split in support for its current implementation with 47% of teachers supportive, 44% unsupportive and 9% uncertain. Although respondents had major concerns over the current state of affairs, through further analysis of the data, future directions emerged that could assist in mitigating or eliminating worries in the implementation of the NEAT, and/or similar future tests in both the South Korean and other language learning contexts.
This study investigates how the model of Authentic Leadership applies to language teaching and it... more This study investigates how the model of Authentic Leadership applies to language teaching and its implications for future directions in teacher education programmes. Data was collected from 56 native-speaking English teachers through an online survey consisting of specific open-ended and short answer type questions. The results of the study suggest that currently the concept of classroom leadership is not at the forefront of teachers' conscious thought, but is, to some extent, embedded in various teaching practices and characteristics. This could be attributed to the absence of explicit discussion of teacher leadership in teacher education programmes despite principles of leadership being strongly connected to the act of teaching itself. It is argued that a clear model of leadership would better help teachers face the unique challenges of EFL teaching and the model of Authentic Leadership provides an excellent framework for this context as the principles of self-awareness, relational transparency, balanced processing, and internalized moral/ethical perspective have direct links to core concepts in ELT. This article contends that by applying the principles of Authentic Leadership in classroom practice, both novice and experienced teachers will be better able to manage the challenges of language teaching, enhance and enrich their skillsets, and achieve greater professional success.
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