Language Teachers at Work: Linking Materials with Classroom Teaching

ISBN-13: 9789811555145 / Angielski / Twarda / 2020 / 141 str.

Zhan Li

Opis

This book examines a ubiquitous, yet under-researched, area of language education, i.e., language teachers' use of curriculum materials. It particularly focuses on EFL teachers' use of prescribed curriculum materials in higher education in Mainland China and presents a qualitative, multi-case study involving four Chinese EFL teachersand eight students (two students from each teacher's class) at one university in Mainland China. Drawing on data from pre-lesson and post-lesson interviews with the teachers, lesson observations, and documents in three consecutive semesters at the target university, the book delineates the processes of materials useinclassroom settings. It also identifies four domains of factors that influenced the enactment of curriculum materials. Most importantly, by adopting Vygotsky's (1978) mediation theory and Remillard's (2005) participatory perspective, the book constructs a "curriculum enactment mediation model" to reveal the complex and mediated relations among teachers, learners, curriculum materials, and context. It also recommends practical implications for materials developers, teacher educators, administrators, and policymakers.

Spis treści

Chapter 1 Introduction

1.1 A global view on the role of textbooks in ELT

1.2 Materials use as a research gap in English language education

1.3 Aims of the study

1.4 Research problems

1.5 Structure of the book

Chapter 2 Teachers’ use of materials: A sociocultural perspective

2.1 Defining key concepts in the study

2.1.1 Curriculum materials vs materials

2.1.2 Materials use vs materials development

2.2 The context of the study

2.2.1 The evolution of college English (CE) curriculum in China

2.2.2 Five generations of CE textbooks

2.3 Research on materials use in ELT

2.3.1 Teachers’ ways of using materials in ELT

2.3.2 The influencing factors in teachers’ use of materials in ELT

2.4 Research on materials use in mainstream education

2.4.1 Teachers’ ways of using materials in mainstream education

2.4.2 The educative role of curriculum materials in mainstream education

2.4.3 The influencing factors in teachers’ curriculum enactment

2.5 The theoretical framework of the study

2.5.1 Theoretical underpinnings of teacher-curriculum studies 

2.5.2 Theoretical underpinnings of this study

2.6 Summary

Chapter 3 The design of the study

3.1 Qualitative multi-case study

3.2 Selection of setting, participants and materials

3.2.1 The target university

3.2.2 Teacher and student participants

3.2.3 Target textbook

3.3 Data collection

3.4 Data analysis

3.5 Trustworthiness

3.6 Summary

Chapter 4 Teachers’ use of curriculum materials

4.1 Teachers' use of curriculum materials in the pre-lesson phase

4.1.1 Reading

4.1.2 Evaluating

4.1.3 Appropriating and adapting

4.2 Teachers’ use of curriculum materials in the while-lesson phase

4.2.1 Transforming

4.2.2 Assessing

4.2.3 Adapting

4.2.4 Improvising

4.3 Teachers’ use of curriculum materials in the post-lesson phase

4.3.1 Reflecting

4.3.2 Reconceiving

4.5 Summary

Chapter 5 Discussion

5.1 The influences on teachers’ enactment of curriculum materials

5.1.1 Teachers’ affordances and constraints

5.1.2 Students’ affordances and constraints

5.1.3 Curriculum affordances and constraints

5.1.4 Contextual affordances and constraints

5.2 Conceptualizing teachers’ enactment of curriculum materials 

5.2.1 Mediations of teachers' use of curriculum materials in the pre-lesson phase 

5.2.2 Mediations of teachers’ use of curriculum materials in while-lesson phase

5.2.3 Mediations of teachers’ use of curriculum materials in post-lesson phase

5.2.4 Mediated relations among teachers, learners, curriculum materials and context

5.3 Curriculum enactment mediation model

5.4 Summary

Chapter 6 Conclusions and implications

6.1 Significance of this research

6.2 What are the good practices of enacting curriculum materials?

6.3 Language teachers' knowledge of materials use

6.4 Implications for professional development

6.5 Implications for materials development

6.6 Implications for teacher education

6.7 Limitations and future research

References

Appendices

O autorze

Dr. Zhan Li is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Foreign Languages, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China. She received her M.A. degree at the School of Education, Communication and Language Sciences, Newcastle University, U.K., in 2004, and her doctoral degreeat the Faculty of Education, the University of Hong Kong in 2016. Her research interests include English language teaching, curriculum development, professional development, and materials use. Her publications appear in both local and international journals and books. She is currently involved in two fundamental research projects for the Central Universities in China. From 2020 to 2021, she will be an academic visitor to Sheffield University in the U.K.