Insights into L2 teachers' pedagogical content knowledge: A cognitive perspective on their grammar explanations

Abstract

Language teacher cognition research has deepened our understandings of the pedagogical decisions L2 teachers make and of how these are influenced by a range of psychological, socio-cultural, and environmental factors. Building on this tradition of work, this paper examines the interactions between cognitions and context in the grammar teaching practices of two experienced secondary school teachers of English in Argentina. The primary data came from classroom observations and post-lesson stimulated recall interviews in which the teachers provided the rationale for their grammar explanations. Further data were collected through semi-structured interviews. The findings highlight not only the array of instructional strategies employed by the teachers in their explanations but also the diverse and interacting range of pedagogical concerns which informed the choice of these strategies. The results also show evidence of the influence on teachers' pedagogical decisions of their perceptions of the context in which they worked. The findings shed light on the nature of L2 teachers' grammarrelated pedagogical content knowledge. The qualitative accounts of teachers' classroom practices and of their rationales also constitute material which can be productively used in language teacher development contexts.

Teaching speaking

“…Because pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) includes teachers' understanding of how students learn specific subject matter, the development of PCK is an important goal to focus on in professional development programs. Recent re-conceptualizations of teachers' PCK highlight its complex and contextual nature (Hashweh, 2005;Santiago Sanchez & Borg, 2014;Van Driel & Berry, 2012) This implies that the development of teachers' PCK should be closely aligned to teachers' professional practice and, in addition to providing teachers with specific input, should include opportunities to enact certain instructional strategies and to reflect, individually and collectively, on their experiences.…”

Examining Student Teachers’ Beliefs about Oral Corrective Feedback: Insights from a Teacher Education Program in Turkey

“…The research shows that STs' beliefs come from mainly three different resources (Richardson, 1996); their own personal experiences as learners in the school, teacher education and their personal experiences in general and with teaching (Sanchez & Borg, 2014). Among these three sources, educational experiences as a learner are found to be more influential (Peacock, 2001;Richardson, 2003).…”

Pedagogical Reasoning in EFL/ESL Teaching: Revisiting the Importance of Teaching Lesson Planning in Second Language Teacher Education

“…Common interests in LTC, for example, center on research exploring the practical knowledge base of EFL/ESL teachers (e.g., Kayi‐Aydar, ; Mullock, ), teachers’ perceptions of their knowledge base and growth (e.g., Choy, Wong, Lim, & Chong, ; Kourieos, ), or teachers’ knowledge base for a few specific aspects of EFL/ESL teaching. For example, practical knowledge growth in communicative language teaching (CLT) is reported in Wyatt and Borg (), teachers’ PCK in reading instruction in Goldfus () and Irvine‐Niakaris and Kiely (), vocabulary teaching in Macalister (), and grammar explanation in Sanchez and Borg (). Despite the volume of work done, understanding gained so far about the “hidden side of the work” (Freeman, , p. 1) in language teaching still seems insufficient.…”