TY - JOUR
T1 - Developing language awareness for teachers of emergent bilingual learners using dialogic inquiry
AU - Wallen, Matthew
AU - Kelly-Holmes, Helen
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 Taylor & Francis.
PY - 2017/4/16
Y1 - 2017/4/16
N2 - This study endeavoured to awaken mainstream teachers’ awareness of language, specifically related to teaching emergent bilingual children who are learning English as an additional language (EAL) in the Republic of Ireland. Because EAL learners spend the majority of the day in the mainstream classroom, mainstream teachers’ language awareness may have a significant effect on EAL learners’ long-term language development, social inclusion and ability to access the curriculum. This study used dialogic inquiry intended to awaken teachers’ language awareness through the use of guiding questions intended to explore personal theories, generate collective theories and ultimately compare these to established theories, following a grounded theory approach to professional development. Teachers’ beliefs, as expressed in such a dialogue process, and changes in awareness over the course of the inquiry are discussed in the context of four themes: first and second language acquisition, stages of language learning, use of the first language in the classroom and motivation in language learning. Findings suggest that a dialogic inquiry in the form of a teacher network has the capacity to lead to greater awareness among mainstream primary teachers related to the language acquisition process and linguistic context of their emergent bilingual students.
AB - This study endeavoured to awaken mainstream teachers’ awareness of language, specifically related to teaching emergent bilingual children who are learning English as an additional language (EAL) in the Republic of Ireland. Because EAL learners spend the majority of the day in the mainstream classroom, mainstream teachers’ language awareness may have a significant effect on EAL learners’ long-term language development, social inclusion and ability to access the curriculum. This study used dialogic inquiry intended to awaken teachers’ language awareness through the use of guiding questions intended to explore personal theories, generate collective theories and ultimately compare these to established theories, following a grounded theory approach to professional development. Teachers’ beliefs, as expressed in such a dialogue process, and changes in awareness over the course of the inquiry are discussed in the context of four themes: first and second language acquisition, stages of language learning, use of the first language in the classroom and motivation in language learning. Findings suggest that a dialogic inquiry in the form of a teacher network has the capacity to lead to greater awareness among mainstream primary teachers related to the language acquisition process and linguistic context of their emergent bilingual students.
KW - continuing professional development
KW - dialogic inquiry
KW - english as an additional language
KW - Ireland
KW - mainstream
KW - primary
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84940707099&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/13670050.2015.1051506
DO - 10.1080/13670050.2015.1051506
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84940707099
SN - 1367-0050
VL - 20
SP - 314
EP - 330
JO - International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism
JF - International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism
IS - 3
ER -