A Sociocultural Analysis of Teachers’ Belief Changes: A Case of Two Teach-Abroad EFL Teachers
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(1) * Sahiruddin Sahiruddin
Faculty of Cultural Studies Universitas Brawijaya
Indonesia
(2) Yudhi Arifani Intitute of Science Innovation and Culture (ISIC), Rajamangala University of Technology Krungthep, Thailand
Thailand
(3) Clinton Chidiebere Anyanwu Institute of Science Innovation and Culture (ISIC), Rajamangala University of Technology Krungthep
Thailand
(4) Jati Suryanto Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta
Indonesia
(*) Corresponding Author
Abstract
This inquiry explores English foreign language (EFL) teacher beliefs in teach-abroad (TA) contexts under the umbrella of Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory (SCT) of mind. The previously available literature on teacher beliefs has relied mostly on quantitative survey research concerning belief as an inert variable; an internal representation of experience is resilient to evolve. Due to the prevalence of the theory of mind or cognitive orientation under the sociocultural theory, this case study aims to examine two TA EFL teachers’ belief changes in the new TA context and conceptualize the teachers’ beliefs from a sociocultural perspective. The participants involved EFL teachers (both pseudonyms): Ivan (male, aged 26) and Melanie (female, aged 24) attending different types of TA were recruited for this research. We collected the data through pre-and post-TA interviews and teaching journals with other triangulated methods like teaching autobiographies and recall experiences. The findings advocated that EFL teachers’ teaching beliefs continuously evolve according to their TA goals and experiences, and their belief changes involve a remediation process that leads to different teaching actions. Their internalized EFL teaching beliefs within meaningful environments influence the success of their TA teaching.
HIGHLIGHTS:
- EFL teachers’ teaching beliefs continuously evolve according to their TA goals and experiences
- EFL teacher’s belief changes involve a remediation process that leads to different teaching actions
- Socio-cultural context of teaching and learning practice facilitates the perception of teachers’ teaching beliefs.
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References
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Vygotsky, L. S., & Cole, M. (1978). Mind in society: Development of higher psychological processes. Harvard university press.
Yang, J.-S., & Kim, T.-Y. (2011). Sociocultural analysis of second language learner beliefs: A qualitative case study of two study-abroad ESL learners. System, 39(3), 325–334.
Yeh, S.-W. (2005). Perceptions regarding foreign teachers teaching English in Taiwanese English language schools. University of South Dakota.
Yin, R. K. (2018). Case study research and applications: Design and methods. Los Angeles, UK: Sage.
Bowne, J. B., Yoshikawa, H., & Snow, C. E. (2016). Experimental impacts of a teacher professional development program in early childhood on explicit vocabulary instruction across the curriculum. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 34, 27–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2015.08.002
Cabaroglu, N., & Roberts, J. (2000). Development in student teachers’ pre-existing beliefs during a 1-year PGCE programme. System, 28(3), 387–402. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0346-251X(00)00019-1
Chen, C. W., & Cheng, Y. (2010). A case study on foreign English teachers’ challenges in Taiwanese elementary schools. System, 38(1), 41–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2009.12.004
Chong, S., & Low, E.-L. (2009). Why I want to teach and how I feel about teaching—formation of teacher identity from pre-service to the beginning teacher phase. Educational Research for Policy and Practice, 8(1), 59–72. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10671-008-9056-z
Cole, M., & Griffin, P. (1986). A sociohistorical approach to remediation. Literacy, Society, and Schooling: A Reader, 110–131.
Cowie, N. (2011). Emotions that experienced English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers feel about their students, their colleagues and their work. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27(1), 235–242. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2010.08.006
DeVillar, R. A., & Jiang, B. (2012). From student teaching abroad to teaching in the US classroom: Effects of global experiences on local instructional practice. Teacher Education Quarterly, 39(3), 7–24. https://doi.org/stable/23479680
Feryok, A., & Pryde, M. (2012). Images as orienting activity: using theory to inform classroom practices. Teachers and Teaching, 18(4), 441–454. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2012.696045
Fitzgerald, A. (2019). Navigating and negotiating borders: Western pre-service teachers’ experiences of teaching science in a non-western setting. Teaching and Teacher Education, 82, 96–105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2019.03.013
Hauerwas, L. B., Skawinski, S. F., & Ryan, L. B. (2017). The longitudinal impact of teaching abroad: An analysis of intercultural development. Teaching and Teacher Education, 67, 202–213.
Jacobsen, C. K. (2012). Reconstructing the foreign teacher: The nativization of David Crook in Beijing. Frontiers of Education in China, 7(3), 443–463.
Johnson, K. E. (2015). Reclaiming the relevance of L2 teacher education. The Modern Language Journal, 99(3), 515–528. https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12242
Johnson, K. E., & Golombek, P. R. (2011). A sociocultural theoretical perspective on teacher professional development. In Research on second language teacher education (pp. 15–26). Routledge.
Karimi, M. N., & Nazari, M. (2021). Growth in language teachers’ understanding of differentiated instruction: A sociocultural theory perspective. Journal of Education for Teaching, 47(3), 322–336. https://doi.org/10.1080/02607476.2021.1884973
Kessler, M., Solheim, I., & Zhao, M. (2021). Can task‐based language teaching be “authentic” in foreign language contexts? Exploring the case of China. TESOL Journal, 12(1), e00534. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesj.534
Kubanyiova, M. (2012). Teacher development in action: Understanding language teachers’ conceptual change. Springer.
Kubanyiova, M., & Feryok, A. (2015). Language teacher cognition in applied linguistics research: Revisiting the territory, redrawing the boundaries, reclaiming the relevance. The Modern Language Journal, 99(3), 435–449. https://doi.org/10.1111/modl.12239
Lantolf, J. P., Xi, J., & Minakova, V. (2021). Sociocultural theory and concept-based language instruction. Language Teaching, 54(3), 327–342. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444820000348
Leigh, L. (2019). “Of course I have changed!”: A narrative inquiry of foreign teachers’ professional identities in Shenzhen, China. Teaching and Teacher Education, 86, 102905. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2019.102905
Lektorsky, V. A. (2009). Mediation as a means of collective activity. Learning and Expanding with Activity Theory, 75–87.
Li, L. (2017). Social interaction and teacher cognition. Edinburgh University Press.
Li, L. (2019). Language teacher cognition: A sociocultural perspective. Springer.
López‐Barrios, M., San Martín, M. G., & Villanueva de Debat, E. (2021). EFL vocabulary teaching beliefs and practices: The case of two teachers in Argentina. TESOL Journal, 12(1), e00533. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesj.533
Meijer, P. C., Zanting, A., & Verloop, N. (2002). How can student teachers elicit experienced teachers’ practical knowledge? Tools, suggestions, and significance. Journal of Teacher Education, 53(5), 406–419. https://doi.org/10.1177/002248702237395
Merriam, S. B. (1998). Qualitative Research and Case Study Applications in Education. Revised and Expanded from" Case Study Research in Education.". ERIC.
Moorhouse, B. L., & Harfitt, G. J. (2021). Pre-service and in-service teachers’ professional learning through the pedagogical exchange of ideas during a teaching abroad experience. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 49(2), 230–244. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359866X.2019.1694634
Nganga, C. W. (2011). A narrative study of international teachers’ transitional identities in US high schools. The University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
Ngo, X. M. (2018). A sociocultural perspective on second language writing teacher cognition: A Vietnamese teacher’s narrative. System, 78, 79–90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2018.08.002
Sun, Q., & Zhang, L. J. (2021). A sociocultural perspective on English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) teachers’ cognitions about form-focused instruction. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 593172. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.593172
Tanaka, K., & Ellis, R. (2003). Study abroad, language proficiency, and learner beliefs about language learning. JALT Journal, 25(1), 63–85.
Trent, J. (2011). Learning, teaching, and constructing identities: ESL pre-service teacher experiences during a short-term international experience programme. Asia Pacific Journal of Education, 31(2), 177–194. https://doi.org/10.1080/02188791.2011.566997
Vygotsky, L. S., & Cole, M. (1978). Mind in society: Development of higher psychological processes. Harvard university press.
Yang, J.-S., & Kim, T.-Y. (2011). Sociocultural analysis of second language learner beliefs: A qualitative case study of two study-abroad ESL learners. System, 39(3), 325–334.
Yeh, S.-W. (2005). Perceptions regarding foreign teachers teaching English in Taiwanese English language schools. University of South Dakota.
Yin, R. K. (2018). Case study research and applications: Design and methods. Los Angeles, UK: Sage.
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Published
2024-04-30
How to Cite
Sahiruddin, S., Arifani, Y., Anyanwu, C. C., & Suryanto, J. (2024). A Sociocultural Analysis of Teachers’ Belief Changes: A Case of Two Teach-Abroad EFL Teachers. JEES (Journal of English Educators Society), 9(1), 70-79. https://doi.org/10.21070/jees.v9i1.1810
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