A Martin

Bio: A Martin is an academic researcher. The author has contributed to research in topics: Lifelong learning & Community of practice. The author has an hindex of 1, co-authored 1 publications receiving 7 citations.

Being and becoming TESOL educators: Embodied learning via practicum

Abstract: Introduction: Practicum enquiry Becoming a teacher, Graham and Phelps (2003) wrote, is a multi-faceted process involving individuals intellectually, socially, morally, emotionally and aesthetically engaging in community-focused activity. In TESOL teacher education, the practicum is recognised as a crucial, socio-educative experience where practice teachers both witness theory in application and become members of a real-world community of practice (Ishihara, 2005; Wenger, 1998). In Bourdieusian terms, they realise capacities, gain dispositions, and ways of thinking, being and acting. Practicums contribute to the ongoing formation of the habitus and expose the value of types of learning that occur; the cultural, social and symbolic capital of the practicum (Bourdieu, 1986). Offering insights to language teachers involved in connecting the classroom to the world beyond the classroom and particularly to tertiary lecturers in TESOL, our study identifies and describes key forms of learning, both the expected and the unexpected, adding further weight to research valourising the practicum as a site of valuable and authentic learning, and learning that occurs through thinking, being and acting the teacher and becoming closer to the aspiration of becoming a confident practitioner. We do not detail what a successful practicum looks like, as Ulvik and Smith (2011) have done, nor what practice teachers focus on, like Brinton and Holten (1989). Building on the literature, our interest lies in identifying what forms of knowledge result and how they impact practice teachers' reported confidence, how they enhance a 'teacherly' habitus, and how they lead practice teachers towards being and becoming TESOL practitioners. Simply put, our research question is: What forms of learning gained on practicum do postgraduate practice teachers value? We engage with a consideration of how these forms affect practice teachers' professional identities. In the postgraduate context of a Certificate, Diploma or Master of TESOL program, the learners, the 'practice teachers' (Richards & Farrell, 2011; Ulvik & Smith, 2011) are no longer 'students', 'novices' or 'trainees'; they are working professionals aiming to ground their teaching practice within the discipline by becoming more aware of how to become more effective teachers within their teaching and learning communities. The practicum, consisting of twenty-two days of placement including seven observations and fifteen days of planned, supervised teaching, is a core unit which provides a set of structured experiences and students document these via their practicum portfolio comprising a range of identity texts: teaching practice notes, reflective diaries and observation reports, supervisory reports, lesson plans and retrospective, reflective surveys (Velikova, 2013). These texts are embodiments of practice teachers' reflection for, in and on action (a literary constant from Schon, 1987 to Farrell, 2015 & 2016). As lecturers and researchers on the postgraduate practicum unit, Professional Practice, in the only university in the Western suburbs of Melbourne, the authors were in a unique position to construct a practitioner enquiry into the process of being and becoming TESOL practitioners. Hence, in the manner of Richards and Farrell (2011), this study aims to mine the reflective potential of completed students'(VU) practicum portfolios for narrative data to investigate the pedagogical and learning value of practicum. For this paper, we analyse their reflective surveys, drawing from their lesson reflections to triangulate the data. Connecting a body of knowledge of work on experiential and participatory learning beyond the classroom to practicum experiences, our investigation sets out to discover the pedagogical and learning benefits of the guided practicum through analysis of the experiences embodied within the reflective texts. Background: The practicum One reason why this study is unique is that it occurs in the context of an MTESOL unit taught in the Western suburbs of Melbourne in the College of Education at Victoria University, Melbourne, a university marked for its ethnic and educative diversity. …

An Overview of Innovation

Abstract: Models that depict innovation as a smooth, well-behaved linear process badly misspecify the nature and direction of the causal factors at work. Innovation is complex, uncertain, somewhat disorderly, and subject to changes of many sorts. Innovation is also difficult to measure and demands close coordination of adequate technical knowledge and excellent market judgment in order to satisfy economic, technological, and other types of constraints—all simultaneously. The process of innovation must be viewed as a series of changes in a complete system not only of hardware, but also of market environment, production facilities and knowledge, and the social contexts of the innovation organization.

Identity and culture: narratives of difference and belonging (2nd ed.)

Abstract: * Where does our sense of identity and belonging come from? * How does culture produce and challenge identities? Identity and Culture looks at how different cultural narratives and practices work to constitute identity for individuals and groups in multi-ethnic, `postcolonial' societies. * Uses examples from history, politics, fiction and the visual to examine the social power relations that create subject positions and forms of identity * Analyses how cultural texts and practices offer new forms of identity and agency that subvert dominant ideologies This book encompasses issues of class, race, and gender, with a particular focus on the mobilization of forms of ethnic identity in societies still governed by racism. It a key text for students in cultural studies, sociology of culture, literary studies, history, race and ethnicity studies, media and film studies, and gender studies.

Contemporary Perspectives on Student Teacher Learning and the TESOL Practicum

Abstract: This introductory chapter begins by providing theoretical and research-driven perspectives on student teacher learning undergirding TESOL practica, based on a social constructivist approach. Concepts such as student teacher learning as a social activity as well as an emotional process, the formation of teacher identity and the importance of mediation are presented. This conceptual overview is then followed by a description of the TESOL practicum itself. The description points to the complex nature of practicum, considering its various models, as well as aspects such as: the timing of practicum within a TESOL programme, relationships with schools in relation to fieldwork placements, the qualities of practicum supervisors and coordinating teachers, the characteristics of pre- and post-observation feedback conferences with student teachers, and ways of supporting student teachers through assessment as well as promoting reflection. As such, this chapter lays the groundwork for the rest of the volume that shares locally relevant as well as innovative practices in the TESOL practicum around the world.

Multiple Dimensions of Teacher Development on an International Practicum.

Abstract: As TESOL programs evolve to meet the demands of a globalized world, teacher-learners benefit from gaining opportunities to practice teaching outside their home countries. This article reports on four researchers’ analyses of the experiences of US graduate student teacher-learners participating in a two-month practicum in Thailand. The practicum was designed around theories of sociocultural and experiential learning, intended to support teacher-learners’ interaction and challenge their assumptions about language teaching and learning. Practicum participants each designed and taught a class of Thai undergraduate students while taking a supporting seminar. Here we present findings from analyses of the teacher-learners’ peer and supervisor observation experiences, reflective practices, curriculum development, and classroom research. In synthesizing these individual studies, we argue that the international context played a key role in fostering the teacher-learners’ development by raising their awareness of beliefs and offering them opportunities to experience classroom realities different from what they had read about in textbooks or experienced in their home countries. We conclude with recommendations for extending this line of research, as well as suggestions for teacher educators wishing to implement similar international practicum programs.