Elementary English Language Instruction: Colombian ... · 39 PROFILE Elementary English Language Instruction: Colombian Teachers’ Classroom Practices has been cited by Nunan (1999)

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Elementary English Language Instruction:

Colombian Teachers’ Classroom Practices*

Enseñanza del idioma inglés en primaria: Prácticas de aula de docentes colombianos

Isabel Cristina Cadavid MúneraIsabel Cristina Cadavid MúneraIsabel Cristina Cadavid MúneraIsabel Cristina Cadavid MúneraIsabel Cristina Cadavid Múnera**[email protected]

María McNultyMaría McNultyMaría McNultyMaría McNultyMaría McNulty***[email protected]

Diana Isabel Quinchía OrtizDiana Isabel Quinchía OrtizDiana Isabel Quinchía OrtizDiana Isabel Quinchía OrtizDiana Isabel Quinchía Ortiz****[email protected]

Universidad de Antioquia

An in-progress ethnographic research project about teachers who are facingthe complex task of teaching English to children in 7 public elementary schoolsin the metropolitan area of Medellin is presented in this article. First, the needfor this research is outlined by researchers; second, the methodology of theproject is described; third, up-to-date findings which include a profile of the 12teachers who are participating in this study, and an analysis of their classmethodology in terms of activities, materials, teacher and student roles arereported. Lastly, implications of this research project related to early foreignlanguage instruction are highlighted.

KKKKKey worey worey worey worey wordsdsdsdsds: Public Elementary-English-Language Instruction, English-Foreign Language, Ethnography-Research-Method, Teaching-Methodology

Este artículo presenta los resultados preliminares de una investigaciónetnográfica acerca de las estrategias metodológicas utilizadas por profesoresde básica primaria que enseñan inglés como lengua extranjera en 7 escuelaspúblicas del área metropolitana del municipio de Medellín. En la primera partese resalta la importancia de esta investigación en nuestro medio y en la segunda,

*Project developed by the “Grupo de Investigación en Enseñanza y Aprendizaje de Lenguas Extranjeras”, School ofLanguages, Universidad de Antioquia.

**Isabel Cristina Cadavid MúneraIsabel Cristina Cadavid MúneraIsabel Cristina Cadavid MúneraIsabel Cristina Cadavid MúneraIsabel Cristina Cadavid Múnera, Master in TESOL, West Virginia University. Teacher-researcher in the undergraduateFL teaching program at the School of Languages, Universidad de Antioquia.

***Maria McNultyMaria McNultyMaria McNultyMaria McNultyMaria McNulty, Visiting professor at Universidad de Antioquia. Diploma in TESL, University of Toronto, Canada.Honours B.A. in Psychology, Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada. Teacher-researcher in the undergraduate FL teaching programat the School of Languages, Universidad de Antioquia

****Diana Isabel Quinchía OrtizDiana Isabel Quinchía OrtizDiana Isabel Quinchía OrtizDiana Isabel Quinchía OrtizDiana Isabel Quinchía Ortiz, B.A. in Teaching Foreign Languages. Teacher-researcher in the undergraduate FLteaching program at the School of Languages, Universidad de Antioquia.

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CADAVID, McNULTY AND QUINCHÍA PROFILE PROFILE PROFILE PROFILE PROFILE

se describe la metodología empleada en el proyecto. La tercera incluye un perfilde los 12 profesores participantes y un análisis de la metodología empleadapor ellos con respecto a las actividades de clase, los materiales y el rol delestudiante y del profesor. Finalmente, se discuten algunas de las implicacionesde este proyecto de investigación en la enseñanza de lenguas extranjeras aniños.

Palabras claves: Palabras claves: Palabras claves: Palabras claves: Palabras claves: Inglés-Enseñanza-Básica Primaria, Lengua Extranjera-Inglés,Estudio Etnográfico-Investigación, Enseñanza-Metodología

INTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTION

Ten years ago, the teaching of English asa foreign language (EFL) in public elementaryschools started to be introduced inColombia as a result of a general educationallaw related to early foreign languageinstruction. This educational endeavourwould extend over five years of study –fromGrades 1 to 5– and include a space forforeign language instruction in publicelementary schools each year.

To date the Colombian government hasundertaken efforts to help schools andteachers. Curriculum guidelines for foreignlanguage instruction have been establishedand promoted by the ministry of education(Ministerio de Educación Nacional: 1999).Teachers have access to teacher educationprograms and professional developmentcourses concerning early foreign languageinstruction. University-public elementaryschool partnerships through the teachingpracticum have been encouraged anddeveloped. Additionally, some schools haveenriched their teaching resources to includecomputer-based technology and training toteachers. The government has recognizedthe need for curriculum design, academic

preparation of teachers, university-schools’pre-service and professional developmentinitiatives, and technology-basedinstruction.

Colombian public elementary schoolsand teachers have responded to this excitingchallenge but not without encounteringdifficulties. Cárdenas (2001) reports thatteachers may have studied the foreignlanguage and/or how to teach foreignlanguages, but they often lack specializedacademic preparation for teaching children.The author recognizes governmentalsupport but claims a lack of planning andstandards in the implementation of foreignlanguage programs at the regional andnational level. This finding has also beencited by González et.al. (2001) in their studydesigned to assess the professional needs ofEFL teachers who work in the public andprivate sector in Colombia. Public schoolteachers consider themselves lacking anadequate level of proficiency in English,background knowledge of the subject matterand previous training. In addition to theneed for pre-service and professionaldevelopment, inadequate funding toimplement government educational policiesin Latin America, Asia and North America,

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has been cited by Nunan (1999) as anadverse factor affecting schools andteachers. Murphey (2003) labels thischallenge for professionals as the ‘cart-before-the-horse situation’ where teachersare required to teach English before they arecapable of doing so. Although previousstudies have explored who English languageteachers are in different contexts and thelimitations they have, there is a need forColombian studies which explore the realityof teaching English in the public, elementaryschool classrooms.

Given the above situation in Colombia,researchers proposed the following questionsfor their research project: How have schoolsassumed this educational mission? Who arethe public elementary EFL school teachersin Medellín? Which methodologicalpractices do these teachers use to teachEnglish? How do the teachers understandtheir own practices? What methodologicalprinciples do they report as forming theirteaching practices? Is there a relationshipbetween the teachers’ practices andprinciples, and the government’s curricularguidelines concerning early foreign languageinstruction?

In order to answer these questions, agroup of researchers in the School ofLanguages at the University of Antioquia areconducting a small-scale, particularisticethnographic investigation with 12 EFLteachers in Grades 1, 3 and 5, in seven publicelementary schools in the metropolitan areaof Medellín. Researchers are carrying outfield work that includes observations andteacher interviews about the teaching-learning processes in context. The data from

the teacher interviews will give researchersthe teachers’ points of view about theirclassroom and their principles which guidetheir actions in class. A qualitative approachto the data collection and analysis is beingused in order to enable researchers todescribe, understand and reflect on theteacher ’s classroom methodology,influenced by the class activities, thematerials in class, the teacher and studentroles, and the grouping arrangements.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT’SDESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT’SDESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT’SDESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT’SDESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT’SMETHODOLOGYMETHODOLOGYMETHODOLOGYMETHODOLOGYMETHODOLOGY

To address the above questions raised,the project was designed with fouroverlapping stages. Prior to the first stage,the number and the location of schools weredecided based on a preliminary list of publicelementary schools where English is beingtaught in Medellín. The schools were chosenbased on their typicality or commoncharacteristics i.e. the schools are public andare located throughout Medellín in thenorth, south, and central areas. Furthermore,schools were selected based on theirconvenience in terms of transportation foreach researcher.

In the first stage, researchers began toanalyze important documents related toforeign language instruction. They read anddiscussed the Lineamientos Curriculares tofind out how the Ministry of Education ispromoting the teaching of English as aforeign language in public elementaryschools. In addition, they started to reviewthe literature related to early foreignlanguage instruction.

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The second stage consisted of researcherscontacting the schools to give theminformation about the project, confirm theirparticipation, and determine which teacherswould participate in this study. At that time,researchers began to gather a profile of theteachers concerning their educationalbackground and teaching experience with aquestionnaire.

The third stage consisted of observing andinterviewing teachers about their classes.Each teacher was observed 3 times in eachgrade reaching a total number of 63observations. While observing, researcherswrote detailed objective descriptions of classevents in a diary (see Appendix 1: ClassroomObservation Format). After observing,researchers interviewed teachers in a semi-structured interview format to find out whatprinciples guide their actions in class (seeAppendix 2: Teacher Interview Format). Themajority of the interviews were recorded andtranscribed to facilitate the data analysis.

In the fourth stage, researchers arecompleting the data analysis of theobservations and interviews. Researchershave completed the class observations butare currently analyzing the teacherinterviews. To analyze the data from theobservations, a thematic analysis was used.In the data gathered, researchers identifiedand named thematic codes using a theory-driven approach. For example, researcherscategorized the data concerning classactivities using a taxonomy of languageteaching techniques proposed by Brown(2001), Richards and Lockhart (1996), andVale and Feunteun (1995). To analyze thedata from the teacher interviews, a data-driven approach is being used.

During the last step of the research, thefindings will be shared with the participantsin this study and the community at large.

FINDINGSFINDINGSFINDINGSFINDINGSFINDINGS

This section will begin with a profile ofthe teachers in this project. Thequestionnaire showed the followinginformation which has been divided into twoparts: teachers’ personal information, theirwork and educational experience, andinformation about their English classes.

Concerning the TConcerning the TConcerning the TConcerning the TConcerning the Teachers’ Educationeachers’ Educationeachers’ Educationeachers’ Educationeachers’ Educationand Wand Wand Wand Wand Work Experienceork Experienceork Experienceork Experienceork Experience

The teachers’ ages range from 20 to over50 with the majority of teachers in the rangebetween 31 and 50 years of age. Concerningthe teachers’ academic preparation, all ofthem hold Bachelor of Education degrees indifferent areas: Five teachers hold a B. Ed. inelementar y, preschool or childhoodeducation; four in areas such asmathematics, Spanish, methodology andsocial studies; and three in foreignlanguages. Seven out of the twelve teachershave completed a specialization, but not oneis related to teaching English. Regarding theteachers with degrees in foreign languages,although they possess the languagepreparation and the theoretical and practicalpreparation related to the methodology ofteaching English, they neither possessknowledge about pedagogical principles andprocedures in teaching children nor have thebackground in child language development,or experience in teaching groups of children.This situation has been previously reportedby Cárdenas (2001) as she questions who is


in charge of teaching English to children inColombia. In her study, she found that themajority of elementary English teachers werelacking in pedagogical and linguisticpreparation. Although Cárdenas describesthe situation in Colombia, it is striking tosee how similar characteristics of teachersin other countries have been found. Forexample, Murphey (2003: 1) has describedthe situation in Asian countries as follows:“The reality of the EFL situation in manyAsian countries is that ministries aredemanding that regular content teachers inprimary schools teach English to theirstudents with little or no training in English”.Likewise, Crooks (1997: 68) has stated that“Almost all the public sector elementary FLinstruction in my home state of Hawaii isconducted by untrained teachers becausethere are no permanent full-time positions”.

Many of the teachers in our study havetaken professional development coursesrelated either to learning the Englishlanguage or to the methodology of teachingEnglish. With respect to learning English,just 1 teacher with a B. Ed. in languages, 5elementary and preschool teachers, and 2teachers from different areas were involvedin this type of instruction. Those with a B.Ed. in languages and in other areas did notpursue any English language training.

Concerning professional developmentrelated to the methodology of teachingEnglish, two teachers with a B. Ed. inlanguages and one from a different area didhave this type of training. Teachers with a B.Ed. in elementary or preschool did notpursue this kind of training because of thenature of their undergraduate programs. A

few teachers have had no further academicpreparation at all.

The majority of teachers have had from10 to 29 years of general teachingexperience, while only a few have beenteaching for fewer than four years. Mostteachers have had a least 1-to-4 years ofexperience teaching English at the schoolwhere they are working now. In addition toteaching English, many teachers are requiredto teach other subjects such as physicaleducation, mathematics, Spanish, socialstudies, etc. In terms of job stability, mostteachers have a permanent teaching positionat their school while a few are working withyearly contracts.

Concern ing the Engl i sh ClassConcern ing the Engl i sh ClassConcern ing the Engl i sh ClassConcern ing the Engl i sh ClassConcern ing the Engl i sh ClassAAAAActivities, Materials and Tctivities, Materials and Tctivities, Materials and Tctivities, Materials and Tctivities, Materials and Teacher andeacher andeacher andeacher andeacher andStudents’ RolesStudents’ RolesStudents’ RolesStudents’ RolesStudents’ Roles

As it is the case in many public schoolsin our country, the English classes in theschools researchers visited haveapproximately 40 to 49 students and theclasses are offered once a week for 45minutes. Interesting issues were identifiedwhen researchers started exploring thedifferent ways in which teachers spend thistime with their students.

The activities observed were classifiedaccording to their purpose within theframework of the class as a whole. Aspreviously stated in the methodologysection, in order to carry out such analysis,we designed a chart using and adaptingtaxonomies presented by various authors (seeAppendix 3: Chart of Observed Classroom

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Activities). The broad categories in the chartare presentation, practice, memorization,comprehension, application, affective,feedback, strategy, assessment, andorganizational. Within each broad category,there is a list of different activities whichteachers use in the foreign languageclassroom.

Based on the data analysis, otheractivities that were recurrent in the observedclasses needed to be added to the chart suchas giving instructions, praising, assigninghomework, peer correction, buildingsentences, and translation as a strategy forpresentation, etc. Even though some of themare not activities per se, we found that theyare widespread practices among teachers andtherefore need to be included in the chart.

Researchers also found that most of theclass period is spent on activities that areeither organizational (giving instructions ordisciplinary actions), presentational (introducingthe lesson topic) or affective (warm-ups).Even though giving instructions andorganizing the children are paramount in theelementary school context, these are carriedout in Spanish and therefore children arebeing exposed more to Spanish than Englishin class. Teachers tend to use the targetlanguage only when presenting a topic orreviewing vocabulary with children in class.

Another common characteristic of theseclasses is that the presentation activities,mentioned above, often take place in themiddle of the class period and are not usuallyaccompanied by practice or applicationexercises in the same lesson. A very commonstrategy for presentation of topics or related

vocabulary is the use of flashcards andtranslation at the same time. Translationseems to play a very important role in theseclasses. It is used as a strategy to presentnew material, to explain content, or to checkcomprehension.

It is interesting to note that activities weexpected the teachers to use in class wereeither not frequently used or they were notobserved in the number of classes we visited.Games and singing songs are not sofrequently used by the teachers. There wereonly two games with an affective purpose;one as a practice activity, and another as anapplication activity. Singing songs were usedas both practice and affective activities.Other activities that are not being used byteachers include role-plays, story-telling,referential question-answer exercises,meaningful drills, problem-solving activities,and information exchange activities, etc. Thismight be due to the fact that most of theseactivities are so specifically related to thefield of foreign language teaching thatprobably the teachers participating in thisstudy are not familiar with them.

Finally, if we look at the activities in termsof language skills and sub-skills, we can seethat classes are focused mainly onvocabulary, pronunciation and grammar.Reading and writing are seen as recognitionof words and copying them down. In veryfew cases is there comprehension of oral orwritten texts.

Concerning ResourConcerning ResourConcerning ResourConcerning ResourConcerning Resourcescescescesces

In terms of resources, although theschools have equipment such as televisions,


VCRs and tape recorders, they are lackingvideo or audio tapes that can be used withthis equipment. Classroom materials suchas worksheets and paper products areavailable, but books, posters, flashcards, andgames are scarce in most of these schools.Teachers often have to adapt and/or creatematerials like flashcards, worksheets, orbooklets, using their own abilities andresources. A small percentage of the schoolshave computers and multimedia.

Confronted with this lack of resources,teachers try to do their job mainly with visualaids like the board, classroom realia, and afew teacher and/or student-made flashcards.Vocabulary is presented through thesematerials and then worksheets or exercisesin a booklet are used to practice the words.In some schools, even though there are audioor videotapes, listening comprehension isnot developed with these aids, and it is thevoice of the teacher that students listen tomost of the time. It is important to note thatchildren are exposed mainly to isolatedwords and not to complete sentences or texts.

In many cases, a textbook becomes thebasis of the course. Teachers rely on it toestablish the sequence of contents, tostructure the lessons, to design activities andeven to choose the interaction patterns tobe used in class.

Role of TRole of TRole of TRole of TRole of Teachers and Studentseachers and Studentseachers and Studentseachers and Studentseachers and Students

According to Richards and Lockhart(1996), the roles of teachers can beconsidered from two different perspectives:One is the role of the teachers within theinstitution and the educational system in

general, and the other is their role inside theclassroom. Concerning the first aspect, it isinteresting to see how these teachers are alonein their duty of teaching English. Schoolprincipals and even the Ministry of Educationrecognize the importance of including aforeign language in the regular schoolcurriculum, but they have not promoted theestablishment of clear guidelines to helpteachers design syllabi, materials or activitiesto be used in their classrooms. The Ministryof Education published the LineamientosCurriculares (general guidelines for theteaching of foreign languages) and schoolprincipals have given teachers the autonomyto make all the decisions about how English istaught at their schools. Teachers are, therefore,free to do what they consider best, but they arealso alone, without any support to do their jobappropriately.

Concerning the role of teachers andstudents in the classroom, researchersobserved that the teacher is mainly themodel, class organizer and class controller.Children are usually repeating individuallyor chorally after the teacher, answering theteachers’ questions or responding to theinstructions s/he gives. Individual work intheir notebooks, booklets or worksheets is ageneral pattern.

As there are many students in the classes,the most common interaction patterns arewhole-group and individual work, with littlepair or group work.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDYSIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDYSIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDYSIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDYSIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This research project is an attempt tobecome aware of our reality and understand

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it in order to find ways to work with teachersto improve what they do. We recognize thatour view as outsiders is important but notsufficient in this endeavor. However, ourpurpose goes beyond exploring anddescribing the reality observed. We want towork together with the teachers on the basisof what we have learned through thisresearch experience and what they knowabout their own classrooms, their experienceand pedagogical knowledge. Based on theseaspects, we are planning to offer aprofessional development course for thoseteachers and simultaneously carry out anaction research project with them.

This study is also a contribution toresearch in the field of teaching English as aforeign language to children that is scarcein our country where most of the literatureavailable deals with teaching English as asecond language, and/or research in thisfield. A brief reference to the concepts ofESL (English as a Second Language) and EFL(English as a Foreign Language) might beuseful here to support this point. When wespeak about ESL we refer mainly to thesituation of learners who learn a secondlanguage in a country where the languageis used in commerce, education and politics.A Colombian who is learning English in theUnited States is an example of this concept.In this scenario, learners can have variedopportunities being exposed to the languageand using it out of the classroom. InColombia, we refer to EFL because learningEnglish takes place in formal classroomsituations and is not within the targetlanguage culture. This foreign languagecontext offers the learners very few

opportunities to be in contact with thelanguage outside the classroom. Therefore,the concepts of ESL and EFL imply verydifferent approaches to language teachingand learning. Even though second languageacquisition and teaching have been explored,more research on foreign language teachingin Colombia and its specific characteristicsis needed if our aim is to improve the qualityof education we are providing our children.

This study is also an invitation toteachers, teacher educators andadministrators to become more sensitive andcritical towards our own reality. Educationalpolicies should not be implemented blindlywithout a careful analysis of our contexts,and without knowing the real needs of ourteachers and students.

CONCLCONCLCONCLCONCLCONCLUSIONUSIONUSIONUSIONUSION

This study has shown that even thoughpublic elementary schools in Medellín haveadopted the New Education Act, theirteachers who are willing, enthusiastic andcommitted, require encouragement andsupport in this endeavor. Teachers with eitherlimited or unrelated educationalpreparation, and insufficient training andtarget language preparation are workingagainst all odds. Educational processes inColombia need to be observed from areflective perspective that will lead to adetermination of characteristics of such aprocess, its strengths and weaknesses, andsuggestions for improvement.

Exploring teachers’ methodologicalpractices through class observations and


teacher interviews can provide a startingpoint for this task. Several methodologicalissues have come to light as a result of thisprocess. We found that the English that isbeing taught to children in publicelementary school is rather limited, or iscomprised of basic vocabulary, grammar andpronunciation. Also, the use of English inthe classroom is restricted to affectiveactivities, presentation of vocabulary itemsby the teacher, and repetition of simple wordsor phrases by students. Comprehension ofthese items is often done through translationin class. Therefore, students’ exposure toEnglish in class is reduced because of thisand also a high incidence of teacher talk (forexample, organizing the classroom, givinginstructions, disciplining students, andassigning homework, etc.) which is carriedout in the native language. This is notsurprising, given the teachers’ lowproficiency in English. Supportive actionsdirected towards the teachers could focuson target language development andpedagogical enhancement related toteaching-learning strategies as well asresources, and teacher and student roles inthe foreign language elementary classroom.

Even though the importance of teachingEnglish as a foreign language in the regularelementary school curriculum is undeniable,it is also important to be aware of the broaderimplications that go hand in hand with this.This means that education policies shouldno longer come only from the analysis ofliterature on the topic, but also from arealization of actual needs of teachers andstudents. Classrooms, schools, and theeducation system at large need to become acommunity in which the voices of students,

teachers, administrators and policy-makersare heard. Thus, a process of inquiry shouldenlighten not only the learning processes ofstudents inside the classroom, but also allthe decisions made by schools, by municipaleducation boards, and by the Ministry ofEducation as well. Teachers cannot becomereflective if they are not given the chance toparticipate in decision making; they cannotbe agents of change if their voices are notheard. A process of critical reflection leadingto principled actions is required in ourschools.

In Murphey’s (2003: 1) analysis of asimilar situation facing English teachers inAsia, he states that we need to “developmaterials and methods to acknowledge thesituation of these teachers and to supportand encourage them as they grow moreprofessionally through their own learningand teaching of English. In some cases, thiswill require a shift in beliefs, strategies, andmethods, our own as well as those of theteachers and local administrators.” InColombia, it is important for elementaryschool English teachers and policy makersto gain understanding of our reality if we areto attend our real needs and the specificchallenges of teaching English as a foreignlanguage in elementary public schools.

REFERENCESREFERENCESREFERENCESREFERENCESREFERENCES

Brown, D. (2001). Teaching by principles.New York: Addison Wesley Longman.

Cárdenas, R. (2001). Teaching English inprimary: Are we ready for it? HOW: A ColombianJournal for English Teachers, 8, p. 1- 8.

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Crooks, G. (1997). What influences whatand how second and foreign language teachersteach. The Modern Language Journal, 81, p.67- 69.

González et al. (2001). EFL teachers lookat themselves: Could they grow together?HOW: A Colombian Journal for EnglishTeachers, 9, p. 27- 33.

Ministerio de Educación Nacional deColombia. (1999). Lineamientos Curriculares:Idiomas Extranjeros. Santafé de Bogotá. MEN.

Murphey, T. (2003). NNS primary schoolteachers learning English with their students.

Retrieved April 2004, from http://www.tesol.org/pubs/articles/2003/tm13-4-02.html

Nunan,D. (1999). Does younger=better?TESOL Matters, 9: 3.

Richards, J.C. and Lockhart, C. (1996).Reflective teaching in second languageclassroom. Cambridge: Cambridge UniversityPress.

Vale, D. and Feunteun, A. (1995). Teachingchildren English. Cambridge: CambridgeUniversity Press.


APPENDIX 1: CLAPPENDIX 1: CLAPPENDIX 1: CLAPPENDIX 1: CLAPPENDIX 1: CLASS OBSERVASS OBSERVASS OBSERVASS OBSERVASS OBSERVAAAAATION FORMATION FORMATION FORMATION FORMATION FORMATTTTT

Investigación: Estado de la enseñanza del inglés en la Básica Primaria del sectorpúblico del área metropolitana. Escuela de Idiomas, Universidad de Antioquia.

DATE SCHOOLTIME TEACHERGRADE OBSERVER

ITEMS: Activities; teacher/student roles; grouping arrangements; materials

Interpretation/ReflectionInterpretation/ReflectionInterpretation/ReflectionInterpretation/ReflectionInterpretation/Reflection NarrativeNarrativeNarrativeNarrativeNarrative

X

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APPENDIX 2: TEACHER INTERVIEW FORMAAPPENDIX 2: TEACHER INTERVIEW FORMAAPPENDIX 2: TEACHER INTERVIEW FORMAAPPENDIX 2: TEACHER INTERVIEW FORMAAPPENDIX 2: TEACHER INTERVIEW FORMATTTTT

Investigación: Estado de la enseñanza del inglés en la Básica Primaria del sectorpúblico del área metropolitana. Escuela de Idiomas, Universidad de Antioquia.

Entrevista para los profesores de inglés en la escuela primaria

El propósito de esta entrevista es identificar y entender los principios que fundamentansu proceso de enseñanza y aprendizaje en su clase de inglés. Nos gustaría tener informaciónacerca de la planeación de sus clases, las actividades, materiales y patrones de interacción.Esta información será confidencial y se usará solo con propósitos investigativos. Graciaspor sus comentarios y su tiempo.

A.¿Qué razones lo llevaron a usted a enseñar inglés en la básica primaria?¿Es importante para usted la enseñanza de inglés en la básica primaria?Si_ No_ ¿Por qué?¿Cuáles dificultades cree usted que tiene para la enseñanza del inglés en esta institución

y por qué?

B.¿Existe en el colegio un plan de estudios para el área de inglés?Si_ No_ ¿Por qué?¿Si su respuesta es positiva, cómo es ese plan?¿Si su respuesta es negativa, cómo decide el contenido del curso?¿Está su colegio planeando con base en lineamientos curriculares propuestos por el

MEN?¿Qué criterios tiene usted en cuenta para la enseñanza del inglés en cada uno de los

grados?¿Qué logros espera alcanzar a través de la clase de inglés?

C.¿Cómo describiría su forma de trabajar el inglés con niños?¿Cuáles son las actividades que usted utiliza con mayor frecuencia para laenseñanza del inglés y por qué?¿Qué tipo de actividades le parecen efectivas y por qué?¿Cuáles son las materiales que usted utiliza con mayor frecuencia para laenseñanza del inglés y por qué?¿Qué tipo de materiales le parecen efectivos y por qué?


¿Qué tipos de interacción utiliza con mayor frecuencia en sus clases de inglésy por qué?¿Qué tipos de interacción le parecen más efectivos y por qué?

D.¿Qué estrategias usa para el manejo de la disciplina en la clase de inglés?¿Integra usted el trabajo de unas materias con otras? (opcional)

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○50


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3:

CH

AR

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la E

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del

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n la

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etro

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stro

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e Ac

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War

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Set

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C

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inst

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T

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latio

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stio

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er

disp

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P R E S E N T A T I O N


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alo

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d na

rrat

ive/

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logu

e

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exch

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)

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M E M O R I Z A

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○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○52


Dia

logu

e/N

arra

tive

pres

enta

tion

Que

stio

n-an

swer

/dis

play

Dic

tatio

n

Iden

tific

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S

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form

atio

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form

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rap

–up

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arra

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a

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ion

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ames

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ames

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p- u

p

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para

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ssoc

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n

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r-co

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tion

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omew

ork

S T R A T E G Y E

xpla

natio

n

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○54


War

m-u

p

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ry-

telli

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ongs

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corr

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mew

ork

F E E D B A C K T

each

er c

orre

ctio

n


This article was received on May 15th, 2004 and accepted on August 23rd, 2004.

Dic

tatio

n

Tes

ting

C

ued-

Nar

rativ

e/D

ialo

gue

Dis

cuss

ion

A S S E S S M E N T G

radi

ng

Son

gs

G

ivin

g in

stru

ctio

ns

G

reet

ings

Dis

cipl

inar

y ac

tions

Sea

ting

M

onito

ring

T

akin

g at

tend

ance

Ass

igni

ng h

omew

ork

O R G A N I Z A T I O N A L

Col

lect

ing

hom

ewor

k

Documents

Elementary English Language Instruction: Colombian ... · 39 PROFILE Elementary English Language Instruction: Colombian Teachers’ Classroom Practices has been cited by Nunan (1999)