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This presentation outlines an in-service training workshop for high-school teachers of English as a Foreign Language, accredited by the Japanese ministry of education. The workshop focused on the use of authentic materials to motivate students and attempted to gauge the participants’ existing ideas about authenticity in language teaching and examine how these fit with the way English is currently employed for international communication in the global context. I proposed during the workshop that authenticity be reconceptualised as a continuum, incorporating contextual and social dimensions. Participants were then asked to reflect on their concept of authenticity before and after the workshop to examine the impact of the proposed continuum. Data were collected from participants in the form of a written reaction to the workshop and questionnaire, as well as teacher/researchers’ observations and journal entries. Most of the data are qualitative, and the study design was based on exploratory practice, so data came from pedagogic sources from the workshop. The research attempted to involve all the participants in a way that encouraged them to reflect on their own practice. Although at times I present data in a way which quantifies the responses, the majority of data analysis was done in an interpretive way, coding the data as I went through it and then re-coding it as the bigger picture emerged. I used NVivo analysis software to create nodes and run word frequency queries as I worked through the data, which helped in selecting the major themes for the responses. From a total of 33 participants, 23 (almost 70 per cent) had culturally embedded definitions of authenticity, with 18 participants (over 50 per cent) specifically making reference to native speakers. Participants commented that the workshop had helped them to expand their ideas about authenticity, which for many was a motivating or empowering experience.
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AUTHENTICITY IN A GLOBAL CONTEXT: LEARNING, WORKING AND COMMUNICATING WITH L2 TEACHERS OF ENGLISH
Richard [email protected]
Overview
Conclusion
Results and discussion
Definitions
Context and background
All about me…
Pinner, R. S. (2014). The Authenticity Continuum: Empowering international voices. English Language Teacher Education and Development, 16(1).
Pinner, R. S. (forthcoming). The Authenticity Continuum: towards a definition incorporating international voices. English Today.
Context
=
The course name is:
Using and Adapting Authentic Materials to Help Motivate Students
N= 33 (10 Osaka and 25 Tokyo, 2 opted out)All High school and Junior High school Japanese Teachers of EnglishExperience ranged from 10 years to 30 years
What is Authenticity?
What is authenticity?
Native
Real
Self
Classroom
Task
Social
Assessment
Culture
Gilmore, A. (2007). Authentic materials and authenticity in foreign language learning. Language Teaching, 40(02), 97-118
The Authenticity Continuum
Example A:
Example B:
Example C:
The teacher brings an English language newspaper to class and has students read the text and underline every instance of the present perfect aspect or passive tense, and then asks them to copy each sentence out into their notebooks.
The teacher uses an ‘inauthentic’ text from a published course book which was contrived specifically to practise reported speech and then discusses other ways in which the speakers from the text could have said the same thing in a different way.
The teacher asks students to use the internet to research about their favourite celebrity or hero and then create a short presentation in English to the rest of the class about that person.1
3
2
Report Question
What is your opinion about the authenticity continuum? Has your
idea about authenticity changed by participating in this workshop? In
what way (if any)?
Native-speaker Centric
Before this workshop I just thought that ‘authentic’ means ‘native’; using a newspaper in English class is better than using a textbook. But now, at the end of the workshop, I can talk more
about authenticity, giving my experiences today as an example. (Momoko)
“
Native-speaker Centric
Before I took this lesson, I thought that the authenticity should be “native”. I mean that the
material should be written by native speakers (Kyoko)
“
Holliday, A. (2005). The struggle to teach English as an international language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Houghton, S. A., & Rivers, D. J. (2013). Native-speakerism in Japan: Intergroup dynamics in foreign language education Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Authenticity, Self and Efficacy
[...] I have felt negative about myself as a non-native English speaker who teaches English. Now,
I don’t. Authenticity connects me not only to English but also learning. (Momoko)
“
Authenticity, Self and Efficacy
My idea about authenticity has changed dramatically by participating in this workshop. Before I joined this workshop, my definition of authenticity was the language material source
from native speakers. […]
“
Authenticity, Self and Efficacy
[…]Now, I have learned what really makes material, lesson to be authentic is how we teacher
use it. (Aiko)
“
The Continuum The authenticity continuum tells me how to
evaluate the authenticity of materials, and it’s interesting. Before I participated in this workshop, I believed that authentic materials were the English
statements use in the countries like UK or USA, English native countries. However, when we
evaluated the authenticity of the Wall Street Journal according to the continuum, its authenticity was not
high. […]
“
Authenticity, Self and Efficacy
Also, by comparing three examples of tasks, I realised that I chose A, the task using an English
language newspaper, as the least authentic. I was surprised at the result myself, and it was
interesting to know that most of the teachers here had the same choice. […]
“
Authenticity, Self and Efficacy
This experience made me think it is important to have several points of view, or factors, to assess
the authenticity of materials, and of course how to use them. (Ai)
“
2014 GROUP AND CURRENT RESEARCH
British American Indian Singaporean Korean Geordie0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Averages
Comprehensibility Authenticity
Conclusion and Summary• Authenticity is still conceptualised from a Native-Speakerist
and culturally embedded perspective• (Japanese) L2 teachers are vulnerable to efficacy issues around
authenticity• The authenticity continuum helps to ‘shift the centre of gravity’
and empower other linguistic varieties
Summary
• You can download the slides and additional resources atwww.uniliterate.com• Please email me!
KEEP
IT R
EAL
Thanks for your attention!
Gilmore, A. (2007). Authentic materials and authenticity in foreign language learning. Language Teaching, 40(02), 97-118. Holliday, A. (2005). The struggle to teach English as an international language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Houghton, S. A., & Rivers, D. J. (2013). Native-speakerism in Japan: Intergroup dynamics in foreign language education Bristol: Multilingual Matters.Pinner, R. S. (2014). The Authenticity Continuum: Empowering international voices. English Language Teacher Education and Development, 16(1). Pinner, R. S. (forthcoming). The Authenticity Continuum: towards a definition incorporating international voices. English Today.
