Challenges in Enacting Core Practices in Language Teacher Education: A Self-Study

In this study, I explore my practices as a teacher educator in one course both before and after returning to the K–12 classroom to teach secondary language learners for one academic year. By examining the intersection of self-study and practice-based teacher education, I illustrate how I used self-study as a mechanism for innovation and change and focus on the challenges I encountered in implementing the use of practice-based education in my work as a teacher educator. Qualitative data analysis revealed that in redesigning my approach to my course, I stopped short of my goals to make the course more practice-centered. Although I provided students with many opportunities to practice planning, I did not provide enough focused opportunities to practice implementation and to participate in giving and receiving feedback. I learned that engaging teachers in practice-based teaching requires teacher educators to be both specific and deliberate in setting their own purposes for establishing the centrality of practice in their courses and to explain these clearly to teacher candidates. Further work in which teacher educators study their use of practice-based pedagogy would benefit from using a self-study lens. Other researchers are urged to add to the limited body of research about the use of practice-based pedagogy with teachers of language learners, particularly English language learners.     

‘Who’s Afraid of Secularisation?’ A Response to David Lewin

This response to David Lewin states the purpose of my critique of some aspects of Liam Gearon’s work. It clarifies my position on the aims of ‘inclusive’ religious education, rejecting Gearon’s view that REDCo researchers shared a common pluralistic theology, regarding religious education as having a single political aim. It reinforces Gearon’s misrepresentation of the development of the Toledo Guiding Principles. In addressing the concern that religious education serves political ends, I acknowledge that much educational discourse has a political dimension but, in the case of ‘inclusive’ religious education, I argue that an approach based on John Rawls’ view of political liberalism can facilitate understanding of religions. I respond to Lewin’s assumption that my own view of religious language is entirely propositional and I compare the view of religious language expressed by Morimoto, quoted with approval by Lewin, with that of D. Z. Phillips, noting that its adoption implies that religious ‘insiders’ and those with no religious commitments are incapable of mutual understanding. I introduce the interpretive approach as an impartial methodology for religious education. Finally, I invite Lewin to engage with empirical research informing European policy on religious education, relevant to issues of secularity and secularism.     

中国东盟自贸区背景下广西外语教育的转型与创新研究

在中国东盟自由贸易区成立的背景下,我区外语教育存在教育政策不能适应新的发展形势、教学力量整合不足、外语培养模式陈旧和专门用途外语师资力量不足等挑战。为了迎接挑战,在新的形势下,我区外语界应该提升外语教育战略意识,加强专门用途外语教育和成立由政府牵头,教育厅直属的外语创新人才实践基地。     

Characteristics and Limitations of English Language Teaching in China: Autoethnography of a Mainland-born English Learner and Teacher

In this paper, I narrate the long process of my encounters with English language learning and teaching, manifesting characteristics of English teaching at different levels of schools in mainland China. After viewing the limitations of English teaching in mainland China from my fresh point of view as a UK visiting scholar, some suggestions are proposed for its improvement and development.     

The Revolutions in English Philosophy and Philosophy of Education

Abstract

This article was first published in 1982 in Educational Analysis (4, 75–91) and republished in 1998 (Hirst, P. H., & White, P. (Eds.), Philosophy of education: Major themes in the analytic tradition, Vol. 1, Philosophy and education, Part 1, pp. 61–78. London: Routledge). I was then a lecturer in philosophy of education at Sheffield University teaching the subject to Master’s students on both full- and part-time programmes. My first degree was in philosophy, read under D. W. Hamlyn and David Cooper and, given their interests, inevitably emphasized the philosophy of language, in particular the work of Wittgenstein in this field. When I subsequently turned my attention to the philosophy of education it seemed obvious to me that there were serious problems with Professor Peters’ approach to language, and I had particular difficulties with his approach to criteria, meaning theory and what seemed an odd interpretation of a transcendental argument. This article thus set out to show that the then dominant form of philosophy of education seemed not to take account of developments in the philosophy of language that preceded Professor Peters’ early work by at least a decade and which cast serious doubt on the enterprise as it was then understood. As the articles in the 1998 collection indicate, I was not alone in thinking there was something amiss, although at the time I seemed to be ploughing a somewhat lonely furrow. In revisiting this early article some 30 years after it was first published I have found to my surprise that there is little I would now change, although I have been forcibly reminded of the very lively discussions Professor Peters and I had over these issues. The fact that there is little I would now add to, or subtract from, my critique is in itself a telling comment on the enduring and influential legacy of the approach to the philosophy of education that Professor Peters championed so powerfully.     

匈牙利大学英语教育模式及其借鉴意义

英语作为外语在中国和匈牙利受到相同的社会关注和广泛重视。但在学生的学习动机、学习方法、教师的教学方法、考试设计以及学校的课程设置等方面存在着诸多差异。由于教育和受教育对外语教育的理解不同，教育的过程和结果也就自然不同。本以对匈牙利罗兰大学英语教育的调查研究为基础，着重介绍匈牙利大学专业英语教育的模式以及对我国高校外语人才培养的启示。     

外语教育政策、二语习得年龄和对外汉语教学

为了提高学生的外语(或二语)水平,很多国家降低了学生学习外语的年龄。这种做法和神经科学关于双语者二语习得起始年龄的研究结果相一致。相关的研究表明,早期的二语习得者其二语大脑加工模式类似于第一语言和母语单语者,而晚二语者的二语加工有激活脑区扩大、激活水平提高的倾向。早二语者更有可能获得接近母语者的二语水平。让学习者在较小的年龄接触外语是一个有效的方法。汉语是外语教育低龄化的受益语言,覆盖低龄学习者,帮助国外解决低龄学习者汉语教学师资问题应该成为汉语国际推广的重要内容。国内的对外汉语教学界要加强针对低龄儿童的教学研究,建立低龄儿童汉语教学师资培训机制,以顺应国外外语教育的发展趋势,促进汉语国际推广。     

从二语习得角度看大学专业课程双语教学

大学专业课程双语教学模式已经是我国大学专业课程教学的主要内容之一。专业课程双语教学除了能有效提升学生的外语能力外,还能有效提升学生运用英语思维学习掌握专业知识。本文论述了国内双语教学的问题及主要模式,指出从二语习得的角度进行专业课双语教学的可能。     

国外外语学习的年龄差异研究与我国外语教学

作者基于国外学者的研究，探讨了语言习得的临界期假说、敏感期假说及大脑优势侧化等理论观点，对国内外就外语学习的最佳年龄问题所开展的实验和研究作了介绍，比较了儿童、少年、成人各年龄段的外语学习者各自的优势和不足，提出了针对我国外语教学实际的外语教育策略。     

外语能力与正规教育

外语教育是现代各国语言教育的一个重要内容。普遍语法有关语言能力及其获得方式的核心思想对外语教育有一定的启示作用和参考价值。正规教育对外语能力的作用和解释是非常有限的,但是正规教育对外语能力的培养有一定的改善空间;我国的正规外语教育应该遵循语言学习的自身客观规律,合理安排学习方式和内容,实现教育效益的最大化。     

论二语习得理论在听力教学中的应用

二语习得的基础理论,包括习得与学得的相辅相成的关系、习得的主要途径和方法。将二语习得理论提炼加工成可供具体语言教学使用的方法,并运用于我国的外语教学中,为我国的外语教学提供了良好的习得环境,从而提高学习者学得外语的积极性和创造力,达到更好的学习效果。     

Taking an active role in our pre-service teachers’ overseas teaching experiences: a report on an experiential learning project in China

This report introduces an experiential learning project in a pre-service undergraduate teacher education programme at a major Hong Kong university in which 10 pre-service English language teachers and myself, their teacher educator, participated in a two-week overseas teaching experience in a primary school in Ningbo, China. I report on my experience as a novice teacher educator and the benefit I found in taking an active role in this project.     

社会语言学框架下的儿童外语学习探讨

不少学者以二语习得理论研究儿童英语教学的有关问题。本文作者在社会语言学的框架下讨论中国儿童的英语学习,认为我国儿童在中国这样一个非英语的环境中只能是学习英语,而绝非习得英语,他们在英语的学习过程中由于缺乏一个良好的语言环境而面临着诸多障碍。     

A Probe into the Influence of English Language Teaching on Chinese Students’Language Development

A problem has been arising among many English learners who would have frequent contact with English culture and the language. That is: they are inefficient in both English and Chinese. It is extremely obvious as far as Chinese students' language development is concerned. In my paper, I want to explore how English language teaching(ELT) influences Chinese students' language development.     

汉语教学在香港

香港作为东西文化交汇的国际都市,语言使用和语言教学呈多元化的发展模式。随着香港与内地联系的日益紧密,针对本地学生的汉语教学以及众多外籍人士的对外汉语教学都有了很大发展,并已初见成效。     

双语教育的理念

双语教育作为第二语言习得的有效途径在国内外教育领域发挥着日趋重要的作用。双语教学的理念、教学模式、教学功能以及国内外的成功经验值得分析探讨。双语教学能够促进学生思维中双语转换机制的形成,实现最大的交际性,有利于人才素质的培养,具有良好的发展前景。     

The Role of First Language in the Second Language Acquisition

In the linguistic field,L1transfer is a complex and controversial field in second language acquisition.In this article,Firstly,it will discuss some historical theories of L1 transfer.Secondly,it will analyze some manifestations of L1 transfer.Thirdly,it will explain the struc tural and the nonstructural factors in L1 transfer.Fourthly,it will discuss the problems in the study of L1transfer.Finally,it will give some my opinions of L1transfer.     

青海民族大学留学生教育现状及其思考

本文总结了青海民族大学留学生教育的现状,并分析了该校发展留学生教育的区位优势及语言环境优势,提出了推进留学生教育进一步发展的几点建议。     

文化教育在大学外语教学中的地位

从分析文化概念入手,结合时代背景、语言与文化的关系和大学英语教学实践,运用跨文化交际及语言习得和文化习得的理论,探讨了文化教育在大学外语教学中的重要地位,并围绕文化教育的原则、外语教学的特点及规律等,以大量实例为基础,具体阐述了如何在大学外语教学中实施文化教育。     

关键期假说与第二语言习得探究

许多专家的研究成果为儿童第二语言教育的可行性提供了理论依据,提出了儿童语言习得的关键期。关键期假说的讨论应从天赋观、情感观、认知观、神经生理观入手,来解决儿童第二语言习得的问题。