Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemSecondary art teachers' perceptions of a regional art gallery( 2004)This study examines the view of five teachers in relation to their use of a regional gallery within their art program. Using qualitative inquiry, the study focuses on interviews with the gallery educator and five secondary teachers within the region. The key purpose of the study is to identify the value and reasons why teachers incorporate gallery visits into their teaching program.
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ItemLanguage teaching reform in Japan: implications for communicative teaching implementation and practice from foreign teacher perspectives( 2004)Debate continues over to what extent Japanese language education reform has made substantive progress in its attempt at moving away from traditional grammar-translation methodology, towards a more communicative approach. Using grounded theory, this thesis aims to explore communicative language teaching (CLT) implementation and practice in Japan from the perspectives of seven resident native speaker teachers of English. The study reveals that despite renewed commitments from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (Monbukagakushou) towards integrating communicative practice into Japanese language education, foreign teachers generally remain skeptical that impediments between Monbukagakushou's stated aims and the reality of classroom practice, can be easily overcome. This study will investigate some of these impediments which includes: a) teachers', both native speakers and Japanese Teachers of English (JTEs), uncertainty about the actual nature of CLT, what it encompasses and how it can be adapted to Japanese learning proclivities, b) the failure of the curriculum to direct Japanese teachers' and students' attention away from preparing for discrete point examinations, towards a more integrated assessment model and c) the difficulty with which Japan's central and local bureaucratic institutions can maintain administrative consistency in developing stated educational aims into classroom reality.
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ItemPerceptions of Chinese university EFL teachers and learners on appropriate western language teaching methods in use in China( 2004)The last 20 years have witnessed the introduction and the development of `Western' language teaching methods in the Chinese context. A large amount of research has been conducted on this iss�e. Some focuses on the appropriateness and the effectiveness of importing the "Western" methods to the teaching of English as a foreign language in China (Scovel 1983; Burnaby & Sun 1989; Cortazzi & Jin 1996); others suggest teachers and learners from different cultures may have different ideas about what constitutes good teaching (Richards & Lockhart 1994). The present study reports on the results of an investigation into Chinese EFL teachers' and learners' perceptions concerning the appropriateness and effectiveness of Western language teaching methods in use in the Chinese. context. In particular, it attempts to explore their attitudes towards and their evaluation of learner-centred communicative activities in use in their English Intensive Reading classes. The major findings of this study is that, first, both teachers and learners understand learner-centred and communicative language teaching well and hold positive attitudes towards the Western methods, which make it possible and feasible to introduce and implement communicative approach in China. They are also aware of the difference between the Western and the Chinese contexts and point out that adaptation is necessary when introducing the Western methods to the Chinese context. Secondly, this study also finds a mismatch between teachers and learners in terms of their understanding of and attitudes towards Western methods. Learners seem to be more positive than their teachers to welcome learner-centred communicative approach, which is far beyond their teachers' anticipations. This indicates the importance of negotiation between teachers and learners in Chinese EFL classes.
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ItemIssues in the appropriation of English nonverbal behaviour by Japanese high school students( 2004)Studies of nonverbal communication for some decades have shown a fundamental relationship between verbal and nonverbal aspects of language. Hence, communication has come to be understood as the use of a multidimensional system of integrated verbal and nonverbal behaviour. In Japan, the study of English at high school has traditionally focused on the development of students' reading and writing skills and neglected the teaching of spoken English communication. Thus, the English education system in Japan is seen to have avoided the threat to cultural identity that can result from exposure to cultural traditions and the complex system of values and norms that exist in English as in any language. It is within this context of English education in Japan that this study has explored the issues relating to the teaching and learning of spoken English by implementing a syllabus focusing primarily on common nonverbal behaviours used by native speakers of English. A program of instruction in English nonverbal behaviour was designed and implemented in one Third Year senior high school class (equivalent to Year 12 in Australia) in a school in Kyoto, Japan. The study sought to investigate the progress that could be made by these Japanese high school students in spoken English proficiency at the conclusion of the program; and to explore the strategies that facilitated progress and factors that impeded progress. The research method chosen was a case study in teaching practice and a predominantly qualitative approach was taken in the methods of data collection. A pre- and post-test was also used. The data analysis revealed that after the program, all students improved in spoken English proficiency through their acquisition of English nonverbal behaviours, particularly in the use of English gestures. Difficulties for the learners included social and emotional challenges related to adopting nonverbal elements that contrast with the values and norms attached to their L1; limitations of the classroom context; and physical obstacles in 'acquiring' foreign language elements. One unexpected outcome of the study was the development of trust among students and between the teacher and students during the program. A significant finding was that students transferred the new L2 behaviours learned in unscripted interactions in the classroom. Key factors that facilitated learner progress were teaching strategies that incorporated metacognitive instruction with physical modelling; high student motivation resulting from the learners' cognitive understanding of the genuine need for the new behaviours in effective communication; and active learning techniques.