Teachers’ Narratives as a Lens to Reveal their Professional Identity

This study adopts a narrative approach to revealing how English as a foreign language teachers construct their teacher identities. Kelchterman’s five dimensions of teacher identity; i.e., self-image, self-esteem, task perception, job motivation and future perspectives, were used as the theoretical lens to explore eight participants’ identity construction via the narratives they told in an online written interview form. Participants were eight EFL instructors who worked at higher education institutions around Turkey. Data was collected via an online survey tool and analysed via thematic analysis and open coding. Data revealed that the five dimensions of teacher identity do not develop in isolation from each other but a dynamic interaction among these identity dimensions exists.

Understanding the Congruence Between Teacher Intention and Student Learning Outcome

<p>Research into what takes place between the instructional intent of a teaching act and students’ experience of the same act is central to better understanding teaching and learning. In this case study, individual teacher and student interviews, qualitative observation and textual analysis were used to compare teacher intention with student learning outcome, to judge congruence between the two. The study, in a large urban primary school, focused on two classrooms of students from 9-­‐13 years old. Congruence between teacher intention and student learning outcome, was examined over five consecutive lessons that aimed to achieve a particular outcome. It was found that teachers’ and students’ explanatory context was influential. In particular, the alignment between conceptions of learning informing teacher intention and task was significant. Where the conceptions aligned, there was greater congruence. Where there was a disjuncture, congruence was compromised. In addition teacher knowledge of curriculum content, the pervasiveness of task perception and the impact of outcome space was material. The study highlights an opportunity for further research into the congruence between teacher intention and student learning outcome where deep conceptions of learning inform instructional intent and into the impact of teacher belief systems on the conceptions of learning held.</p>

Understanding the Congruence Between Teacher Intention and Student Learning Outcome

<p>Research into what takes place between the instructional intent of a teaching act and students’ experience of the same act is central to better understanding teaching and learning. In this case study, individual teacher and student interviews, qualitative observation and textual analysis were used to compare teacher intention with student learning outcome, to judge congruence between the two. The study, in a large urban primary school, focused on two classrooms of students from 9-­‐13 years old. Congruence between teacher intention and student learning outcome, was examined over five consecutive lessons that aimed to achieve a particular outcome. It was found that teachers’ and students’ explanatory context was influential. In particular, the alignment between conceptions of learning informing teacher intention and task was significant. Where the conceptions aligned, there was greater congruence. Where there was a disjuncture, congruence was compromised. In addition teacher knowledge of curriculum content, the pervasiveness of task perception and the impact of outcome space was material. The study highlights an opportunity for further research into the congruence between teacher intention and student learning outcome where deep conceptions of learning inform instructional intent and into the impact of teacher belief systems on the conceptions of learning held.</p>

Exploring Psychosocial Determinants of Diversity Sensitive Task Perception and Behavioural Intentions in a Health Care Student Population: Recommendations for Diversity Education in Health Care

Background: Diversity sensitive task perception and diversity sensitive behavioural intentions are strong predictors of diversity sensitive care. Nevertheless, it has been less clear which psychosocial determinants are affecting these concepts in health care providers. This article also explores whether there are differences in relationships between these concepts, and how these concepts are interrelated. The study focussed on the following psychosocial determinants: (a) ethnocentric attitudes and (b) intercultural capabilities. The latter concept is drawn from the four-dimensional construct of intercultural intelligence. Methods: A survey was conducted in a health care student population (N = 364). In addition to classic survey questions, behavioural intentions were measured through the use of eight vignettes comprising situations characterised by diversity in health care. Results: Regression analyses show that ethnocentric attitudes were negatively associated with diversity sensitive task perception and behavioural intentions. Interestingly, we found no significant relationship between cognitive intercultural capabilities (IC) and diversity sensitivity. Motivational- and behavioural intercultural capabilities were significantly associated with diversity sensitive task perception and behavioural intentions. Motivational IC had a stronger relationship with task perception. Behavioural IC had a stronger relationship with behavioural intentions. Adding diversity sensitive task perception in a supplementary regression model as an independent variable on behavioural intentions caused a shift in associations. The significant association between motivational IC and behavioural intentions disappeared, and a significant association between diversity sensitive task perception and diversity sensitive behavioural intention appeared. Conclusion: Diversity education should increasingly focus on diminishing ethnocentric attitudes and encouraging behavioural IC and motivational IC in health care students. The paper also suggests two theoretical hypothesises. Firstly, metacognitive IC is a concept strongly related to two IC: motivational IC and behavioural IC. Secondly, the relationship between motivational IC and behavioural intentions is fully mediated by diversity sensitive task perception. Further research that substantiate these theoretical hypothesises is recommended.

Unpacking Teacher’s Self-understanding in Technology Use during COVID-19 Pandemic

The spread of Covid-19 virus has suddenly forced face-to-face learning into online learning. These sudden changes give impacts to professional teaching and learning practices of teacher, teacher not only gives the material but also use technology maximally during this pandemic. The role of teachers and their professional self-understanding has become increasingly complex. This current study led to know about the teacher’s self-understanding in the use of technology during the pandemic. Based on the purpose of the study, this study adopted a small-scale case study with one participant who is an EFL teacher from one of private senior high school in Surakarta, Indonesia. This case study used semi-structure interviews and classroom observations for collecting data techniques. To collect the data, researcher used teacher’s self-understanding theory from Kelchtermans (1993). These teacher’s self-understanding has five components, (1) self-image; (2) self-esteem; (3) task-perception; (4) job motivation; and (5) future perspective. After collecting the data, researcher applied an interactive model analysis. The results showed that (1) teacher’s self-understanding in the use of technology becomes more positive. This understanding brings teacher to become part of booster teaches conducted by The Ministry of Education and Culture, and (2) the inclusion of informal, self-initiated, and self-regulated procedures has supported the modifications of these components of teacher’s self-understanding when she used technology.

Does learner cognition count on modality? Working memory and L2 morphosyntactic achievement across oral and written tasks

This study investigates how working memory (WM) abilities are implicated in second language (L2) learners’ (a) morphosyntactic achievement and (b) perceptions of required mental effort and task difficulty under oral versus written task modality conditions. Beginning-level learners of L2 Spanish completed two computerized focused tasks in which they produced output and received feedback in oral form (Speaking group) or written form (Writing group). Two grammatical structures varying in their relative level of salience were targeted. After each task, participants rated their perceptions of mental effort required and task difficulty. Production and written and aural acceptability judgment tasks were employed to measure immediate and sustained L2 morphosyntactic achievement. Executive, phonological, and visuospatial WM abilities were gauged using automated operation span, nonword recognition, and forward Corsi block-tapping tasks, respectively. Regression analyses revealed that WM capacity was predictive of L2 morphosyntactic outcomes and task perception ratings in the Speaking group only. Specifically, phonological and visuospatial WM were associated with production and acceptability judgment performance accuracy, whereas executive WM was related to learners’ ratings of perceived mental effort. Differences were also observed based on the target structure.