Integrating Language Teachers’ Discipline Knowledge in a Language Course
INSTRUCTOR PROFILES
Second Profile: Lisa
Lisa’s views of language and learning
The inductive approach identified in Lisa’s practice is reflected in the views she expresses during the interview, when she describes her lessons as moving from the user to the analyst competence. Whereas in Monica’s lessons ‘explanations’ precede ‘exercises’, Lisa’s classes involve
doing exercises, correcting them and giving them grammatical explanations on the blackboard.
Lisa’s orientation towards the analyst type of competence is manifested throughout the interview. On the one hand, she mentions her preference for a teaching style that is closer to the methodology used in linguistics modules than to that of regular language development courses. This orientation may be related to her background in linguistics and to the fact that she also teaches linguistics modules.
I have a way of giving classes that may be more typical of subjects like syntax or morphology, at more advanced levels, than of first-year English Language
I prefer to give grammatical explanations rather than get students to talk in pairs for 15 minutes or to write a short composition.
On the other hand, she considers that language development modules in an ES degree program are different from other language courses (i.e. instrumental or “skills courses”) and that they should constitute the foundation for further linguistics courses.
one thing is instrumental language and another thing is what we do (...) what I’m doing now is not instrumental [language]
This connection between the analyst and user types of competence is corroborated when she emphasizes her orientation towards language analysis, although showing its connection with language use. According to Lisa, these language modules are, in fact, grammar awareness courses oriented towards language description, but this explicit knowledge should be applied or related to actual use. Probably as a result of the ambiguous nature of the course, situated between the communicative approach of a language development course and the analytical orientation of linguistics modules, she expresses the belief that this course should deal with grammar contents but approached from a communicative perspective. In fact, the views expressed during the interview thus indicate a certain tension between a language course based the analyst type of competence and a desirable approach to grammar oriented to communication.
We should find a way of teaching grammar in a more communicative manner.
You have to relate [form and meaning]. They have to be related. For example, you teach the theory of the passive voice—I always use the passive voice because I like it a lot—and you cannot simply ask them to make transformations from the active to the passive; you have to give them contexts in which this structure is used and explain them.
As for the teacher type of competence, a few references can be found in Lisa’s discourse--in contrast to Monica, who does not refer to this type of competence. Specifically, Lisa mentions lesson preparation procedures and learner strategies. Below is one example of each:
so here is a list of sixteen elements <2> ‘in order to’ ǀ xx this list ǀ what I did ǀ was to look at different grammar books ǀ yeah? there was no grammar book in which I could find sixteen items ǀ yeah? some of them gave me eight nine ten twelve ǀ yeah? and what I did was just like_ go through to them ǀ get them together ǀ yeah? sometimes ǀ they were like x number twelve and number eleven ǀ where one is the other ǀ shape for color and color for shape ǀ but what I did was just to look at ǀ how much they agreed ǀ yeah? and if three of them said that shape came before color then I chose this order ǀ all right? yeah? so here you have it ǀ er ǀ (lesson preparation procedures)
origin ǀ and the next one which is material ǀ yeah? er ǀ so here you have something on which you can rely ǀ to remember the order of some of them ǀ but obviously not all of them ǀ but these ones here ǀ for instance ǀ are important ǀ yeah? age ǀ temperature ǀ color ǀ origin and material ǀ all right? is something that you should remember ǀ yeah? (learner strategies)
In order to understand Lisa’s views of the relationship between user, analyst and teacher types of competence in future ES graduates, we looked at her views on the goals of ES programs. Her arguments develop from what could be described as a pragmatic to a humanistic point of view. In the first place, she refers to language competence, placing clear emphasis on writing skills, so that graduates can produce texts with grammatical accuracy, correct punctuation, clear rhetorical structure, and sophisticated vocabulary. Oral skills are mentioned only after the interviewer has insisted; in this aspect she is interested in fluency, vocabulary and, especially, pronunciation. In Lisa’s view, emphasis should be placed on the productive skills, as the receptive skills are implied in them (“if they can write and speak, they obviously can understand”).
According to Lisa, after language competence, the goal of an ES program is to familiarize students with specialized descriptive frameworks in linguistics. She presents this as an encyclopedic type of knowledge which, in spite of its little practical use, is a distinctive mark for an ES graduate.
and they should even have some notions of different types and schools of grammar, especially functional and generative grammar. This must be included in an ES program (...) an ES graduate should have more than some basic notions about language, even though he/she may not use at all the grammatical theories s/he knows. But as an ES graduate s/he should know them
Perhaps to justify this imposition of encyclopedic knowledge, Lisa resorts to the image of the competent “teacher”, which she immediately replaces by that of “professor”, as what used to be the goal of ES programs. Nevertheless, she immediately adds, the situation has changed and nowadays ES graduates have many more professional opportunities than becoming a teacher. Ultimately, to justify the abundant presence of encyclopedic knowledge in ES programs, the instructor resorts to the benefits of having received a humanistic education:
This type of [ES] programs also provide with a view (...), they help you to think, they educate you as a person
