Using teachers’ lived experiences to enhance pedagogy in english second language in Zambian Secondary Schools
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Date
2022
Authors
Kangombe, Dickson
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Free State
Abstract
English as Second language has been extensively studied on the Zambian research landscape, with much attention being given to ESL methodologies. However, ESL has other areas such as lived experiences of teachers. According to Oxford Reference (2021), personal knowledge about the world is gained via direct, first-hand involvement in everyday occurrences rather than through representation generated by other people is what lived experiences are. This concept demonstrates how people create information and meaning about the world they live in through their experiences, which shapes what they may see as reality. In this study, I focused on how teachers lived experiences could be used to enhance pedagogy in English as a Second Language in Zambian secondary schools. The objectives of the study were to; (I) ascertain how secondary school teachers conceptualised ESL teaching using their lived experiences within the Zambian context, (II) explore how teachers expressed their memories of learning ESL in the Zambian context, (III) establish how teachers described their in-service experiences of teaching ESL in the Zambian context and, (IV) ascertain how lived experiences influenced teaching of ESL in Zambian secondary schools. This study was interpreted using the narrative theory. The primary claim of this theory is that information is more convincing when provided in a narrative format rather than in an argumentative approach. My study sample was made up of eight (08) secondary schools, from which eight (08) teachers were drawn, one (1) teacher from each school. I adopted a purely qualitative research design, following the narrative inquiry strategy. I gathered my data using face to face narrative interviews and classroom observations. I analysed my data thematically. The findings from the first objective showed that ESL teachers of secondary schools in Zambia conceptualised ESL teaching in various ways such as it being cognitively oriented, rule explanation dominated, increased exposure to material, eclectic oriented and practice dominated. The findings from the second objective showed that teachers of ESL in Zambia had memories of how they were exposed to ESL in their homes, at preschool level, in primary schools, in secondary schools, colleges and universities. The home memories showed that in their childhood, teachers were not only exposed to ESL alone but other languages such as Bemba, Nyanja, and Tonga. These past language experiences were what constituted their cognition about ESL teaching and learning. The findings from the third objective posted that ESL teachers’ in-service experiences were in terms of the number of years they served, teaching routines, negative and positive experiences, conflicts in knowledge and day-to-day challenges such as overcrowded classrooms, inadequate teaching materials and low reading proficiency levels among pupils. The findings from the fourth objective indicated that, influenced by their lived experiences, ESL teachers were observed in their classrooms engaging in pedagogical practices such as correcting punctuations and pronunciations, translanguaging, monolingualism, anti-apprenticeship of observation, teacher-learner corroborations, eclecticism and language material integration. In view of these findings, I recommend that ESL teachers of Zambia should reconceptualise their view of ESL teaching as constituting isolated elements and adopt an integrated approach. In addition, I recommend that before they implement what they saw their prior language teachers do, ESL teachers must be encouraged to evaluate their past ESL learning experiences in the light of current ESL research and practice. This may help their pedagogical practices to remain relevant and dynamic. The government must also create enough teaching space, deploy enough ESL teachers and produce enough teaching materials so as to reduce overcrowding and give learners adequate ESL learning experiences.
Description
Thesis (Ph.D. (Curriculum Studies))--University of the Free State, 2023
Keywords
Lived experiences, English as a second language, teachers, teaching, learning, Zambia, pedagogy