Exploring Teachers' Beliefs About Teaching ESL: A Discursive Psychology Approach

• In Event: Poster Session 6
  In Poster Session: Division K Section 3 Poster Session 1

Abstract

Research on teachers’ beliefs is vast. However, the topic has largely been studied within cognitive and sociocultural approaches, frequently limited to teacher-produced reflections occurring after the fact. A growing body of scholarship suggests that studying talk at the site of interaction can be a valuable source for understanding teachers’ belief construction. Drawing on a discursive psychology approach, this study explored teachers’ belief claims about ESL teaching as constructed in an online class. Analysis revealed that participants established their “rights” to make belief claims about ESL teaching in patterned ways and that these patterns of talk actively co-constructed both their identities as teachers and the identities of their students, suggesting value in interpreting teacher preparation as an ongoing, discursive practice.

Author

• Amber N. Warren, Indiana University - Bloomington