Exploring the effectiveness of using big books in teaching primary English in Malaysian classrooms

There are many benefits of using stories for language and literacy development particularly in the areas of vocabulary(Cameron, 2001; Elley, 1989; Penno, Wilkinson & Moore 2002;Hargrave & Senechal, 2000) and reading comprehension. Yet, much is still unknown in second language (L2) contexts. This paper investigates the use of Big Books in primary English in Malaysia where English is taught as an official second language. It draws on transcript data from one teacher from one primary school to illustrate how students’ active participation and interest in language learning emerged as the teacher introduced Big Books instead of the textbook. Our data shows that practice with Big Books changes the interaction patterns and learning opportunities. Students were actively involved and they contributed to the discussions and made spontaneous comments about the stories. Most importantly,the teacher’s elicitation skill is essential in enhancing students’ learning. The Ministry of Education’s hopes to provide more active engagement and to increase students’ interests and motivation through stories were achieved

Task-based learning with children

This chapter gives an overview of task-based leaning with an emphasis on child learners. Both research and pedagogic tasks are covered and various definitions and examples of tasks are discussed. Differences between tasks for adult learners and tasks for children are explored. Some design features of classic tasks are analysed more closely with a focus on task demands and task supports. The chapter also covers findings from studies which have examined challenges of task implementation in primary classrooms from teachers’ points of view. It is suggested that future work involving task-based learning with children should be more context-embedded and should incorporate children as active task creators as well as probe into children’s views about tasks

Opportunities to learn and practise English as an L2 in parent–child conversations

This article explores a less formal learning context: interactions between parents and children using English as a second language (L2). In this study, L2-speaking parents were invited to conduct informal interviews at home with their own children about the children’s experiences in local schools. The data indicated that the hybrid role of acting both as a parent and as an L2 teacher in these interactions led to excellent opportunities for the children to learn and practise their L2 competence. Parents initiated and controlled the topics and followed an Initiation–Response–Feedback discourse pattern, teaching new works and phrases, and scaffolding their children’s language use, just as L2 teachers do. At the same time there were also invaluable opportunities for the children to challenge and resist their parents’ ideas, initiate their own views and make jokes due to the more familiar and symmetrical parent–child relationship. The dual role of parent/teacher was associated with a more fluid type of discourse in the end, which created a space for learning. These insights suggest that L2 teachers may wish to explore innovative ways in which home–school partnerships could be better exploited as a resource for learning

Agency and technology-mediated task repetition with young learners : research and implications for primary classroom practice

This paper offers a review of the TBLT literature for young learners with an aim to identify some gaps where future research and classroom practice could be targeted. The specific focus of this review is on procedural task repetition for children, arguing that in addition to the linguistic benefits, task repetition is associated with important gains in the affective domain. It is suggested that technology-mediated task repetition, via tablet devices, can further enhance both opportunities for learning and confidence building and enjoyment. Due to the technological affordances, the learners are firmly in charge of creating dynamic, fluid tasks through cycles of reflection and practice, polishing their performance along the way, stretching towards their ‘upper potential’. To date research within TBLT with children has not explored yet what types of tasks children enjoy working with and why and how task repetition is realised when using tablet devices to record their own performances. This paper suggests steps that can be taken in this direction both in research and classroom practice

Research issues with young learners

This chapter discusses the ways in which research has been undertaken with children in applied linguistics and ELT. First of all, the traditional paradigm is introduced and it is argued that most research to date has involved children as passive objects of adult interest. Even where children have been studied as unique subjects with their own characteristics and trajectories, all aspects of these studies have also been completely controlled by adults. An alternative paradigm which considers children as competent social agents is proposed, and, accordingly, the chapter recommends that it is possible to work with children as active subjects and co-researchers, and even to enable them to become researchers themselves. Children can influence and have useful input into research that concerns them and their learning. The consequences of this shift from passive to active research participants brings numerous benefits but also significant challenges. This chapter gives an overview of these benefits and challenges and suggests some practical recommendations for classroom research with children

'I don't ever want to leave this room' : benefits of researching 'with' children

This paper considers an alternative perspective to complement the existing body of research in child EFL/ESL. This perspective assumes that children’s views are different from those of adults, and, since children are ‘experts’ of their own lives, it is worthwhile for adults to explore innovative ways in which their unique experiences and perspectives can be uncovered. The paper reports on the two authors’ joint research projects in which children have been involved in various participatory activities. Using short extracts taken from conversations between an adult researcher and the children, we attempt to illustrate some of the benefits of researching ‘with’ children. The data indicate that children exercise their agency by shaping the research activities in their own ways, making spontaneous comments, asking unexpected questions, and selecting topics they find relevant. We also consider some of the challenges involved in this type of research, but conclude by recommending that working with children ‘collaboratively’ in research projects is an excellent learning experience for teachers, researchers, and children alike

Child-centred ethics in second language education : navigating the ‘ethical maze’ when working with child participants in research

This article aims to provide an overview of the types of questions and concerns adult researchers working with children in L2 education need to consider when it comes to navigating research ethics. Questions and dilemmas relating to ethical practice in child-focussed research are complex, and will be rooted in political, legal and contextual concerns, and interpretations of what is ethical in any one project will depend on the adult researcher’s convictions about research paradigms, their epistemological stance and their beliefs and priorities in the given situation. This article suggests five main questions to consider when it comes to research with children. All five components are equally important and decisions relating to one component will influence all others in the framework. This paper examines the complexities in more detail, discusses some differences relevant in the two main ‘paradigms’ of child-focussed research and how these principles interact with the constraints and the affordances of the local contexts, the focus of the intended study and the background and personal theories of the adult researcher

"You gave us a lens to look through" : teacher transformation and long-term impact of action research

The focus of this paper is to shed some light on three Indian English language teachers' transformational experiences, following their participation in an action research project, and investigate how these teachers' project experience continued to impact their classroom practices more than two years after the actual project came to an end. The main themes in the teachers' narratives are related to the core values of freedom, choice, no hierarchy, collaborative learning, individual attention to learners and the unexpected/ surprising joys of taking the children seriously as partners in teaching and learning. The unique iterative methodology, which invited the teachers to carefully craft their stories over multiple cycles of reflection, shed light on the nature of their transformations and also helped them to articulate and identify with their new professional identities. The findings of this study are directly relevant to teacher education contexts around the world where deep reflection on one's experiences is desirable and feasible