以英語為母語及非母語之國小英語教師協同教學在台之研究 - 政大學術集成

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(1)國立政治大學英國語文學系博士班學生論文. 指導教授 : 招靜琪博士 Advisor: Professor Chin-chi Chao. 立. 政治大. 以英語為母語及非母語之國小英語教師協同教學在台之研究. ‧ 國. 學. A study of a native and non-native speaker co-teaching program in Taiwanese. ‧. elementary schools. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. i n U. 研究生 : 何炳德撰中華民國九十九年五月. v.

(2) A study of a native and non-native speaker co-teaching program in Taiwanese elementary schools. A Dissertation Submitted to Department of English. 政治大. 立 National Chengchi University ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. i n U. v. In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. engchi. by Peter Herbert May 31, 2010.

(3) To Professor Cynthia Hsin-feng Wu 1956-2009. 獻給我的恩師吳信鳳教授 1956-2009. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. iii. i n U. v.

(4) Acknowledgement My warmest thanks go to Dr Ching-chi Chao who kindly agreed to take on the extra burden of supervising my research after the untimely loss of Dr Cynthia Wu. I should also like to thank Dr Jose Eugenio Borao of National Taiwan University for reading the manuscript and making suggestions. My grateful thanks go also to all those professors who taught me during my study at National Chengchi University and to Dr Chao-ming Chen, Dr Hsun-hui Zhang and Dr Hui-lin Lai who as department chairs gave constant encouragement and support. Thanks also to Dr Yuen-mei Yin and Dr Hsue-ying Yu who took care of us graduate students over the same period. Finally, I am grateful to the teaching assistants and secretarial staff of the Department of English for their help in all the administrative procedures. I should also like to thank my own teaching assistants: Johnson Chen, Rick Chan and Eric Tseng who accompanied me on field trips, and helped administer tests and interviews in the schools investigated.. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. al. er. io. sit. y. Nat. This research would not have been possible without the kind collaboration of Professor Chen and Mr Alex Tang of the American exchange foundation responsible for this co-teaching program. The foundation wished to remain anonymous as did the county in which the program is organized. The individuals named in this dissertation are also anonymous but I should like to mention them all the same, beginning with the American Exchange Program academic advisor, Professor Gates and the county Teacher Center officials Yi-ting, Pei-hua and Mei-li. Thanks are also due also to those English teachers in the schools where I tested students. Above all I am grateful to the six English teachers who are the subject of the three case studies at the heart of this research: Xiao-ling and Jo, Yao-wen and Debbie, Jun-kai and Meg. They allowed me to enter their professional lives, submitted to interviews and observation, permitted me to read their teacher journals and cooperated in countless other ways to make this research possible.. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. Finally, a word of thanks to all my colleagues, classmates and students who over the years constantly reassured me that this academic journey would reach a successful conclusion.. iv.

(5) Table of Contents Dedication…………………………………………………………………….. iii. Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………… Table of Contents……………………………………………………………... List of Tables………………………………………………………………….. Chinese Abstract……………………………………………………………… English Abstract……………………………………………………………….. iv v xii xiii xiv. Chapter 1. Introduction. 政治大. Background ……………………………………………………………………. Statement of the research problem ……………………………………………. Statement of purpose ………………………………………………………….. The research questions ………………………………………………………… Significance of the study ……………………………………………………… Definition of terms …….………………………………………………………. Overview of the dissertation …………………………………………………... 立. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. y. Nat. Literature Review. sit. Chapter 2. 1 5 7 8 9 10 11. n. al. er. io. Theories of learning …………………………………………………………… 13 Theories of intercultural communication ……………………………………… 17 Thirdness: Peirce, Bakhtin and Bhabha ……………………………………….. 19 Third spaces in organizations ……………………………………………. 23 Teachers’ professional development …………………………………………... 24 Teacher knowledge ………………………………………………………. 26 Teacher learning ………………………………………………………….. 29 Teacher knowledge as constructed ……………………………………….. 30 Teacher knowledge from collaboration …………………………………… 30 Native and non-native speaker English teachers ………………………………. 31 Co-teaching …………………………………………………………………….. 36 History of co-teaching ……………………………………………………. 36 Models of co-teaching ……………………………………………………. 37 Conditions for co-teaching success ………………………………………. 39 Advantages of co-teaching ……………………………………………….. 41 Problems associated with co-teaching …………………………………… 41. Ch. engchi. v. i n U. v.

(6) East Asian Co-teaching schemes ………………………………………………. Japan …………………………………………………………………… Korea ……………………………………………………………………... Hong Kong ……………………………………………………………….. Taiwan ……………………………………………………………………. The City program…………………….……………………………… The American Exchange Program ……………………………….….. Summary ………………………………………………………………………. Chapter 3. 44 44 46 47 50 50 52 53. Methodology. Mixed methods inquiry..……………………………………………………….... 54 The epistemological basis of quantitative and qualitative inquiry ……..… 54 The qualitative study …………………………………………………………… 57 Research design....………………………………………………………… 57 Participants and sites ……………………………………………………… 58 Researcher’s relationships with participants ……………………………... 63 The schools in the study ………………………………………………….. 66 Data collection and procedures ………………………………………………… 68 Observation ……………………………………………………………….. 68 Interviews …………………………………………………………………. 71 Teacher journals …………………………………………………………... 74 Document inspection ……………………………………………………… 75 Establishing trustworthiness …………………………………………………… 75 Researcher bias in the data collection process ……………………………. 78 Data analysis …………………………………………………………………… 79 Data analysis framework ………………………………………………….. 79 Data analysis: method and procedures ……………………………………. 80 The quantitative study….………………………………………………………. 83 Research design …………………..………..…………………………….. 83 Participants and sites ……………………………………………………… 85 Data collection instruments and procedures …………………………………… 86 Test of English proficiency ……………………………………………….. 86 Piloting the test ………………………………………………………….. 88 Test administration procedures …………………………………………… 91 Survey questionnaire ……………………………………………………… 93 Piloting the survey ………………………………………………………… 94 Conducting the survey ……………………………………………………. 95. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. vi. i n U. v.

(7) Data analysis …………………………………………………………………… 95 Proficiency test …………………………………………………………… 95 Survey questionnaire ……………………………………………………… 96 Correlation between survey and test scores ………………………………. 97 Summary ……………………………………………………………………….. 97 Chapter 4. Teaching pair A: Xiao-ling and Jo. Xiao-ling: Adjusting to a new partner ………………………………………….. 98 Attitude to the program …………………………………………………… 100 Attitude to co-teaching ……………………………………………………. 102 The co-teaching process: planning, teaching, roles and responsibilities ……….. 104 Patterns of communication ………………………………………………... 105 Co-teaching activities ………………………………………………………107 The co-teaching relationship: Xiao-ling’s perspective …………………………. 109 Metaphor for co-teaching …………………………………………………. 112 Roles played in the co-teaching relationship ……………………………… 112 Professional learning: ………………………………………………………….. 113 Growth in cultural awareness …………..………………………………………. 115 Perception of gender roles ………………………………………………… 116 Summary ………………………………………………………………………... 119 Jo: Growing into a professional role ……………………………………………. 120 Attitude to the program ……………………………………………………. 120 Attitude to co-teaching …………………………………………………….. 121 The co-teaching process: planning, teaching, roles and responsibilities ……...... 122 The co-teaching relationship: Jo’s perspective …………………………………. 124 Cultural differences or personal differences ………………………………. 126 Metaphor for co-teaching …………………………………………………. 127 Professional learning and growth ………………………………………………. 127 Learning about students …………………………………………………… 128 Learning about pedagogy …………………………………………………. 129 Learning about self ………………………………………………………... 131 Learning from the co-teacher ……………………………………………... 131 Growth in cultural awareness …………………………………………………... 135 Perceptions of gender ……………………………………………….…….. 137 Summary ………………………………………………………………………. 139. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. vii. i n U. v.

(8) Chapter 5. Teaching pair B: Yao-wen and Debbie. Yao-wen: Learning from unexpected sources ………………………………… 140 Attitude to the program …………………………………………………… 141 Attitude to co-teaching …………………………………………………… 143 The co-teaching process: planning, teaching, roles and responsibilities ………. 143 Patterns of communication ……………………………………………….. 144 Co-teaching activities …………………………………………………….. 145 The co-teaching relationship: Yao-wen’s perspective …………………………. 146 Attitude to students: a cultural difference ………………………………… 147 Cultural differences or personal differences? …………………………….. 148 Metaphor for co-teaching ………………………………………………… 149 Roles played in the co-teaching relationship …………………………….. 150 Professional learning: Yao-wen ……………………………………………….. 151 The reflective journal: a tool for learning ………………………………… 152 Learning about students …………………………………………………... 152 Learning about pedagogy ………………………………………………… 153 Learning about self ……………………………………………………….. 154 Developing expertise ……………………………………………………… 154 Growth in cultural awareness: Yao-wen ………………………………………. 155 Perceptions of gender …………………………………………………….. 156 Summary ………………………………………………………………………. 156 Debbie: Discovering a professional calling …………………………………… 157 Attitude to the program ………………………………………………….. 158 Attitude to co-teaching …………………………………………………… 159 The co-teaching process: planning, teaching, roles and responsibilities ……… 160 Co-teaching activities ……………………………………………………. 161 The co-teaching relationship: Debbie’s perspective …………………………… 162 Cultural differences or personal differences ……………………………… 166 Professional learning: Debbie ………………………………………………….. 167 Knowledge of students ……………………………………………………. 167 Knowledge of pedagogy ………………………………………………….. 168 Knowledge of self ………………………………………………………… 169 Learning from the co-teacher …………………………………………….. 170 Growth in cultural awareness: Debbie ………………………………………… 173 Perceptions of gender …………………………………………………….. 174 Culture as individual ……………………………………………………… 174 Summary ………………………………………………………………………. 175. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. viii. i n U. v.

(9) Chapter 6. Teaching pair C: Jun-kai and Meg. Jun-kai: Re-examining one’s teaching principles ……………………………… Jun-kai’s teaching goals …………………………………………………... Attitude to the program …………………………………………………… Attitude to co-teaching …………………………………………………… The co-teaching process: planning, teaching, roles and responsibilities ……… Patterns of communication ………………………………………………. Co-teaching activities ……………………………………………………. The co-teaching relationship: Jun-kai’s perspective ………………………….. Jun-kai’s assessment of his partner ………………………………………. Factors in their relationship: age and personality ………………………… Factors in their relationship: level of experience ..……………………….. Factors in their relationship: personality not gender …………………….. Factors in their relationship: cultural differences ………………………... Metaphor for co-teaching ………………………………………………… Roles played in the relationship ………………………………………….. Professional learning: Jun-kai …………………………………………………. Learning from Meg ………………………………………………………. Growth in cultural awareness: Jun-kai ………………………………………… Thirdness …………………………………………………………………. Summary ……………………………………………………………………….. Meg: Confirming one’s professional beliefs …………………………………… Attitude to the program …………………………………………………… Attitude to co-teaching …………………………………………………… The co-teaching process: planning, teaching, roles and responsibilities ………. Co-teaching activities …………………………………………………….. The co-teaching relationship: Meg’s perspective ……………………………… Attitude to aboriginal children ……..…………………………………….. Going to the co-school: A watershed ……………………………………... Dissolving the partnership ………………………………………………... Maintaining a working relationship ……………………………………… Metaphor for co-teaching ………………………………………………… Professional learning: Meg …………………………………………………… Learning about self ……………………………………………………… Learning from co-teaching ……………………………………………… Growth in cultural awareness: Meg ………………………………………….. Taiwan: A multi-ethnic culture ………………………………………….. Summary ………………………………………………………………………. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. ix. i n U. v. 176 178 179 180 181 182 184 185 191 192 193 194 196 197 198 199 200 202 204 205 206 207 209 210 209 210 212 214 217 217 218 219 222 222 225 225 231.

(10) Chapter 7 The quantitative study: data analysis. Proficiency test results …………………………………………………………. 233 Grade 6 Listening proficiency ………………………………………………….. 233 Grade 6 Reading proficiency …………………………………………………… 235 Grade 4 Listening proficiency …………………………………………………. 236 Grade 4 Reading proficiency ………………………………………………….. 238 Summary of test results…………………………………………………..…..... 240 Survey questionnaire results ………………………………………………….. 241 Survey results and motivation………..………………………………………… 243 Grade 4 and 6 compared ……………………………………………………….. 246 Summary of survey findings...………………………………………………… 248 CHAPTER 8 Discussion, conclusions, limitations and recommendations. 政治大. Introduction to research findings ………………………..……….……............. 250 The first research question …………………………………………………….. 250 Analysis of AEP co-teaching …………..……………………...…………. 250 Outcomes for students: Proficiency ............................................................. 256 Outcomes for students: Motivation ………………………….……………. 257 The second research question …………………..…………………….………… 257 The third research question …………………………………………….………. 262 Professional growth and development: Xiao-ling………………….……… 262 Professional growth and development: Jo………………………….……… 263 Professional growth and development: Yao-wen…………………….……. 264 Professional growth and development: Debbie……………………………. 266 Professional growth and development: Jun-kai.……………………….….. 267 Professional growth and development: Meg.………………………….….. 269 Conclusion…………………………………………………………….…... 271 The fourth research question …………………………………………………… 274 Growth in cultural awareness: Xiao-ling …………………………………. 274 Growth in cultural awareness: Jo …………………………………………. 277 Growth in cultural awareness: Yao-wen …………………………………. 278 Growth in cultural awareness: Debbie ……………………………………. 281 Growth in cultural awareness: Jun-kai ……………………………………. 282 Growth in cultural awareness: Meg ………………………………………. 284 Conclusion……………………………………………………………….. 287 Suggestions for further research ……………………………………………….. 289 Limitations of this study ……………………………………………………….. 290 Impact of this research on the researcher ………………………………………. 292. 立. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. x. i n U. v.

(11) Implications and recommendations ……………………………………………. 293 Concluding remarks ……………………………………………………………. 295 References …………………………………………………………………….. 297 Appendices ……………………………………………………………………. 317 Appendix A AEP Mission Statement & Information ………...…..…….. 317 Appendix B AEP teacher workshops 2008-09 …………………………. 321 Appendix C Official letter to school administrators …………………… 322 Appendix D Class observation check list ………………………………. 323 Appendix E Teacher interview questions ………………………………. 324 Appendix F Teacher journal entry (sample) …………………………… 329 Appendix G On-site interviews with AP members …………………….. 332 Appendix H Chronology of field visits ………………………………… 333 Appendix I Field notes (sample page) ………………………………… 335 Appendix J Coding scheme for teacher learning (examples) …………. 337 Appendix K 4th Grade syllabus, test format and test…………………… 339. 立. 政治大. ‧ 國. 學. ‧. Appendix L 6th Grade syllabus, test format and test…………………… 355 Appendix M Student survey questionnaire …………………………….. 377. n. al. er. io. sit. y. Nat. Vita ……………………………………………………………………….......... 380. Ch. engchi. xi. i n U. v.

(12) List of Tables. Table 2.1 Table 2.2 Table 2.3 Table 3.1 Table 3.2 Table 3.3 Table 3.4 Table 3.5 Table 3.6 Table 3.7 Table 4.1 Table 4.2 Table 4.3 Table 4.4 Table 5.1 Table 5.2 Table 5.3 Table 5.4 Table 6.1 Table 6.2 Table 6.3 Table 6.4 Table 7.1 Table 7.2. Good and bad qualities of NESTs………………………..... 33 Qualities of a good English teacher ………………………. 35 Levels of teacher collaboration …………………………... 43 Workshops attended ……………………………………… 60 Participants basic data ……………………………………. 62 Observation dates and times ……………………………… 69 Teacher interview timetable ……………………………… 72 Interview schedule and content ………………………….. 73 Pilot test scores ……………………………………………. 90 Pre-test and post-test results …………………………..........91 Patterns of communication: Xiao-ling and Jo …………… 106 Roles played by Xiao-ling and Jo ………………………... 113 Factors which affected Xiao-ling’s learning ……………… 114 Factors which affected Jo’s learning ……………………… 134 Patterns of communication: Yao-wen and Debbie ……….. 144 Roles played by Yao-wen and Debbie ……………………. 150 Factors which affected Yao-wen’s learning ………………. 155 Factors which affected Debbie’s learning ………………… 172 Patterns of communication: Jun-kai and Meg ……………. 182 Roles played by Jun-kai and Meg ………………………… 199 Factors which affected Jun-kai’s learning ………………... 201 Factors which affected Meg’s learning …………………… 225 6th-grade listening test results………… ………………….. 234 6th-grade reading test results …………………………….... 235. Table 7.3 Table 7.4 Table 7.5 Table 7.6 Table 7.7 Table 7.8 Table 7.9. 4th-grade listening test results……………………..………. 237 4th-grade listening test results t-test ..……………………… 238 4th-grade reading test results .. …………………………….. 239 4th-grade reading test results t-test ………………………… 240 Survey results ……………..….…………………………… 243 4th- and 6th-grade survey responses ……………………….. 246 4th- and 6th-grade survey t-test ……………………………. 247. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. xii. i n U. v.

(13) 摘要以英語為母語以及非英語為母語之教師，兩者間之協同教學國家級計劃，從 1990 年代開始在日本、韓國及香港各地執行。過去十年，台灣地區共有兩個相關計劃：一個位於中部某縣轄市；另一個則在北部地區，由該地方教育局與某知名學術基金會合作執行。關於這類的計畫，目前已有文獻探討執行上的困難，主要包括文化歧見、老師教學效能、與行政單位之運作問題，但其實卻並無整體評析之深入研究可供參考。本研究遵循質化與量化的方法，針對北部之計畫為對象，深入評析中外師協同教學執行一年後之師生學習成效。研究首先以量化方式以成就測驗與態度問卷了解計畫中 80 名四年級與六年級小學生的英文學習成果、他們對英文的態度以及學習動機。另外又以訪談、課室觀察以及教學日記蒐集資料，分三組追蹤調查六位中外師之專業成長，藉衛考斯基的社會文化理論做分析，而文化體認方面，則以第三向度觀點，了解不同文化背景的老師之發展。研究結果顯示此項中外師協同教學計劃對學生學習有正面作用，但程度則多有不同。學生之閱讀與聽力有成長，四年級學生受益又比六年級學生更多，但成果則因時間較短而稍顯淺薄。另一方面，中外教師在專業知識與文化體認上有顯著成長，可以說是本計畫最大受益者。整體而言，計畫單位對中外師雙方合作關係之培養具備完善的機制，而在文化體認方面又有一群能夠以持平立場看待文化差距的諮詢專家，為中外師創造第三向度合作空間，使雙方能夠大方擁抱兩種文化且無需掩飾彼此之不同。這些設計使計劃更有效能，整體執行方式具參考價值。. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. 關鍵字：跨文化溝通、文化中的第三向度、中外師協同教學、教師專業成長. xiii.

(14) Abstract National co-teacher programs involving native English speaker teachers (NESTs) and non-native English speaker teachers (NNESTs) have been in operation since the 1990’s in Japan, Korea and Hong Kong. Two major programs have been established in Taiwan in the last ten years, one by a city government in the central part of Taiwan, the other by the education bureau of a rural county in the north, in collaboration with a well known academic exchange foundation. The cultural, pedagogical and administrative challenges such schemes face are well documented but there has been little evaluation of the benefits for stakeholders. 政治大. This study focused on the program in northern Taiwan and followed a mixed methods approach in order to trace learning gains from co-teaching for teachers and students over the course of one year. Students’ gains in English proficiency and changes in attitude and motivation were measured in a quantitative study involving over 80 4th and 6th grade students who were tested and surveyed. A triple case study investigated growth in professional knowledge and cultural awareness in three teaching pairs through interviews, class observation and teacher journals. Teacher learning was studied through the prism of socio-cultural theory and growth in cultural awareness from the perspective of thirdness.. 立. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. n. The program was found to have a positive effect on students, but in varying degrees. Student scores in both reading and listening proficiency improved while their attitudes and motivation were positive. Proficiency gains were greater among 4th graders than 6th graders, but the results also showed that for students, the impact of a one year program is relatively shallow. Teachers grew considerably in both professional knowledge and cultural awareness and were the greatest beneficiaries of the program.. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. This study also found that the effectiveness of the program was facilitated by certain enabling mechanisms which nurtured the relationship between NESTs and NNESTs. Cultural awareness was facilitated by a culturally fair panel which helped create third spaces where teachers could embrace both cultures without hiding the differences between them. Keywords: intercultural communication, thirdness, NEST and NNEST co-teaching, teacher professional development. xiv.

(15) Chapter 1 Introduction. Background The economic development of East Asian societies in the past thirty years has coincided with the rise of English as a world language and its expansion from private language schools into national education systems. Lacking a strong tradition of English language teaching and learning, countries and regions in East Asia such as. 政治大 speaker teachers of English,. Japan, Korea and Hong Kong have sought to import solutions by setting up programs whereby thousands of native. 立. both certified and. uncertified, with experience or lacking it, are invited to teach in public schools. The. ‧ 國. 學. scheme in Hong Kong is known as the Native English Teacher scheme (NET); in. sit. y. Nat. scheme (JET).. ‧. Korea as English Program in Korea (EPIK); and in Japan as Japan English Teacher. io. er. Large numbers of native English speaker teachers (NESTs) have thus been brought into East Asian schools to work alongside local non-native English speaker. al. n. v i n C h a considerable investment teachers (NNESTs). This represents of social resources by engchi U governments in these countries, although surprisingly little research evidence was. offered to justify the policy. As Professor Peter Storey, one of the official evaluators of the NET scheme in Hong Kong commented: “In my experience, theoretical underpinnings are noticeably lacking in justifications for such schemes.” (personal communication, August 12, 2008). Thus empirical based studies, such as this one investigating the effectiveness of co-teaching schemes are to be welcomed and may provide research based support. Importing NESTs, often at great expense, on such a large scale into national English education systems may appear to be a good solution to a perceived problem 1.

(16) of students’ low English proficiency but it brings in its wake a number of challenges. In practice, it involves introducing foreign teachers into schools to work alongside local teachers when they neither speak the local language nor understand the local culture. Their introduction into the school system under such conditions may also give the impression that NNESTs are unable to meet the English language needs of local students, and it is worthwhile importing even inexperienced and uncertified NESTs to compensate for what the authorities believe to be the shortcomings of local NNESTs. Taiwan does not have a national NEST program on the scale of NET, EPIK or. 政治大 NESTs to work in remote rural schools but it was delayed by the SARS epidemic. It 立. JET. In 2003, the Taiwanese Ministry of Education tried setting up a scheme to send. finally started on a small scale in 2004 with 5 teachers and has had difficulty. ‧ 國. 學. attracting qualified teachers; far fewer have been recruited than planned (Tsai, 2007).. ‧. However, two forward-looking education bureaus have set up their own programs, the. sit. y. Nat. first in a city in central Taiwan and the second in a rural county in the north. The city. io. er. program was set up in 2001 with the help of a partner organization, the Jenny English Language School to recruit NESTs, mainly from South Africa. All 28 public. n. al. Ch. elementary schools in the city take part except. engchi. v i n for U two. elite schools that are. independent of the city education bureau (Chen, 2008). Various co-teaching formats are used in the city scheme, with teachers either planning jointly or delivering content together in class. Such research literature as there is on the city scheme indicates that it has faced many challenges, including tense working relationships between NESTs and NNESTs, accusations of lack of professionalism, cultural tensions and loss of staff (Chen, 2008; Tsai, 2007). The object of this research is the program operating in a rural county of northern Taiwan where 16 college graduates from the United States, some with teaching qualifications, others without, come each year to act as NESTs and co-teach with local 2.

(17) NNESTs in elementary schools. The program has been running since 2002. Despite the rural nature of the location, the county government is ambitious and independent, and, according to local education bureau officals, hoped to emulate Taipei City in raising English standards in its elementary schools. One of the academic consultants to the county education bureau was at the time also director for Taiwan of an American academic exchange foundation, which for the purposes of this study will be given the name American Exchange Foundation (AEF). He proposed a joint cooperation between the county and the AEF which resulted in the establishment of. 政治大 county government and 25% from the AEF. The recruiting and selection of the NESTs 立 the American Exchange Program (AEP) with 75% of the funding coming from the. is done on campuses across the U.S. by the parent body of the AEF. The AEP is. ‧ 國. 學. supervised in Taiwan by the Elementary English Advisory Group of the county. ‧. education bureau, and managed on a day to day basis by an Advisory Panel (AP),. sit. y. Nat. consisting of a visiting professor of TESOL who acts as academic advisor and three. io. er. local education officials who are also qualified elementary school English teachers. Since 2002, over 100 American college graduates and five academic advisors have. n. al. taken part in this one-year. v i n C h Many of theUgraduates program. engchi. have had teaching. experience in programs such as summer camps, volunteer work teaching inner city students or recent immigrants, after-school programs or private tutoring but few have formal qualifications. However, all of them are interested in teaching English and want to get to know Taiwan and learn Chinese. The relatively small number of NESTs involved helps the AP generate solidarity between them as isolation has been found to be a debilitating factor in similar schemes (Storey, Luk, Gray, Wag-Kho & Lin, 2001; Griffin, Woods, Storey, Wong & Fung, 2007). On arrival in Taiwan, the NESTs are taken to their accommodation in adjoining apartments located in the two main towns of the county. They work in 35 local elementary schools all over the county, where 3.

(18) they co-teach over 8,000 students (Albanese, 2008; Trites & Tseng, 2009; Tsai & Tseng, 2006). The day after their arrival, the NESTs begin a one-month orientation and training course. The first week is devoted to Taiwanese culture and the following three weeks are spent on English language teacher training, visiting local schools and learning about the local education system. In the final week they are joined by local NNESTs to model co-teaching. Allocation to schools is partly by personal choice at the end of the joint training. Having a voice in the choice of co-teacher is a feature that is unique. 政治大 NNEST co-training continues throughout the year in the form of regular workshops 立. to this program, not found in any of the other schemes mentioned above. NEST and. and the AEP also organizes two hours of Chinese class weekly for the NESTs. This. ‧ 國. 學. facilitates communication with local people: knowledge of the local language is. ‧. associated with successful co-teaching experiences according to Carless (2006a).. sit. y. Nat. Ongoing professional training and support, which tend to be lacking in national. io. er. programs in East Asia (Crooks, 2001) are key characteristics of the AEP. The relatively small scale and limited geographical location of the program make this. al. n. v i n C h and supervision administration is engchi U. possible. The work of. simplified, workshop. attendance, travel to schools, class observation and access to teachers are convenient. By training American and Taiwanese teachers together, AEP tries to create a collaborative environment and facilitate equitable co-teaching partnerships. In terms of roles, it is made clear to each NEST that their local partner has expert knowledge of students, student background, the language spoken in the school, curriculum and the culture of learning. The NEST brings oral fluency, knowledge of the target culture and can help generate an English speaking environment in class. The AEP considers that co-teaching is the best method of instruction believing that it balances the strengths and weaknesses of NESTs and NNEST. The pedagogical expertise of the NNEST is 4.

(19) combined with the cultural expertise and oral fluency of the NEST, setting the stage for a balanced relationship. Preliminary evidence from the county suggests that the program has dealt well with the kind of challenges faced by other programs in Taiwan and elsewhere. In 2005, a joint report by the county education bureau and the AEF stated that 90% of teachers and principals and 85% of students were satisfied with the program. In May 2008, this researcher conducted interviews with many of the participants of the AEP as part of a National Science Council funded investigation (NSC 95 2411. 政治大 NNESTs in Taiwan. Interview protocols showed that both sides felt admiration for the 立. 004 030) led by Professor Wu Hsin-feng into teacher expertise among NESTs and. professionalism and dedication they observed in their co-teachers. Respondents’. ‧ 國. 學. comments also indicated that the AEP seemed to be coping well with challenges such. ‧. as NEST isolation, devaluation of NNESTs, incompatible teaching philosophies or. sit. y. Nat. professional standards and cultural tensions.. io. er. This study therefore proposes to investigate the American Exchange Program in greater depth in order to try to measure its effectiveness in the light of these. n. al. Ch. indications of apparent success.. engchi. i n U. v. Statement of the research problem As stated above, there has until now been very little research into the outcomes and the effectiveness of co-teaching programs in East Asia despite the high cost of such schemes. This may be in part due to the large scale of these programs which involve hundreds, sometimes thousands of teachers. Even so, the failure to investigate outcomes is surprising. The notable exception is Hong Kong where the Education Bureau (HKEDB) commissions annual reports. The evaluations were initially carried out by the Hong Kong Institute of Education (HKIED) but since 2002 they have been 5.

(20) done by a team from the Assessment Research Unit of the University of Melbourne. The reports of both bodies have mixed or even inconclusive findings: in 2001, HKIED found no measurable difference in oral ability between children taught by NESTs and those taught by NNESTs alone or co-taught by NESTs (Storey et al., 2001). In 2007 the team from the University of Melbourne concluded that it was not possible to tell if the Hong Kong NET scheme was worth the HK$600 million invested (Griffin et al., 2007, p.197). Research into the outcomes and effectiveness of the Taiwanese programs is also. 政治大 teachers, the mechanics of co-teaching or attitudes of stakeholders (Chou, 2005; Lin, 立 limited: studies of the city project have been limited to describing the roles adopted by. 2002; Liou, 2002; Luo, 2005; Pan, 2004). J. M. Tsai (2007) and W.Y. Chen (2008). ‧ 國. 學. both investigated growth of teacher learning of three teacher pairs but they focused on. ‧. teachers’ internal processes; no attention was paid to outcomes for other stakeholders.. sit. y. Nat. The work of L.T. Tsai (2004), L.T. Tsai and Tseng (2005) and Albanesi, Burr and. io. er. Collins (2009) on the AEP is mostly descriptive. None of the studies measure student learning outcomes, or investigate growth in cultural learning, cultural awareness or. al. n. v i n C h the fact that inU the research literature, many inter-cultural communication, despite engchi. studies report that cultural tensions play a major role in the breakdown of co-teaching partnerships in such programs. The present study is therefore an opportune and necessary investigation into outcomes for two groups of stakeholders, teachers: growth in their professional knowledge and cultural awareness and students: gains in English proficiency, attitudes and motivation. In this way it may be possible to determine whether the sponsors’ claims for the program’s success are justifiable on the basis of empirical evidence.. 6.

(21) Statement of purpose This study was a year long, two-part, mixed method (quantitative and qualitative) investigation of a medium scale NEST and NNEST co-teaching program. It examined learning outcomes for teachers and students in order to determine whether the program was an effective model which might be used elsewhere in Taiwan or in the region. The purpose of the research was to provide an in-depth understanding of the AEP by describing its features, analyzing its workings, and most importantly, gauging its. 政治大 students as well as growth in professional knowledge and cultural awareness among 立. effectiveness, by measuring gains in language proficiency and motivation among. teachers. To this end the researcher immersed himself in the program: observing. ‧ 國. 學. classes and workshops, interviewing and surveying students, teachers and program. sit. y. Nat. conducted by three case studies of co-teaching pairs.. ‧. administrators. An in-depth investigation of the co-teaching relationship was. io. er. Analysis of the process of growth in teacher knowledge through the co-teaching relationship and peer interaction used insights gained from socio-cultural learning. al. n. v i n CVygotsky theory. Derived from the work of socio-cultural learning theory uses U h e n g(1978), i h c concepts such as situated learning, distributed expertise, communities of practice,. learning tools and scaffolded learning which provide a robust theoretical foundation from which to understand the processes of teacher learning (Puttnam & Borko, 2000). The differences in professionalism and personality clashes that hamper co-teaching schemes often have their roots in cultural frictions and are exacerbated by lack of cultural awareness. This research used the concepts of thirdness (Bahktin, 1981), third spaces (Bhabha, 1994) and thirdness in organizations (Fougere, 2004) as theoretical tools to analyze the growth of cultural awareness in co-teaching pairs and to identify mechanisms which might foster third space perspectives within the AEP 7.

(22) and thus help defuse cultural tensions and misunderstandings. Learning outcomes for students were measured using a test of English reading and listening proficiency given as a pre-test at the beginning of the school year and as a post-test nine months later. A sample population of over 80 students from a rural school which was participating in the AEP was tested. When the post-test was done in May, students also completed a survey questionnaire on their attitudes and motivation.. The research questions. 政治大 specifically goals one and six as transcribed below. The full mission statement can be 立. The research questions were derived from the AEP mission statement,. found in Appendix A along with other information about the AEP. Goals one and six. ‧ 國. To improve children’s English ability as the American teachers work with local. y. sit. To foster cross-cultural communication, interaction and cooperation as. io. American and local teachers work closely together. al. er. 6.. Nat. English teachers in a co-teaching capacity.. ‧. 1.. 學. read as follows:. n. v i n C hin children’s English Thus goal one: improvement ability though exposure to engchi U. co-teaching by a NEST and a NNEST and goal six: cross-cultural communication, interaction and cooperation between NESTs and NNESTs, formed the basis of the research questions. Since the partnership between co-teachers was the core of a co-teaching program, it was felt that the first goal, student outcomes, would be influenced by the extent to which the sixth goal, communication and cooperation between co-teachers, was achieved. For this reason, the study focused firstly on teachers and secondly on students. This research combined quantitative and qualitative methods in order to do justice to the topic and provide greater insight into the workings and effectiveness of 8.

(23) the AEP than would be obtained using a single method of inquiry. The investigation was guided by the following research questions:. 1.. How is co-teaching manifested in elementary school English classrooms in. the AEP? Are there improved learning outcomes for students? How are motivation and attitude affected by co-teaching from a NEST and a NNEST? 2.. How do NESTs and NNESTs interact, what is the nature of the relationship. they develop and how does it evolve?. 政治大 and how do they contribute to each other’s learning? 立. What skills and knowledge do NESTs and NNESTs develop as they interact. 4.. To what extent is there intercultural communication between NESTs and. NNESTs and growth in cultural awareness?. 學. ‧ 國. 3.. ‧ sit. y. Nat. Significance of the study. io. er. This study is significant and timely for the following reasons:. It is of interest to researchers in the fields of co-teaching and of NESTs and. n. al. NNESTs. It shows ways in. v i n C h the complementary which strengths engchi U. of NESTs and. NNESTs can be effectively harnessed.. It is of interest to teacher trainers outlining as it does the challenges which await novice language teachers when they are asked to work in co-teaching schemes with teachers with another language and culture. It is of interest to school administrators and local teachers as it shows ways in which to manage co-teaching and integrate NESTs effectively into the daily workings of school life and the classroom. It is of interest to education officials and administrators who are considering embarking on a NEST scheme since it illustrates the challenges such programs face, 9.

(24) provides data on outcomes and points to successful models of organization.. Definition of terms The following are terms that appear frequently in the text. Some of them are specific to this investigation while others are commonly used in different ways by different authors; the sense with which they are used in this study is therefore defined below.. Acculturation: means integration into a culture which is not one’s native culture.. 政治大 quasi-governmental foundation that co-organizes the AEP in Taiwan. The true name 立. American Exchange Foundation (AEF): is the name given to the American. has not been used by request of the foundation.. ‧ 國. 學. American Exchange Program (AEP): a one-year program which brings 16 young. ‧. NESTs annually to co-teach in over 30 elementary schools in a Taiwanese county.. sit. y. Nat. Advisory Panel (AP): a committee consisting of one visiting professor of TESOL and. io. er. three local education officials responsible for managing the AEP.. Co-school: an elementary school that is a partial participant in the AEP, hosting a. n. al. Ch. NEST for four weeks per semester.. engchi. i n U. v. Co-teaching: a form of teaching in which two teachers take responsibility for planning, instructing, managing and assessing the same group of students at the same time and in the same classroom; it is used in this sense in this study, unless it is specified that another form of co-teaching is being used, such as parallel teaching (see below). County: County refers to the county in Taiwan where this study took place. The county education bureau is the partner in organizing the AEP. At the request of the bureau, the name of the county has been withheld. Cross-cultural awareness: understanding of similarities and differences in cultural patterns of other than native culture; in this study, sometimes shortened to cultural 10.

(25) awareness. Homeroom teacher: teachers in Taiwanese elementary schools who are responsible for teaching and pastoral care of a class. They normally teach them most subjects, but in this study, not English. Main school: an elementary school that is a full participant in the American exchange program hosting an American English teacher for one school year. NEST: Native English speaker teacher. In this study, recent college graduates of American nationality, recruited in the U.S. who come to Taiwan to teach on the AEP.. 政治大 locally qualified to teach English in elementary schools where they are known as 立. NNEST: Non-native English speaker teacher. In this study, Taiwanese nationals. specialist English teachers.. ‧ 國. 學. Parallel teaching: a model of co-teaching where one teacher takes a small group of. ‧. students away from the main class for a time and gives them separate instruction.. sit. y. Nat. Team teaching: when used in this study, it is to emphasize that the teachers are using a. io. er. model of co-teaching whereby both of them are in the classroom at the same time. Thirdness: refers to new perspective on oneself or one’s culture achieved by reaching. n. al. Ch. out to understand another person or culture. Overview of the dissertation. engchi. i n U. v. Chapter 1 introduces the background to the study, issues related to research in this field and the research questions. It also presents the theoretical framework and explains the significance of the research. It also explains the way terms are used in the study. Chapter 2 is the literature review covering native and non-native teachers, co-teaching, co-teaching schemes in East Asia and teacher knowledge. The theoretical framework of the study including concepts such as socio-cultural theory, situated learning, community of practice, distributed knowledge and thirdness are introduced and reviewed. Chapter 3 is divided in two parts, quantitative and qualitative, and 11.

(26) describes the research design, participants, data collection instruments, methods and procedures and data analysis. Chapter 4, 5 and 6 are case studies of the three teaching pairs together with discussion of the findings. Chapter 7 is the quantitative analysis and discussion of results of the experimental study with students. Chapter 8 presents the quantitative and qualitative findings in the light of the research questions, draws the conclusions, discusses their implications and makes recommendations for further research.. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. 12. i n U. v.

(27) Chapter 2 Literature review. This chapter begins with a description of socio-cultural learning theory and reviews some key concepts such as situated learning, multiple and distributed expertise, community of practice as well as terms used by Vygotsky such as ZPD, mediation, self-regulation and symbolic tools. Next the concepts of firstness, secondness and thirdness are introduced as well as their connection to human. 政治大 Bhabha will be reviewed; mention is also made of the need for third spaces within 立 relationships in the work of Bakhtin and to cultural awareness, for which the work of. bi-cultural organizations and the work of Fougere (2004). A discussion of research on. ‧ 國. 學. situated teacher learning, teacher knowledge and teacher expertise then follows.. ‧. The topic of NESTs and NNESTs is next discussed and an account given of the. sit. y. Nat. specific strengths of both; reference is also made to some of the controversies. io. er. surrounding their roles. Co-teaching as a method which combines the strengths and compensates for the weaknesses of NESTs and NNESTs is then described and some. n. al. Ch. of the main critiques of co-teaching are mentioned.. engchi. i n U. v. The final section covers the main co-teaching schemes involving NESTs and NNESTs in East Asia together with the challenges they face. The chapter ends with a review of two programs at present operating in Taiwan.. Theories of learning A theory which will be used to describe teachers’ development and growth in knowledge through interaction with significant others is the socio-cultural theory of Vygotsky (1978). Socio-cultural theory posits that the deep determinants of human activity, consciousness and personality lie in the historically developing culture which 13.