Events in marketing for hanoi tourism a product or a promotion tool

Teaching reading strategies in classroom...24 2.3.. in m aking the perfectly valid point that fluent reading is prim arily a cognitive process, they tend to deem phasize the perceptual a

M IN IS T R Y O F E D U C A T IO N A N D T R A IN IN G

H A N O I U N I V E R S I T Y

P H A M P H U O N G O A N H

TEACHERS’ BELIEFS ABOUT TEACHING

READING STRATEGIES AND THEIR CLASSROOM

PRACTICES: A CASE STUDY AT ACADEMY OF FINANCE

SUBM ITED IN PA R TIA L FULFILM ENT

OR REQ U IREM EN T OF THE DEGREE

O F M ASTER IN TESOL

H a n o i

THI' DAI-IOC HA NỘ1 HANOI JNlVER& irV LIBRARY

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

TABLE OF CONTENTS i

ACKNOW LEGEMENT iii

ABSTRACT iv

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP v

LIST OF ABBREVIATION vi

LIST OF TABLE vii

LIST OF FIGURES viii

C H A P T E R 1: IN T R O D U C T IO N 1

1.1 Background to the study 1

1.2 Aims of the stu d y 2

1.3 Significance and the scope of the study 2

1.4 Organization of the thesis 3

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 5

2.1 Reading and reading strategies 5

2.2 Teaching reading strategies in classroom 24

2.3 Beliefs and teacher's beliefs 26

2.4 Teacher's beliefs and classroom practices 30

CHAPTER 3: M ETHODOLOGY 34

3.1 Research questions 34

3.2 Design of the study: A case stu d y 34

3.3 Data collection instruments 35

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 47

4.1 Teachers' beliefs: 47

4.2 Teachers' actual classroom practices and their consistence with the teachers' beliefs 57

CHAPTER 5: IMPLICATIONS AND CONCLUSION 69

5.1 Implications 69

5.2 Limitations of the study and directions for future research 70

5.3 Conclusion 71

REFERENCES 73

APPENDIX 1: PRE- LESSON INTERVIEW QUESTIONS 81

APPENDIX 2: SAMPLE OF AN INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT 82

APPENDIX 3: CLASSROOM OBSERVATION SC H EM E 86

APPENDIX 4: POST- LESSON INTERVIEW TIM ETA BLE 89

APPENDIX 5: A SAMPLE OF A POST- LESSON INTERVIEW 90

APPENDIX 7: C A LLA 91

A B S T R A C T

D ra w in g o n th e o rie s o f th e re la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n te a c h e r s ' b e lie fs a n d te a c h in g p ra ctices,

th is stu d y in v e stig a te s th e b e lie fs a b o u t te a c h in g re a d in g s tra te g ie s o f te a c h e rs at

A c a d e m y o f F in a n ce, th e ir te a c h in g p ra c tic e s in c la ssro o m s an d the c o rre la tio n b etw e en

th e b e lie fs and th e te a c h in g p ra c tic e s T h e s tu d y w a s g u id ed by th e fo llo w in g re searc h

q u e stio n s: W hat a re te a c h e r 's b e lie fs a b o u t te a c h in g re a d in g stra te g ie s? H ow are

te a c h e r s ' b eliefs a b o u t te a c h in g re a d in g s tra te g ie s re fle c te d in th e ir te a c h in g p ra c tic e s?

T h e p a rtic ip a n ts o f th e stu d y w e re tw o te a c h e rs from th e E n g lish D e p a rtm e n t at A O F

T h e d a ta fo r th e stu d y w a s c o lle c te d u s in g s e m i- stru ctu re d in te rv ie w s w h ic h is d e liv ered

to th e p a rtic ip a n ts b e fo re a n d a f te r th e le s s o n s to e lic it the th e ir b e lie fs a b o u t te a c h in g

re a d in g stra te g ie s a n d c la rify so m e q u e s tio n s o c c u rre d in the o b s e rv a tio n pro cess;

c la s s ro o m o b se rv a tio n to se e h o w th e te a c h in g w a s a c tu a lly c a rrie d o u t in th e c la ssro o m s

T h e re su lts re v ealed th a t te a c h e rs ' b e lie f s a b o u t re a d in g s tra te g ie s a n d te a c h in g re a d in g in

c la s s ro o m s w e re c o n siste n t w ith th e ir a c tu a l te a c h in g p ra ctices H o w e v e r, in te rm s o f

s p e c ific stra te g ie s fo r te a c h in g re a d in g , th e fin d in g s in d icated th a t o n ly the b e lie fs o f

te a c h e rs a b o u t te a c h in g m e ta c o g n itiv e s tra te g ie s w e re c o n siste n t w ith th e u se o f th ese

s tra te g ie s in th e c la ssro o m s, w h e re a s, th e ir b e lie f s a b o u t te a c h in g c o g n itiv e a n d social

s tra te g ie s to stu d e n ts w e re n o t th e s a m e w ith w h a t th ey a c tu a lly had e m p lo y e d in the

c la s s ro o m s T he re a so n s e x p la in e d f o r th is in c o n s is te n c e lied at th e te a c h in g m a te ria ls,

th e s h o rta g e o f tim e , e x a m in a tio n p re s su re a n d m ix e d -lev el c la ssro o m s

F ig u r e 2 1 B o tto m - u p m o d e l.

F ig u r e 2 2 S c h e m a tiz a tio n o f th e to p - d o w n ap p ro a c h

L I S T O F F I G U R E S

In a d d itio n , re se a rc h in to re a d in g h as fo u n d th a t e ffe c tiv e re a d e rs a re a w a re o f the

s tra te g ie s th ey u se a n d th a t th e y u se s tra te g ie s fle x ib ly an d e ffe c tiv e ly ( G a m e r, 1987;

P re sle y , B eard E L , D in a ry & B ro w n 1992) R e se a rc h e rs b e lie v e th a t th e se s tra te g ie s can

b e ta u g h t to la n g u a g e le a rn e rs so th a t th e y c a n b e c o m e m o re su c c e ssfu l a n d e ffe c tiv e

re a d e rs, w h o a re a b le to c o p e w ith re a d in g ta sk s in learn in g p ro c e ss o r in re a lity B esid es,

it is sa id that te a c h in g re a d in g s tra te g ie s a lso m a k e s stu d e n ts b e c o m e a u to n o m o u s learn ers A s a re su lt, te a c h in g re a d in g s tra te g ie s is o n e o f th e m o st im p o rta n t d u tie s o f the

la n g u a g e teac h ers

It is a fact th a t a t A c a d e m y o f F in a n c e (A O F ) re a d in g is c o n sid e re d o n e o f the k e y sk ills

to h e lp stu d e n ts e n la rg e th e ir k n o w le d g e o f e c o n o m ic s H o w e v e r, in re a lity , n o n E n g lish -

m a jo re d stu d e n ts get lo w sc o re s in re a d in g te sts in c o m p a riso n w ith o th e r sk ills a n d a

n u m b e r o f stu d en ts a d m itte d th a t th ey felt p u z z le d w h e n d o in g re a d in g c o m p re h e n sio n

q u e s tio n s b e c a u se th e y d o n o t k n o w h o w to deal w ith it

In a d d itio n , it is s h o w n in so m e re se a rc h e s in to te a c h e rs ' b e lie fs th a t te a c h e rs ' b eliefs

h a v e g re a t in flu en c es o n th e ir p e rfo rm a n c e in th e c la ssro o m A c c o rd in g to S h a v e lso n &

S ta m (1 9 8 1 ) w h a t te a c h e rs d o in c la ssro o m is g o v e rn e d by w h a t th e y b e lie v e and th ese

b e lie fs o fte n se rv e a s a filte r th ro u g h w h ic h in stru c tio n a l ju d g m e n ts and d e c isio n s are

I

m a d e F u rth e rm o re B o rg (1 9 9 8 , 2 0 0 3 ) S h a v e lso n & S te rn (1 9 8 1 ) also in d ic a te a fa c t that

te a c h e rs p o sse s a v ast a rra y o f co m p le x b e lie fs a b o u t p e d a g o g ic a l issu es in c lu d in g b e lie fs

a b o u t s tu d e n ts ' le a rn in g a n d cla ssro o m p ra c tic e s and th e s e b e lie fs c a n b e in te rp re te d into

d iffe re n t im p le m e n ta tio n in c la ssro o m , th u s " a tte n tio n to te a c h e r 's b e lie fs c a n in fo rm

e d u c a tio n a l p ra c tic e s in th e w a y s th a t p re v a ilin g re searc h h as not a n d e s s e n tia l to

im p ro v in g th e ir p ro fe ssio n a l p re p a ra tio n a n d te a c h in g p ra c tic e ( P ajares 1992)”

A t A O F w h e re fo re ig n la n g u a g e te a c h e rs a re o f g e n e ra tio n s w ith d iffe re n t ages,

b a c k g ro u n d e d u c a tio n th e te a c h e rs ' b e lie fs a b o u t te a c h in g fo re ig n la n g u a g e s a re v ery

c o m p lic a te d In fact, th e re h a v e n o t b e e n a n y stu d ie s o n te a c h e rs ' b e lie fs a b o u t te a c h in g

fo re ig n la n g u a g e in g e n e ra l a n d re a d in g s tra te g ie s in p a rtic u la r a t A O F F o r all o f th e se

re a s o n s , it w o u ld b e n e c e s s a ry to h a v e an in v estig atio n in to te a c h e r s ' b e lie fs a b o u t

te a c h in g re a d in g s tra te g ie s a n d th e ir c la ssro o m p ra c tic e a t A O F to p ro v id e E ng lish

re a d in g te a c h e r an in- d e p th u n d e rsta n d in g a b o u t re a d in g s tra te g ie s to m a k e d e c is io n s on

th e ir te a c h in g lessons

1.2 A im s o f th e stu d y

T h e m a in aim o f th is re se a rc h is to fin d o u t w h e th e r th e te a c h e r 's b e lie fs a b o u t re a d in g

s tra te g ie s an d h is/ h e r in te rp re ta tio n in to c la ssro o m a re c o n s is te n t o r n o t S p e c ific a lly , the

a u th o r e x p e c ts to fin d th e a n s w e rs to th e fo llo w in g q u estio n s:

W hat are teacher's beliefs about teaching reading strategies?

How are teachers' beliefs about teaching reading strategies reflected in their teaching practices?

T h e re s e a rc h e r h o p e s th a t th e fin d in g o f th e stu d y w ill p a rtly p ro v id e th e c o n c e rn e d

re se a rc h a n in-d ep th u n d e rs ta n d in g a b o u t te a c h in g and te a c h in g p ra c tic e a t A O F

1.3 Significance a n d th e scope o f th e stu d y

T h e s tu d y w ill p ro v id e in s ig h ts in to b o th w h a t te a c h e rs b e lie v e d an d w h a t th e y a c tu a lly

d id in th e c la s s ro o m a t A O F fro m w h ich th e te a c h e r can b e a w a re o f th e ir te a c h in g

p ra c tic e s in the c la s s ro o m s "W h e n te a c h e rs b e c o m e m o re a w a re o f how th e y te a c h and

h o w th e ir s tu d e n ts le a rn , th e n th e w h o le e d u c a tio n a l p ro c e ss b e c o m e s m o re e n jo y a b le and

m e a n in g fu l fo r th e s ta k e h o ld e rs : te a c h e r an d student'" (M ille r 2 0 0 4 )

T h e s tu d y is a ls o h o p e d to o ff e r th e th e o re tic a l b a sis fo r th e a p p lic a tio n o f re a d in g

te c h n iq u e s in th e c la s s ro o m s

H o w e v e r th is s tu d y is a c a s e s tu d y , th e ir fin d in g s c o u ld n o t be g e n e ra liz e d to all o th e r

c a s e s in d iffe re n t s e ttin g s a n d c o n te x ts T h e re su lt o f th e stu d y , th e re fo re , sh o u ld j u s t be

u sed a s a re fe re n c e to o th e r s tu d ie s in the future

1.4 O rg a n iz a tio n o f th e th esis

T h e th e s is c o n s is ts o f fiv e c h a p te rs Chapter 1, introduction, p re s e n ts th e b a c k g ro u n d to

th e s tu d y , s ta te s th e a im s o f th e s tu d y a n d lists th e re searc h q u e s tio n s th a t in te n d e d to

g u id e th e in v e s tig a tio n T h e s ig n ific a n c e o f th e stu d y is a lso d isc u sse d Chapter 2, literature review, p ro v id e s th e th e o re tic a l b a sis w h ic h u n d e rp in s th e stu d y T h is c h a p te r

c o n ta in s th re e s e c tio n s: R e a d in g in te rm s o f d e fin itio n , m o d e ls o f re a d in g p ro c ess,

re a d in g s tra te g ie s in c lu d in g le a rn in g s tra te g ie s a n d re a d in g s tra te g ie s, te a c h e rs ’ b eliefs

an d te a c h in g p ra c tic e s C h apter 3, m ethodology, fo c u se s on th e m e th o d s u sed to g a th e r

a n d a n a ly z e d a ta F irst, re s e a rc h q u e s tio n s a re a d d ressed T h en , in s tru m e n ts fo r data

c o lle c tio n , s u b je c ts a n d p ro c e d u re s a r e d e s c rib e d T h e c h a p te r e n d s w'ith a n a ly z in g data

C hapter 4, fin d in g s an d discussion, re p o rts th e re su lts o f th e sta te d b e lie fs ab o u t

te a c h in g re a d in g s tra te g ie s o f tw o E n g lish te a c h e rs , the ac tu a l e m p lo y m e n t o f th ese

s tra te g ie s in re a d in g c la s s r o o m s , th e c o n s is te n c y a n d d isc re p a n c y b e tw e e n te a c h e rs ’

b e lie fs a n d th e ir te a c h in g p ra c tic e s re g a rd in g te a c h in g re a d in g s tra te g ie s Chapter 5,

im plications a n d conclusion, p ro v id e s im p lic a tio n s fo r te a c h in g re a d in g s tra te g ie s for

3

n o n - E n g lish m a jo re d s tu d e n ts at A O F , re c o m m e n d s d ire c tio n s fo r fu tu re re searc h an d

m a k e s a final c o n c lu s io n

S h a rin g th e sa m e o p in io n S m ith (1 9 8 5 p: 102) d e fin e d " re a d in g is u n d e rs ta n d in g th e

a u t h o r 's th o u g h t” H e a lso a d d e d “ U n d e rs ta n d in g p rin t o r e v e n re c e iv in g c o m m u n ic a tio n

c a n h a r d ly b e said to e x p la in re a d in g It m e a n s th a t w e - th e re a d e r- re a d th e a u t h o r 's m in d

n o t th e a u th o r 's w o rd s" , so th e n a tu re o f re a d in g , a c c o rd in g to S m ith , is th e in te ra c tio n

b e tw e e n re a d e rs a n d th e au th o rs

O b v io u s ly , th e se a b o v e d e fin itio n s fail to th e w a y s th a t h e lp re a d e r u n d e rs ta n d th e

m e s s a g e s in th e te x t T h e d e fin itio n g iv e n b y W illia m (1 9 9 0 p: 2), w h ic h say s th a t

“re a d in g is a p ro c e ss w h e re b y o n e lo o k a t a n d u n d e rsta n d s w h a t h as b e e n w ritte n " a lso

re a d e r, th e text and th e in te ra c tio n b e tw e e n th e te x t an d the re a d e r a n d e m p h a siz e d the

ro le o f p e rc e p tio n in re a d in g p ro c e s s an d th e ac tiv e ro le o f th e re a d e rs p a rtic ip a tin g to the

c o n s tru c tio n o f m e a n in g “ In th is p ro c e ss, th e re a d e r in te ra c ts d y n a m ic a lly w ith the lin g u is tic s o r sy ste m k n o w le d g e a s w e ll w a s s c h e m a tic k n o w le d g e ” S h a rin g th e sam e

p o in t o f view on re a d in g , A e b e rso ld a n d F ie ld (1 9 9 7 p: 15) stated :

Reading is what happens when people look at a text and assign m eanings to the

w ritten sym bols in that text T he text and the reader are the tw o physical entities

necessary for the reading process to start It is, however, the interaction between

the text and the reader that constitutes actual meaning

S in c e re a d in g is a c o m p le x p ro c e ss, G ra b e a rg u e s th at “ m a n y re s e a rc h e rs atte m p t to

u n d e rs ta n d and e x p la in th e flu e n t re a d in g p ro c e ss by a n a ly z in g p ro c e ss in to a set o f

c o m p o n e n t sk ills" (1 9 9 1 , p 3 7 9 ) T h is id eas are th e sa m e w ith H a m m a d o u (1991 ) w hen

s c h e m a R e se a rc h in re a d in g h a s sh o w n th a t sc h e m a p la y s an im p o rta n t ro le in h e lp in g

th e re a d e r to c o m p re h e n d a tex t

T h e a b o v e m e n tio n e d v ie w s o n re a d in g a re o n ly g e n e ra l o n e s In o rd e r to u n d ersta n d

m o re a b o u t the n a tu re o f re a d in g , it is n e c e s s a ry to ta k e a c lo se r lo o k at th e ac tu a l p ro c e ss

th a t re a lly ta k e s p la c e in th e r e a d e r 's m in d s S o far sev e ral se c tio n se v e ra l m o d e ls have

b e e n p ro p o se d to d e sc rib e th is p ro c e ss T h e n e x t se c tio n is g o in g to p re s e n t th e se m o d els

o f re a d in g and d isc u ss th e ir s tre n g th s a n d w e a k n e sse s

2 1 2 M o d e l s o f r e a d in g p r o c e s s

2.1.2.1 Bottom - up

T h e b o tto m -u p m o d el is a te x t-d riv e n m odel w h ic h v ie w s re a d in g as a o n e -w a y flow o f

in fo rm a tio n (C h e rn , 1994) an d d e sc rib e s in fo rm a tio n p ro c e ssin g as a se rie s o f d iscre te

s ta g e s (S ta n o v ic h , 1980) T h e re a d e rs m u st in fe r m e a n in g , d e c id e w h a t to re tain an d not

to re ta in , and m o v e on (B ro w n 2001 )

T h e c e n tra l n o tio n b e h in d th e b o tto m -u p a p p ro a c h is th a t re a d in g is b a sic a lly a m a tte r o f

d e c o d in g a se rie s o f w ritte n sy m b o ls into th e ir au ral e q u iv a le n ts (N u n a n 1991, p 64)

A c c o rd in g to th is theory’, in o th e r w o rd , th e re a d e r b e g in s w ith th e w ritte n te x t (th e

b o tto m ) an d c o n s tru c ts m e a n in g from th e le tte rs, w o rd s, p h ra se s a n d se n te n c e s fo u n d

w ith in a n d then p ro c e s s e s the te x t in a lin e a r fa sh io n T h e c o m in g d a ta fro m th e te x t m u st

b e re c e iv e d b efo re th e h ig h - level m en tal sta g e s o f u n d e rsta n d in g tra n sfo rm a n d re co d e

th e d a ta F o llo w in g a n in fo rm a tio n p ro c e ssin g a p p ro a c h to c o m p re h e n s io n , b o tto m - up

m o d e ls a n a ly z e d re a d in g as a p ro c e ss in w h ic h ‘‘sm all c h u n k s o f te x t a re a b so rb e d ,

a n a ly z e d , and g ra d u a lly a d d e d to th e n ex t c h u n k , u n til they b e c o m e m e a n in g fu l” (B a rn e t,

1989, p: 13) T h is b o tto m -u p p ro c e ss o f c o n s tru c tin g th e m e a n in g o f th e te x t from the

sm a lle st u nits w ill b e c o m e so a u to m a tic th a t re a d e rs a re n o t c o n s c io u s o f its o p e ra tio n (A e b e rs o ld & F ie ld , 1997; E sk e y , 1988)

G o u g h (1 9 7 2 ) w h o su p p o rte d th is re a d in g m o d e l e x p la in e d th e se q u e n c e o f th e read in g

s y s te m form a b o tto m - u p p e rsp e c tiv e a s fo llo w (se e fig u re 1.1.): F irst, the g ra p h em ic

in fo rm a tio n e n ters th ro u g h th e visu al sy stem a n d is tra n sfo rm e d at th e first level from a

le tte r c h a ra c te r to a s o u n d , th a t is from a g ra p h e m ic re p re se n ta tio n to a p h o n e m ic

re p re se n ta tio n S e c o n d , th e p h o n e m ic re p re se n ta tio n is c o n v e rte d : a t le v e l tw o , in to a

w o rd T h e m e a n in g u n its o r w o rd s then p a s s o n to the th ird level a n d m e a n in g is

a s s im ila te d into the k n o w le d g e sy stem

It c a n b e seen th a t, in b o tto m - up p ro c e ssin g , re a d e rs are p a ssiv e d e c o d e rs o f esse n tia l

g ra p h ic - p h o n e m ic - sy n ta c tic - se m a n tic sy ste m (A ld e rso n , 2 0 0 0 ) T h e re fo re , the

s o p h is tic a te d lin g u istic k n o w le d g e o f the re a d e r is esse n tial

A lth o u g h bo tto m - up m o d e l w a s c o n sid e re d a s '‘th e b e st w a y to te a c h re a c h in g " (B ro w n ,

2 0 0 1 ), it w as c la im e d to b e “d iffic u lt to c o u n t fo r s e n te n c e - c o n te x t e ffe c ts and ro le o f

p rio r k n o w le d g e o f te x t to p ic a s fa c ilita tin g v a ria b le s in w o rd re c o g n itio n and

c o m p re h e n s io n " (S a m u e l & K a m ial, 1988 p: 3 ) E sk e y e t al (1 9 7 3 ) a ls o c la im e d th at the

d e c o d in g m odel w a s in a d e q u a te b e c a u se it " u n d e rs te s tim a te d th e c o n trib u tio n o f the

re a d e r”, a n d it fa ile d to re c o g n iz e th a t s tu d e n t's e x p e c ta tio n a b o u t th e te x t w e re b a se d on

th e ir k n o w le d g e o f la n g u a g e and h o w it w o rk s (C ite d in C a rre ll & E sd e y , 1988, p 3)

D u e to th e d e fic ie n c y o f b o tto m -u p m o d e l, W id d o w so n (1 9 7 8 , 1983) b e g a n to view

se c o n d la n g u a g e re a d in g a s an a c tiv e p ro c e ss in w h ic h th e re a d e r is an a c tiv e in fo rm a tio n

p ro c e s s o r w h o p re d ic ts w h ile s a m p lin g o n ly p a rts o f th e actual tex t

2.1.2.2 Top- down model

In th e re a d in g p ro c e ss, to p -d o w n m o d e l a rg u e s th a t re a d e rs b rin g a g re a t d e a l o f

k n o w le d g e , e x p e c ta tio n , a s s u m p tio n s , and q u e stio n s to the te x t a n d th e y c o n tin u e to read

a s lo n g a s the te x t c o n firm s th e ir e x p e c ta tio n (G o o d m a n , 1967) A e b e rso ld and F ield

fu rth e r e x p la in th a t th e to p -d o w n th e o ry a s “ re a d e rs fit in to k n o w le d g e (c u ltu ra l,

s y n ta c tic , lin g u istic, h isto ric a l) th ey a lre a d y p o sse ss, then c h e c k b a c k w h e n new o r

u n e x p e c te d in fo rm a tio n a p p e a rs" (1 9 9 7 p 18) in stead o f by g o in g from le tte r to le tte r

a n d fro m w ord to w o rd (C h e m 1994: H u d so n 1982: U rq u h a rt & W e ir 1998) R e a d e r 's

p rio r e x p e rie n c e o r b a c k g ro u n d k n o w le d g e th e y b rin g to th e te x t, w h ic h is k n o w n as

s c h e m a tic k n o w le d g e , a lso play s a sig n ific a n t ro le in th e re a d in g p ro c e ss (A e b e rs o ld &

F ie ld 1997 p 16) In th is v ie w , n o t o n ly is th e r e a d e r 's p rio r lin g u istic k n o w le d g e (" lin g u is tic sc h e m a ta ) and lev el o f p ro fic ie n c y in th e seco n d la n g u a g e a re im p o rta n t, b u t the r e a d e r 's p rio r b a c k g ro u n d k n o w le d g e o f the c o n te n t a re a o f th e te x t (c o n te n t

s c h e m a ta ) as w ell a s o f the rh e to ric a l stru c tu re o f th e te x t (fo rm a l s c h e m a ta ) a re a lso

im p o rta n t (C a rre ll & E sd e y 1988 p 2), fo r th ey p ro v id e the re a d e rs w ith a b a s is fo r

c o m p a riso n , thus fo r m a k in g p re d ic tio n

T o p -d o w n p ro c e ss “ m o v e s from th e to p th e h ig h e r-le v e l m ental sta g e s, d o w n to th e te x t

i t s e l f ' (B a rn e t 1989 p 13), s o re a d in g is a “ p sy c h o lin g u istic g u e ssin g g a m e ," in w h ic h

re a d e rs d id not d e p e n d m u c h o n a c c u ra te re c o g n itio n o f the p rin t b u t on th e ir k n o w le d g e

c e n tra l to the p ro c e ss, and th e re a d e r b rin g s to th is in te ra c tio n h is k n o w le d g e o f th e

su b je c t a t h an d , k n o w le d g e o f e x p e c ta tio n s ab o u t h o w la n g u a g e w o rk s, m o tiv a tio n ,

in tere st a n d a ttitu d e s to w a rd s th e c o n te n t o f th e te x t R a th e r th a n d e c o d in g e a c h s y m b o l,

o r e v e n e v e ry w o rd , th e re a d e r u sed his g e n e ra l k n o w le d g e o f th e w o rd o r p a rtic u la r te x t

9

c o m p o n e n ts to m a k e in te llig e n t g u e sse d a b o u t w h a t m ig h t c o m e n e x t in th e te x t, o r form s

h y p o th e s is a b o u t te x t e le m e n ts and th e n th e re a d e r sa m p le s o n ly e n o u g h o f th e te x t to

c o n firm o r re je ct h is/ h e r g u e ss, to d e te rm in e w h e th e r o r n o t th e h y p o th e sis a re co rrec t

T h u s , th e re a d e r p la y s an a c tiv e ro le an d s u p p lie rs m o re in fo rm a tio n to c o n stru c t m e a n in g

th a n th e p rin ted p a g e s does

J u s t lik e th e b o tto m - u p m o d el, to p - d o w n m o d el d o e s hav e s o m e lim ita tio n s T h is m o d el,

a s sta te d b y E sk ey (1 9 8 8 , p: 93)

‘le n d s to em phasize such higher- level skills as the prediction o f m eaning by

m eans o f context clues or certain kinds o f background knowledge at the expense

o f such lower skills as the rapid and accurate identification o f lexical and

gram m atical form That is in m aking the perfectly valid point that fluent reading

is prim arily a cognitive process, they tend to deem phasize the perceptual and

decoding dim ension o f that process"

A n o th e r d ra w b a c k o f to p - d o w n a p p ro a c h is th a t th e re a d e r d o e s n o t k n o w " h o w p rio r

k n o w le d g e is c a lle d u p o n from m e m o ry a n d h o w it is th e u se d in u n d e rs ta n d in g ” ( A ld e rs o n , 2 0 0 , p: 18) F u rth e rm o re , a c c o rd in g to S a m u e l a n d K a m il's p o in t o f view (1 9 8 8 ), is th a t g e n e ra tin g a p re d ic tio n m ay ta k e m o re tim e th a n re c o g n iz in g th e w o rd s

M o re o v e r, for m a n y te x ts , th e re a d e r h as no o r little know led g e o f th e to p ic, a s the resu lt,

th e y c a n n o t m a k e a n y p re d ic tio n s a b o u t th e te x ts m ean in g s

2.1.2.3 Interactive model

A n d e rs o n has in d ic a te d th a t, re a d in g h as b e g u n to b e d e sc rib e d as “ in te ra c tiv e ” , w h ich

c o m b in e e le m e n ts o f b o th b o tto m - up a n d to p - dow n m o d els a s th e m o st c o m p re h e n siv e

d e s c rip tio n o f th e re a d in g p ro c e ss, a s s u m in g th a t " a p a tte rn is sy n th e s iz e d b a se d on

in fo rm a tio n p ro v id e d sim u lta n e o u s ly from sev e ral k n o w le d g e s o u rc e s " (S ta n o v ic h , 1980,p: 35)

T h e in te ra c tiv e m o d e l is a re a d e r-d riv e n re a d in g m o d e l and re g a rd s re a d in g a s a cy c lic al

p ro c e ss E sk ey (1 9 8 8 ) d e fin e d th e in te ra c tiv e m o d e l a s a re a d in g m o d e l th a t " p o sits a

s o u rc e o f in fo rm a tio n c o n trib u tin g to a c o m p re h e n s iv e re c o n stru c tio n o f th e m e a n in g o f

th e te x t” (1 9 8 8 p: 9 4 ) A c c o rd in g to th is v iew , g o o d readers a re re g a rd e d as b o th good

d e c o d e rs and g o o d in te rp re te rs o f th e te x ts , th e ir d e c o d in g sk ills b e c o m in g m ore

a u to m a tic but less im p o rtan t a s th e ir re a d in g sk ill d e v e lo p s“ (1 9 8 8 p: 94)

T o p -d o w n p ro c e ssin g ta k e s p la c e w h e n re a d e rs ’ b a c k g ro u n d k n o w le d g e can b e u sed to

m a k e p re d ic tio n s a b o u t th e tex t, c la rify th e ir a m b ig u itie s, a n d c h o o se fro m a lte rn a tiv e

p o s s ib le in te rp re ta tio n s o f the in c o m in g d a ta B o tto m -u p p ro c e ssin g o c c u rs w hen lin g u istic in p u t fro m the a rtic le d o e s n o t c o rre s p o n d to th e re a d e rs ' p rio r k n o w le d g e (C a rre ll & E iste rh o ld , 1983; S ilb e rste in , 1994) In o rd e r to m a k e a satisfacto ry

in te rp re ta tio n o f a te x t, re a d e rs w ill try h ard to m ak e th e in c o m in g in fo rm a tio n p ro c essed

th ro u g h b o tto m -u p p ro c e ssin g a n d th e c o n c e p tu a l p re d ic tio n s m a d e th ro u g h to p -d o w n

p ro c e s s in g c o m p a tib le I f th e tw o p ro c e ssin g s a re n o t c o m p a tib le , it is e sse n tia l for

re a d e rs to rev ise th e ir in te rp re ta tio n u n til th e b o tto m -u p tex tu al m e a n in g b u ilt from the

s m a lle s t u n its to th e la rg e st can m o d ify o r m a tc h the to p -d o w n p re d ic tio n (C a rre ll, 1988b:

C a rre ll & E iste rh o ld , 1983)

T h e fo llo w in g c o m m e n t by S ta n n o v ic h (1 9 8 0 ) can s u m m a riz e all th e s tre n g th s o f the

in te ra c tiv e m o d el o v e r th e o th e r tw o m o d els:

“Interactive m odels o f reading appear to provide a m ore accurate

conceptualization o f reading perform ance than strictly top- dow n or bottom - up

m odels When com bined with an assum ption o f com pensatory processing (that a

deficit in any particular process will result in a greater reliance on their

knowledge sources, regardless o f their level in the processing hierarchy),

interactive m odel provide a better account o f the existing data on the use o f

orthographic structure and sentence context by good and poor readers“ (1980, p:

32)

T h e r e fo r e , it is g e n e ra lly a g re e d th a t th e in te ra c tiv e m o d el is the b e st o n e th a t c o n tru ly

re fle c t th e re a d in g p ro c e ss th a t ta k e s p la c e in th e re a d e r ’s m in d In th is p ro c e ss, th e re ad er

c o n s ta n tly sh u ttle s b e tw e e n b o tto m -u p and to p - d o w n p ro c e s s e s and h e c a n n o t be

s u c c e s s fu l in re a d in g c o m p re h e n s io n w ith o u t e ith e r o f th ese tw o p ro c e sse s

II

2 1 3 R e a d in g s tr a te g ie s.

2.1.3.1 Learning strategies.

2.1.3.1.1 D efinition o f language learning stra teg ies

T h e stu d y o f le a rn in g stra te g ie s in seco n d la n g u a g e a c q u isitio n (S L A ) started in th e m id 1970s T h ro u g h in v e stig a tio n s into the d iffe re n c e s b e tw e e n su c c e ssfu l and u n su c c e ssfu l

le a rn e rs R ubin (1 9 7 5 ) S te m (1 9 7 5 ) a n d N a im a n F rö h lich S te m , and T o d e sc o (1 9 7 8 )

in te n d e d to id en tify th e n a tu re o f le a rn in g stra te g ie s D u rin g th e n e x t 25 y ea rs, th e fo c u s

o f d iscu ssio n an d a rg u m e n t w a s on th e d e fin itio n o f le a rn in g s tra te g ie s a n d its

c la ssific a tio n , a m o n g w h ic h 5 d e fin itio n s are liste d by R o d E llis (1 9 9 4 : 5 3 1 ) as fo llo w s:

1 Stem (1983): ‘ In our view strategy is best reserved for general tendencies or

overall characteristics o f the approach em ployed by the language learner, leaving

techniques as the term to refer to particular forms o f observable learning

behavior.*

2 W einstein and M ayer (1986): ‘ Learning strategies are the behaviors and

thoughts that a learner engages in during learning that are intended to influence

the learner's encoding process.'

3 Chamot (1987): ‘Learning strategies are techniques, approaches or deliberate

actions that students take in order to facilitate the learning, recall o f both

linguistic and content area inform ation.'

4 Rubin (1987): ‘ Learning strategies are strategies w hich contribute to the

developm ent o f the language system which the learner constructs and affect

learning directly.’

5 Oxford (1990): Language learning strategies are operations em ployed by the

learner to aid the acquisition, storage, retrieveval and use o f inform ation ;

specific actions taken by the learners to m ake learning easier, faster, more

enjoyable, m ore self- directed, m ore effective, and more transferable to new

a n d M a y e r' d e fin itio n , the p ro b lem ro se w as th a t w h e th e r le a rn in g b e h a v io r s a re to c o u n t

a s ‘s tra te g ie s ' o r 'te c h n iq u e s ’

W ith O 'M a lle y a n d C h a m o t, la n g u a g e le a rn in g stra te g ie s c a n b e e ith e r o b s e rv a b le (b e h a v io rs ) o r u n o b se rv a b le (th o u g h t) but th is d e fin itio n d o e s m a k e s c o n fu s e d th at

w h e th e r learn in g s tra te g ie s are to b e se e n as c o n s c io u s a n d in te n tio n a l o r a s s u b c o n s c io u s

A s c le a rly sh o w n in O x f o r d 's (1 9 9 0 ) d e fin itio n , sev e ral e x p lic it g o a ls a re e v id e n t “ T h e se

a r e re la te d to a s p e c ts o f learn in g and u s e o f in fo rm a tio n , as w e ll a s to th e c h a n g e d n a tu re

o f le a rn in g w hen le a rn in g is e n h a n c e d b y s tra te g ie s (e a sie r, fa ste r, m o re s e lf- d ir e c t e d ) (L e 2 0 0 5 pi 7) In a d d itio n O x fo rd b e lie v e s th a t ap p ro p riate la n g u a g e le a rn in g s tra te g ie s

c o u ld h elp le a rn e rs g a in se lf- c o n fid e n c e an d im p ro v e p ro fic ie n c y O x fo rd (1 9 9 0 p 9 )

a lso p ro p o se s a list o f tw e lv e k e y fe a tu re s in v o lv in g la n g u a g e le a rn in g stra te g ie s ,

c la im in g that th ey :

1 c o n trib u te to th e m ain g o a l, c o m m u n ic a tiv e co m p e te n c e

2 a llo w learn ers to b e c o m e m o re se lf-d ire c te d

A m o n g the fe a tu re s a b o v e , th e te n th a rg u m e n t, w h ich n o tes th a t s tra te g ie s a re a b le to b e

ta u g h t to lan g u ag e le a rn e rs, m a k e s it p a rtic u la rly w o rth w h ile fo r la n g u a g e p ra c titio n e r s to stu d y th is issue fu rth e r so th a t a p p ro p ria te s tra te g y in stru c tio n s m a y b e p ro v id e d to

s tu d e n ts to e n h a n c e th e ir learning

13

L a n g u a g e L e a rn in g S tra te g ie s h a v e b e e n c la ssifie d by m an y s c h o la rs (W e n d e n and R ubin 1987: O 'M a lle y e t al 1985; O x fo rd 1990; S te m 1992; E llis 1994, e tc )

R u b in (1 9 7 5 p: 4 3 ) o n e o f th e e a rlie s t re se a rc h e r in th is field, w h e n g iv in g a v e ry b ro ad

d e fin itio n o f la n g u a g e learn in g s tra te g ie s a s " th e te c h n iq u e s o r d e v ic e s w h ic h a learn ers

m a y u se o r a c q u ire k n o w le d g e " id e n tifie d tw o k in d s o f learn in g stra te g ie s: th o se w h ich

c o n trib u te d ire c tly to learn in g , and th o se w h ic h c o n trib u te in d ire c tly to le a rn in g T h e

d ire c t s tra te g ie s, sh e d iv id e d into six ty p es (c la rific a tio n / v é rific a tio n , m o n ito rin g ,

m e m o riz a tio n , g u e s s in g / in d u c tiv e in fe re n c in g d e d u c tiv e re a so n in g , p ra c tic e ), a n d th e

in d ire c t s tra te g ie s, s h e d iv id e d in to tw o ty p e s (c re a tin g o p p o rtu n itie s fo r p ra c tic e ,

p ro d u c tio n tric k s )

L e a rn in g s tra te g ie s

I C o g n itiv e le a n in g stra te g iie s

C la rific a tio n / V é rific a tio n

A s can b e see n fro m a b o v e , R u b in p ro p o se d th re e d iffe re n t ty p e s o f s tra te g ie s , e g

le a rn in g stra te g ie s , c o m m u n ic a tio n stra te g ie s, a n d so c ia l s tra te g ie s, a c c o rd in g to th e ir

c o n trib u tio n to th e p ro c e s s o f la n g u a g e learning

A s p o in te d by L e (2 0 0 5 p: 2 1 ), 'L ik e p io n e e rin g re se a rc h e rs in th e la n g u a g e learn in g

s tra te g ie s re se a rc h R u b in 's m o d e l c e rta in ly m a k e s c o n trib u tio n to o u tlin in g th e im p o rta n t

s tra te g ie s u sed b y s u c c e s s fu l la n g u a g e le a rn e rs ' H o w e v er, th is m o d e l h as s o m e c e rta in lim ita tio n s F irstly , it d o e s n o t c o v e r all the s tra te g ie s in d ire c t a n d in d irec t c a te g o rie s

S eco n d ly , it p ro v e s th e o re tic a l u n s u sta in a b le and n o t p a rtic u la r u se fu l fo r p ra c titio n e rs (L e 2 0 0 5 )

L ik e R u b in O x fo rd (1 9 9 0 ) a ls o c la s s ifie d le a rn in g strateg ie s in to d ire c t a n d in d ire c t o n es

III C o m p e n s a tio n s tra te g ie s

G u e ssin g in te llig e n tly

O v e rc o m in g lim ita tio n s in s p e a k in g a n d w ritin g

II A ffe c tiv e S tra te g ie s

D ire ct stra te g ie s a r e s tra te g ie s th a t d ire c tly a ffe c t th e ta rg e t la n g u a g e w h ile in d irec t

s tra te g ie s re fe r to s tra te g ie s th a t p ro v id e in d ire c t su p p o rt fo r la n g u a g e le a rn in g th ro u g h

fo c u sin g , p la n n in g , e v a lu a tin g , s e e k in g o p p o rtu n itie s , c o n tro llin g a n x ie ty , in c re a sin g

c o o p e ra tio n and e m p a th y an d o th e r m e a n s T h e tw o m ain c la sse s a re fu rth e r c la ssifie d

in to 6 su b c a te g o rie s: m em o ry , c o g n itiv e , c o m p e n sa tio n , m e ta c o g n itiv e , a ffe c tiv e , and

so cial In O x f o r d 's ta x o n o m y , m e m o ry s tra te g ie s a re th o se re la tin g to h o w stu d en ts

re m e m b e r th e lan g u ag e C o g n itiv e s tra te g ie s a re th o s e re la tin g to h o w stu d e n ts th in k

a b o u t th e ir learn in g C o m p e n s a tio n s tra te g ie s a re to m ak e u p th e g a p a n d o v e rc o m e

d iffic u ltie s M e ta c o g n itiv e s tra te g ie s e n a b le s tu d e n ts to m an ag e th e ir la n g u a g e learn in g

A ffe c tiv e s tra te g ie s a re th o s e u sed to a ssist le a rn in g th ro u g h e m o tio n a l e le m e n ts S ocial stra te g ie s se c u re th e c o n tin u ity o f la n g u a g e a c tiv itie s th ro u g h c o o p e ra tin g w ith o th e rs

A lth o u g h O x fo r d ' ta x o n o m y is “ p e rh a p s th e m o st c o m p re h e n siv e c la ssific a tio n o f

le a rn in g s tra te g ie s to d a te ” (E llis, 1994, p: 5 3 9 ), s o m e item s in h e r m e m o ry a n d co g n itiv e

s tra te g ie s w e re c la im e d by X ia (2 0 0 6 ) to o v e rla p F u rth e rm o re , a c c o rd in g to X ia

c o m p e n sa tio n b e lo n g s to c o m m u n ic a tio n ra th e r th a n learn in g stra te g ie s

T he fra m e w o rk th a t h a s b e e n m o st u se fu l a n d g e n e ra lly a c c e p te d is O 'M a lle y an d

C h a m o t (1 9 9 0 ) B a sin g o n in fo rm a tio n -p ro c e s s in g m o d el, in a n a tte m p t to p ro d u c e a

c la ssific a tio n sc h e m e w ith m u tu a l e x c lu s iv e c a te g o rie s, O ’M a lle y a n d h is c o lle a g u e s

d e v e lo p e d a ta x o n o m y o f th e ir o w n id e n tify in g 24 s tra te g ie s w h ic h th e y d iv id e d into

th re e c a te g o rie s: m e ta c o g n itiv e , c o g n itiv e , a n d so cial In O 'M a lle y an d C h a m o t's sy stem ,

m e ta c o g n itiv e s tra te g ie s a re stra te g ie s w h ich re q u ire p la n n in g fo r le a rn in g , th in k in g ab o u t

th e le a rn in g p ro c e ss a s it is ta k in g p la c e , m o n ito rin g o f o n e 's p ro d u c tio n or

c o m p re h e n s io n , an d e v a lu a tin g le a rn in g a fte r an a c tiv ity is c o m p le te d C o g n itiv e

s tra te g ie s are m o re lim ited to sp e c ific le a rn in g ta s k s and th e y in v o lv e m o re d irect

m a n ip u la tio n o f the learn in g m ateria l itself S o cial / a ffe c tiv e stra te g ie s a re re la te d w ith

s o c ia l-m e d ia tin g a c tiv ity a n d tra n sa c tin g w ith o th ers

T h e su b ty p e s o f th e se s tra te g ie s w e re id e n tifie s by O 'M a lle y a n d C h a m o t on th e b a sis o f

th e ir s e v e ra l d e s c rip tiv e s tu d ie s on learn in g s tra te g ie s u se d b y se c o n d la n g u a g e le a rn e rs

T a b le 2.1 L e a rn in g s tra te g ie s d e fin itio n a n d c la ssific a tio n ( O 'M a lle y & C h a m o t, 1990: 119)

L e a rn in g s tra te g ie s D e fin itio n

A M E T A C O G N IT IV E

S T R A T E G IE S

In v o lv e th in k in g a b o u t th e le a rn in g p ro c e ss, p la n n in g for learn in g , m o n ito rin g th e learn in g ta sk , a n d e v a lu a tin g how

w ell o n e h as learn ed

P la n in g

A d v a n c e o rg a n iz e rs P re v ie w in g th e o rg a n iz in g c o n c e p t o r p rin c ip le o f an

an tic ip a te d le a rn in g task

D ire c te d a tte n tio n D e c id in g in a d v a n c e to atten d in g e n e ra l to a le a rn in g task

and to ig n o re irre le v a n t d istra c te r; m a in ta in in g a tten tio n

d u rin g ta sk e x e c u tio n

S e le c tiv e a tte n tio n D e c id in g in a d v a n c e to a tte n d to sp e c ific a s p e c ts o f lan g u ag e

in p u t o r situ a tio n a l d e ta ils th a t a s s is t in p e rfo rm a n c e o f a task :

a tte n d in g to s p e c ific a s p e c t o f la n g u a g e in p u t d u rin g task

ex e c u tio n

S e l f - m a n a g e m e n t U n d e rsta n d th e c o n d itio n s th a t h e lp o n e su c c e ssfu lly

a c c o m p lish la n g u a g e task s and a r ra n g in g fo r th e p re se n c e o f

17

th o se c o n d itio n s , c o n tro llin g o n e 's la n g u a g e p e rfo rm a n c e to

m a x im iz e u se o f w h a t is a lre a d y k n o w n

S e l f - m o n ito rin g C h e c k in g , v e rify in g , o r c o rre c tin g o n e 's c o m p re h e n s io n o r

p e rfo rm a n c e in th e c o u rs e o f a la n g u a g e task

P ro b le m id en tificatio n E x p lic itly id e n tify in g th e ce n tral p o in t n e e d in g re s o lu tio n in a

task o r id e n tify in g an asp ect o f th e ta sk th a t h in d e rs its

In v o lv e in te ra c tin g w ith the m a te ria l to b e le a rn e d ,

m a n ip u la tin g th e m a te ria l m en tally o r p h y sic a lly , o r a p p ly in g

a sp e c ific te c h n iq u e to a learn in g task

R ep e titio n R e p e a tin g a c h u n k o f lan g u ag e ( a w o rd o r p h ra se ) in the

c o u rse o f p e rfo rm in g a lan g u ag e task

R e so u rc in g U sin g a v a ila b le re fe re n c e so u rces o f in fo rm a tio n a b o u t the

ta rg e t la n g u a g e , in c lu d in g d ic tio n a rie s, te x tb o o k s, and p rio r

w ork

G ro u p in g O rd e rin g , c la s s ify in g , o r la b e lin g m a te ria l u sed in a la n g u a g e

ta sk b ased o n c o m m o n a ttrib u te s; re c a llin g in fo rm a tio n b a se d

o n g ro u p in g p re v io u s ly d o n e

N o te ta k in g W ritin g d o w n k e y w o rd s a n d c o n c e p ts in a b b re v ia te d v e rb a l,

g ra p h ic , o r n u m e ra l fo rm to a ssist p e rfo rm a n c e o f a la n g u a g e task

D e d u c tio n / In d u c tio n C o n s c io u s ly a p p ly in g learn ed o r s e lf- d e v e lo p e d ru le s to

d iffe re n t p a rts o f new in fo rm a tio n to e a c h o th e r: m a k in g

m e a n in g fu l p e rso n a l a sso c ia tio n s to in fo rm a tio n p re se n te d

S u m m a riz a tio n M a k in g a m e n ta l o r w ritten su m m a ry o f la n g u a g e an d

In fe re n c in g U sin g a v a ila b le in fo rm a tio n to g u e ss m e a n in g o r u s a g e o f

u n fa m ilia r la n g u a g e item s a sso c ia te d w ith a la n g u a g e ta sk , to

p re d ic t o u tc o m e s , o r to fill in m issin g in fo rm atio n

C S O C IA L /A F F E C T IV E

S T R A T E G IE S

In v o lv in g in te ra c tin g w ith a n o th e r p e rso n to a ssist le a rn in g o r

u sin g a ffe c tiv e c o n tro l to a ssist a le a rn in g task

c la rific a tio n

A sk in g fo r e x p la in in g , v e rific a tio n , re p h ra sin g , o r e x a m p le s

a b o u t th e m a te ria l; a s k in g fo r c la rific a tio n o r v e rific a tio n

feel c o m p e te n t to d o th e learn in g task

S e lf- re in fo rce m e n t R e d u c in g a n x ie ty by u sin g m en tal te c h n iq u e s th a t m a k e o ne

fell c o m p e te n t to d o the learn in g task

It c a n b e see n th a t th e m e n ta c o g n itv e a n d th e c o g n itiv e s tra te g ie s c o rre s p o n d

a p p ro x im a te ly w ith R u b in 's d ire c t a n d in d ire c t stra te g ie s H o w e v e r, th e a d d itio n o f so c ia l

m e d ia tio n c a te g o rie s w a s an im p o rta n t s te p in th e d ire c tio n o f a c k n o w le d g in g th e

im p o rta n c e o f in tera ctio n a l s tra te g ie s in la n g u a g e learn in g

In th e ir fra m e w o rk , th ey a lso m a k e a d is tin c tio n b etw e en c o g n itiv e and m e ta c o g n itiv e

s tra te g ie s w ith th e in te n tio n o f s h o w in g th e u n e q u a l fu n c tio n s a n d ro le s o f s tra te g ie s,

19

w h ich h as b ro k en the tra d itio n a l m e th o d o f sim p ly listin g all th e s tra te g ie s e m p lo y e d by

su c c e ssfu l learn ers

O 'M a lle y and C h a m o t’s th re e -w a y d istin c tio n is u se fu l and h as b e e n g e n e ra lly a c c e p te d (E llis, 1994) P e rh a p s the re a so n is th a t th is c la ssific a tio n is m o re c o n s is te n t w ith a

le a r n e r's use o f stra te g ie s It im p lie s th a t se c o n d lan g u ag e a c q u isitio n is a c tiv e and

d y n a m ic m en tal p ro c e sse s F o r te a c h e rs, th e c la ssific a tio n is fo u n d to b e u se fu l fo r

d e s c rib in g how to in teg ra te stra te g ie s in to in s tru c tio n ( O 'M a lle y and C h a m o t 2 0 0 1 )

th o u g h th e ir c la s s ific a tio n o f s tra te g ie s still re m a in s p ro b lem a tic

B e c a u se o f a b o v e re a so n s, O 'M a lle y a n d C h a m o t's c la ssific a tio n w ill b e u se d in th is stu d y a s a g u id e to d esig n th e o b se rv a tio n sc h e m e to c o lle c t the d a ta o f te a c h in g

o rd e r to a c h ie v e a learn in g g o a l" (C h a m o t 1990.) learn in g s tra te g ie s in s tru c tio n c a n h e lp

“ E F L le a rn e rs b e c o m e b e tte r learn ers In a d d itio n , sk ill in u sin g le a rn in g s tra te g ie s a ssists stu d e n ts in b e c o m in g in d e p e n d e n t, c o n fid e n t le a rn e rs (C h a m o t 1999, p: 1 ) T h a t m e a n s

w hen stu d e n ts b e g in to u n d e rsta n d th e ir o w n le a rn in g p ro c e s s e s a n d can e x e r t so m e

c o n tro l o v e r th e s e p ro c e sse s, th e y ten d to ta k e m o re re sp o n sib ility fo r th e ir o w n le a rn in g

T h is se lf- k n o w le d g e a n d skill in re g u la tin g o n e 's o w n le a rn in g is a c h a ra c te ris tic o f

su c c e ssfu l learn ers, in c lu d in g su cc essfu l la n g u a g e learn ers

S u p p o rtin g th is id ea O x fo rd (1 9 9 0 ) a d m itte d th a t s tra te g ie s •‘ a r e to o ls fo r a c tiv e , s e l f -

d ire c te d in v o lv e m e n t, w h ich is e sse n tia l fo r d e v e lo p in g c o m m u n ic a tiv e c o m p e te n c e "

B esid es, le a rn e rs w h o h a v e d e v e lo p e d a p p ro p ria te learn in g s tra te g ie s h a v e g re a te r s e l f —

c o n fid e n c e and learn m o re e ffe c tiv e ly In h e r b o o k , s h e id en tifies tw e lv e k e y fe a tu re s o f

s tra te g ie s In w h ich , sh e said that, la n g u a g e strateg ie s:

c o n trib u te to th e m ain g o a l, c o m m u n ic a tiv e c o m p e te n c e

a llo w learn ers to b e c o m e m o re s e lf - d ire c te d

s tu d e n t e m p lo y s the s tra te g y e ffe c tiv e ly and links it w ith o th e r re le v a n t s tra te g ie s

S tra te g ie s th a t fu lfill th e se c o n d itio n s “ m a k e le a rn e r e a s i e r fa ste r, m o re e n jo y a b le , m o re

s e l f d ire c te d m o re e ffe c tiv e , an d m o re tra n s fe ra b le to new s itu a tio n ” (O x f o rd , 1990, p: 8) L e a rn in g s tra te g ie s can a lso e n a b le stu d e n ts to b e c o m e m o re in d e p e n d e n t,

a u to n o m o u s , life lo n g le a rn e rs (A llw rig h t 1990: L ittle 1991)

In c o n c lu sio n , le a rn in g s tra te g ie s p lay im p o rta n t ro le s in le a rn in g p ro c e s s T h a n k s to

s u ita b le s tra te g ie s w ith le a rn in g sty le, le a rn e rs c a n a c h ie v e th e ta rg e t e a s ie r w ith h ig h

e ffic ie n c y In a d d itio n , le a rn in g stra te g ie s in stru c tio n can in c re a se s tu d e n t m o tiv a tio n in

tw o m a in w ay s: b y in c re a sin g stu d e n ts' c o n fid e n c e in th e ir o w n le a rn in g a b ility a n d by

p ro v id in g stu d e n ts sp e c ific te c h n iq u e s fo r su c c e ssfu l lan g u ag e le a rn in g L a s tly , stu d e n ts

w h o h a v e learned how a n d w h e n to u se le a rn in g stra te g ie s b e c o m e m o re s e lf- re lia n t and

In o th e r w o rd , “ s u c h s tra te g ie s a re p ro c e s s e s u sed by the le a rn e r to e n h a n c e re a d in g

c o m p re h e n s io n a n d o v e r c o m e c o m p re h e n s io n fa ilu re s.” T h is p ro c e ss m ay in v o lv e

sk im m in g , sc a n n in g , g u e s s in g , re c o g n iz in g , c o g n a te s and w o rd fa m ilie s, re a d in g fo r

m e a n in g , p re d ic tin g , a c tiv a tin g g e n e ra l k n o w le d g e , m a k in g in fe re n c e s, fo llo w in g

re fe re n c e s a n d s e p a ra tin g m a in id eas from s u p p o rtin g o n e s (B ra n tm e ie r 2 0 0 2 )

B ased on O 'M a lle y a n d C h a m o t's (1 9 9 0 ) re a d in g stra te g ie s c a n b e u n d e rs to o d a s the

sp ecial th o u g h t o r b e h a v io rs th a t in d iv id u a ls u se to h elp them to c o m p re h e n d , learn and

re tain new in fo rm a tio n fro m th e re a d in g te x t T h e se stra te g ie s a re both o b s e rv a b le a n d

g u e ssin g , re c o g n iz in g , c o g n a te s a n d w o rd fa m ilie s, re a d in g fo r m e a n in g , p re d ic tin g ,

a c tiv a tin g g e n e ra l k n o w le d g e , m a k in g in fe re n c e s, fo llo w in g re fe re n c e s a n d s e p a ra tin g

m ain id e a s fro m s u p p o rtin g o n e s ” a s m e n tio n e d a b o v e , ac c o rd in g to A lsim a (2 0 0 3 ) and

S u g u rin (1 9 9 9 ) re a d in g s tra te g ie s c a n c o n s is t o f ev a lu a tin g c o n te n t, su c h a s a g re e in g o r

d isa g re e in g , m a k in g an a s s o c ia tio n w ith p rio r k n o w le d g e o r e x p e rie n c e , a s k in g a n d

a n sw e rin g q u e s tio n s , lo o k in g a t th e k e y w o rd s, u sin g sen te n c e stru c tu re a n a ly s is su c h a s

d e te rm in in g th e s u b je c t, v e r b o r o b je c t o f th e se n te n c e , sk ip p in g a n d re rea d in g

It is c le a r th a t n o t a ll s tra te g ie s a r e o f e q u a l e ffe c tiv e n e ss d u e to th e d iffe re n t ty p e s o f

re a d in g te x ts a n d ta s k s , a n d re a d in g s tra te g ie s u sed by each in d iv id u a l re a d e r and

e ffe c tiv e la n g u a g e in s tru c to rs sh o w s tu d e n ts h o w th ey can a d ju st th e ir re a d in g b e h a v io r

to d e a l w ith a v a r ie ty o f situ a tio n s , ty p e s o f input, and re a d in g p u rp o se s T h e y h elp

s tu d e n ts d e v e lo p a set o f re a d in g s tra te g ie s and m atch a p p ro p ria te s tra te g ie s to e a c h

re a d in g situ atio n

2.1.3.2.2 C lassification o f rea d in g s tr a te g ie s

S e v e ra l s e c o n d -la n g u a g e (L 2 ) re a d in g stra te g y in v e stig a tio n s h a v e p ro d u c e d a w id e

v a rie ty o f re a d in g s tra te g y c la ssific a tio n sc h e m e s (A n d e rso n 1991; B lo c k 1986; C a rre ll, 1989; P h a k iti 2 0 0 3 ; P u rp u ra 1997; S c h u e lle r 2 0 0 4 : Y o u n g & O x fo rd 1997)

A b b o t (2 0 1 0 ) fo u n d o u t th a t o n e c o m m o n c h a ra c te ristic sh ared b y m a n y o f th e L 2

re a d in g stra te g y in v e n to rie s is th a t th e s tra te g ie s a re d iv id e d in to b in a ry c a te g o rie s , w h ic h

re fle c t b o tto m -u p o r to p -d o w n p ro c e ssin g D e sp ite c o n flic tin g re su lts re g a rd in g w h ic h o f

th e se tw o c a te g o rie s c o n trib u te s m o st to re a d in g c o m p re h e n sio n , th e c o m m o n c o n c lu sio n from s tu d ie s o f th e re la tio n sh ip b e tw e e n stra te g y u se a n d re a d in g a b ility is th a t re a d in g

c o m p re h e n sio n is m o re lik ely to o c c u r w hen p e o p le u se s tra te g ie s b o th a c tiv e ly a n d fle x ib ly d u rin g re a d in g g iv en th e n a tu re o f th e c o n te x t (A n d e rso n ; B a rn e tt 1988; B lo ck

1986, 1992; C a rre ll; P h a k iti; P u rp u ra ; S arig 1987; S c h u e lle r; Y o u n g & O x fo rd )

N o n e th e le ss, a c le a re r u n d e rsta n d in g o f re a d in g

B ai (2 0 0 7 ) th ro u g h re v ie w in g the lite ra tu re a b o u t re a d in g s tra te g ie s, g a v e n in e te e n

re a d in g s tra te g ie s th a t “a re su g g e ste d b y re a d in g re se a rc h e rs th at s u c c e s s fu l re a d e rs u se

w h e n re a d in g " (B a i 2 0 0 7 , 4 , 7):

R e c o g n iz e w o rd s q u ic k ly

U se te x t fe atu res (s u b h e a d in g s, tra n sitio n s, etc.)

U se title (s ) to in fe r w h a t in fo rm a tio n m ig h t follow

U se w o rld k n o w led g e

A n a ly z e u n fa m ilia r w o rd s

Id e n tify th e g ra m m a tic a l fu n c tio n s o f w o rd s

R ead fo r m e a n in g , c o n c e n tra te o n c o n s tru c tin g m e a n in g

G u e ss a b o u t th e m e a n in g o f th e te x t

23

E v a lu a te g u ess a n d try new g u e sse s if n e c e ssa ry

M o n ito r c o m p re h e n sio n

K e e p th e p u rp o se o f re a d in g th e te x t in m ind

A d ju st stra te g ie s to th e p u rp o se fo r re a d in g

Id e n tify o r in fe r m ain id ea

U n d e rsta n d in g th e re la tio n sh ip s b etw e en th e p a rts o f a te x t

D istin g u ish m ain id eas from m in o r ideas

T o le ra te a m b ig u ity in a te x t (a t le a st tem p o ra rily )

P ara p h rase

U se c o n te x t to b u ild m e a n in g a n d aid c o m p re h e n sio n

C o n tin u e re a d in g e v e n w h e n u n su c c e ssfu l, at least fo r a w hile

A s h e su g g e ste d th a t lo o k in g a t n in e te e n a b o v e strateg ie s, it c a n b e se e n th a t th e to p -

d o w n s tra te g ie s a c c o u n t fo r fa irly h ig h p e rc e n ta g e (15 o u t o f 19) th a n th e b o tto m -u p o n e s

in th e c o n stitu tio n o f su ch e ffe c tiv e re a d in g sk ills It su g g e sts th a t su c c e ssfu l re a d e rs

e m p lo y th e re a d in g s tra te g ie s su c h a s p re d ic tin g , g u e ssin g , in fe rrin g , p a ra p h ra sin g , u sin g

c o n te x tu a l clu e, re a d in g fo r m e a n in g etc to read e ffe c tiv e ly an d flu e n tly in th e se c o n d o r foreign la n g u a g e re a d in g p ro c ess

2.2 T e a c h in g re a d in g stra te g ie s in classroom

2 2 1 T h e r o le o f r e a d in g s tr a te g ie s in r e a d in g c o m p r e h e n s io n

L ik e o th e r la n g u a g e sk ills, te a c h in g an d learn in g re a d in g c o m p re h e n s io n is c la im e d to hav e a c lo se c o n n e c tio n w ith re a d in g s tra te g ie s a n d a g o o d in stru c to rs a re th o u g h t to b e

th e p e o p le w h o “ h e lp stu d e n ts d e v e lo p a set o f re a d in g s tra te g ie s a n d m a tc h a p p ro p ria te

s tra te g ie s to e a c h re a d in g s itu a tio n " (S tra te g ie s fo r D e v e lo p in g R e a d in g S k ills 2 0 0 3 )

R e se a rc h o n re a d in g s tra te g ie s o f n a tiv e E n g lish lan g u ag e s p e a k e rs h a s re v e a le d th a t

g o o d re a d e rs a re m o re a w a re o f the s tra te g ie s th ey e m p lo y , th e y a re b e tte r a t m o n ito rin g

th e ir c o m p re h e n sio n , a n d th e y a re m o re flex ib le a n d effic ie n t in u sin g s tra te g ie s w h e n

T h e a w a re n e ss an d th e u se o f co g n itiv e an d m e ta c o g n itiv e s tra te g ie s a re a lso c lo se ly

re la te d to the e ffic ie n c y o f re a d in g p ro c ess " W h ile sk ille d re a d e rs k n o w h o w to use

e ffe c tiv e stra te g ie s to fa c ilita te the fu n c tio n in g o f v a rio u s c o g n itiv e p ro c e sse s and

c o n s tru c t m ean in g fu l u n d e rsta n d in g o f th e te x t, p o o r re a d e rs s im p ly re ad th e te x t w o rd by

w o rd w ith o u t u sin g a n y s tra te g ie s " (C h a n 2 0 0 3 ) S p e c ific a lly , p o o r re a d e rs a re found to

h a v e p ro b le m s in u sin g m a n y stra te g ie s, su ch a s id e n tify in g m a in id eas (S te v e n s, 1988;

W illia m s 1986) u sin g g e n e ra liz a tio n a n d c o n stru c tio n ru le s in su m m a riz a tio n (B ro w n &

D ay 1983; D ay & Z a ja k o w sk i, 1991) re c o g n iz in g re le v a n t sig n a ls and h ig h e r-o rd e r tex t stru c tu re (M c G e e 1982; M ey er B ra n d t & B luth 1980), d ra w in g in fe re n c e s (L o n g et al, 1996; S in g er 1994) d e te c tin g p ro b le m s d u rin g re a d in g (C h en g 1993: D u ffy et al 1987;

G a m e r 1987) a n d m o n ito rin g th e re a d in g p ro c e ss (B a k e r & B ro w n 1984: G a rn e r 1987;

P erfetti 1985)

2 2 2 T e a c h in g r e a d in g s tr a te g ic s in c la ssr o o m s.

T h e assu m p tio n th a t th e u se o f a p p ro p ria te re a d in g stra te g ie s h e lp s le a rn e rs to im p ro v e

th e m se lv e s a n d th a t te a c h in g re a d in g stra te g ie s to u n su c c e ssfu l le a rn e rs im p ro v e th e ir learn in g h as led re se a rc h e rs to fo c u s on s tra te g ie s tra in in g (D a n se re a u 1985; W e in ste in

& U n d e rw o o d 1985 a s cite d in S o n g 1985 ) S o n g (1 9 9 8 ) cite d fro m m a n y re se a rc h e rs, sta te s th a t stu d en ts c a n b e ta u g h t re a d in g s tra te g ie s an d w h e n th e y a re ta u g h t th e se stra te g ie s, th e ir p e rfo rm a n c e o n c o m p re h e n sio n a n d re calls im p ro v e s S alli (2 0 0 2 ) p o in ts out th a t th e c o m m o n p o in t a m o n g th e re su lts o f th e stu d ie s a b o u t re a d in g stra te g y tra in in g

is e v e n b e g in n in g s tu d e n ts sh o u ld b e ta u g h t s tra te g ie s in o rd e r to im p ro v e th e ir re a d in g

c o m p re h e n sio n a n d re a d in g p erfo rm an c e

W in o g ra d and H are (1 9 8 8 ) p ro p o se five p re re q u is ite s for te a c h e rs to in c o rp o ra te in

su c c e ssfu l stra te g y tra in in g :

1 Describe the strategies that the students are going to learn

2 Explain why the strategy is im portant and remind the students about the

benefits o f strategy use

3 Dem onstrate how to use the strategy effectively, for exam ple by

m odeling it (Janzen and Stoller (1998) maintain that strategy instruction involves the teacher reading and thinking out loud, and also m odeling it strategic reading readers )

25

4 Point out to the students when and where a strategy should he used.

5 Teach students how they can evaluate their successful (o r unsuccessful)

use o f the strategies (cited in Farrel, 2001: 633)

W in ig ra d and H are th e re fo re , e m p h a siz e d th a t re a d in g s tra te g ie s sh o u ld b e ta u g h t

e x p lic itly an d in a d d itio n , d e v e lo p in g s tu d e n t's a w a re n e ss a b o u t th e b e n e fit o f u sin g

s tra te g ie s

2.3 Beliefs a n d te a c h e r 's beliefs

2 3 1 B eliefs

2.3.1.1 What are beliefs?

T h e stu d y o f b e lie fs can b e fo u n d in th e c o n te m p la tio n s o f a n th ro p o lo g is ts , so c ia l

p sy c h o lo g ists, a n d p h ilo so p h e rs It is th o u g h t a m o n g th e s e th re e d is c ip lin e s th a t b e lie fs

a re “ p sy c h o lo g ic a lly h e ld u n d e rsta n d in g s, p re m ises, o r p ro p o sitio n s a b o u t th e w o rld th at

a re fe lt to be tru e ” (R ic h a rd so n 1996 p 103)

In m o re d etails a n d d e s c rip tio n s P a ja re s (1 9 9 2 , p: 4 ) sta te d b e lie fs in a m o re c lo s e r and

e a sy - to u n d e rsta n d a s follow ing:

"— D efining beliefs is at best a gam e o f player’s choice They travel in

disguise and often under alias— attitudes, values, judgm ents, axiom s, opinions,

ideology, perceptions, conceptions, conceptual system s, preconceptions,

dispositions, im plicit theories, explicit theories, personal theories, internal mental

processes, action strategies, rules o f practice, practical principles, perspectives,

repertories o f understanding, and social strategy, to name but a few that can be

found in the literature."”

B e lie fs affect n o t o n ly how' p e o p le b e h a v e b u t a lso w h a t th e y p e rc e iv e ( o r p a y a tte n tio n

to ) in th e ir e n v iro n m e n t C o n tra ry to the o ld s a y in g " se e in g is b e lie v in g " , it is m o re lik e ly

th a t " b e lie v in g is s e e in g ” W h e n p e o p le b e lie v e so m e th in g is tru e , th e y p e rc e iv e

in fo rm a tio n s u p p o rtin g th a t b elief B e lie fs a lte r e x p e c ta tio n s P e o p le p e r c e iv e w h a t th e y

e x p e c t to p e rc e iv e (T a ra , 1996)

2.3.1.2 The nature o f beliefs.

B eliefs a re fo rm e d ea rly ; re m a in re la tiv e ly sta b le , and a re re sista n t to c h a n g e (E ise n h a rt

S h ru m , H a rd in g & C u th b e rt, 1988; P ajare s, 1992) T h e y a re h ie ra rc h ic a l in n a tu re and

a rra n g e d to c o rre sp o n d w ith th e ir a tta c h m e n t to o th e r b eliefs (B ern 1970; P ajare s 1992)

B e lie f sy ste m s o rg a n iz e a n d g u id e th e d e c isio n s a n d a c tio n s o f te a c h e rs (E ise n h a rt

S h ru m H a rd in g & C u th b e rt 1988) B e lie f s y s te m s s e rv e a s a c o n te x tu a l filte r (K in z e r, 1988) o r in tu itiv e screen (G o o d m a n 1988) th ro u g h w h ic h t e a c h e r 's p ro c e ssin g

in fo rm a tio n from th e ir e x p e rie n c e s in th e c la ssro o m , m ak e se n se o f th e m , and m o d ify o r

a d a p t s u b s e q u e n t a c tio n s (P a ja re s , 1992) F u rth e rm o re , P a ja re s (1 9 9 2 , 3 2 4 -3 2 6 )

su g g e ste d so m e c h a ra c te ris tic s o f b e lie fs:

1 B eliefs are formed early and tend to self- perpetuate, preserving even

against contradiction caused by reason, time, schooling, and experience

2 Individual develop a b e lie f system that houses all the beliefs acquired

through the process o f cultural transm ission

3 A b elief system has an adaptive function in helping individual define and

understand the world an d them selves

4 K now ledge and beliefs are inextricably intertwined but the potent

affective, evaluative, and the episodic nature o f beliefs m akes them filter through which new phenom ena are interpreted

5 T hought processes may w ell be precursors to and creators o f beliefs, but

the filtering effect o f the b elief structures ultimately screens, redefines, distorts or reshapes subsequent thinking and information processing

6 Epistem ological plays a key role in knowledge interpretation and

cognitive m onitoring

7 B eliefs are prioritized according to their connections o r relationship with

other beliefs or other cognitive and affective structures Apparent inconsistence may be explained by the functional connections and centrality o f the beliefs

8 Beliefs substructure, such as educational beliefs, m ust be understood in

term s o f their connections not only to each other but also to other, perhaps m ore central, and beliefs system Psychologist usually refers to these substructures as values and attitudes

9 By their very nature and origin, beliefs are more incontrovertible than

others

10 T he earlier a b elief is incorporated into the belief structure, the

m ore difficult it is to alter

11 B elief change during adulthood is a relatively rare phenom enon, the most

com m on cause being a conversion form one authority to o th er o r a gestalt shift Individual tend to hold on to beliefs based on incorrect or incom plete knowledge, even after scientifically correct explanations are presented to them

12 B eliefs are instrum ental in defining tasks and selecting cognitive tools

27

with which to interpret, plan and make decisions regarding such tasks;

hence they play a critical role in defining behavior and organizing knowledge and inform ation

13 Beliefs strongly influence perception, but they can be an unreliable guide

to the nature o f reality

14 Individual beliefs strongly affect their behaviors

15 Beliefs m ust be inferred and this inference must tak e into account the

congruence am ong individuals' belief statements intentionality to behave

in a predisposed m anner and the behavior related to the beliefs in question

16 Beliefs about teaching are well- established by the time students gets to

the college

2 3 2 T e a c h e r ’s b e lie fs a b o u t la n g u a g e te a c h in g

2.3.2 / Definition o f teacher's beliefs

T h e r e is a g en e ral a g re e m e n t th a t th e s u c c e ssfu l im p le m e n ta tio n o f a c e rta in e d u c a tio n a l

in n o v a tio n is la rg e ly a ffe c te d b y teachers* b e lie fs (C la rk an d P e te rso n , 1986) a n d it h as

a ls o been arg u ed th a t th e im p a c t o f te a c h e rs ' b e lie fs is a c ritic a l fa c to r to a ffe c t te a c h e r s '

c la s s ro o m p ra c tic e (T h o m p s o n 1992) H o w e v e r, fin d in g a c le a r d e fin itio n fo r “ te a c h e r s '

b e lie fs" h as a lw a y s b e e n th e m a jo r d iffic u lty in th is field V a rio u s te rm in o lo g ie s, su c h as

“ p ra c tic a l k n o w le d g e ” (E lb a z , 1981) “c o n c e p tio n s ” (F re e m a n , 1993) an d “ im p lic it

th e o rie s " (N a tio n a l In stitu te o f E d u c a tio n , 1975, cite d in C lark & P e te rso n , 1986, p 2 8 7 ),

re p re se n tin g so m e w h a t o v e r la p p in g c o n c e p tio n s o f b eliefs, g e n e ra lly c e n te r o n th e

d is tin c tio n b e tw e e n b e lie f a n d k n o w le d g e D ra w in g o n P a ja r e s 's e x te n s iv e re v ie w o f

s tu d ie s on L2 te a c h e rs ' b e lie f s a b o u t te a c h in g S B o rg (2 0 0 3 ) to o c o n c lu d e d th a t a c le a r

d e fin itio n a l c o n s e n s u s o n w h a t th e c o n s tru c t o f te a c h e rs ' b e lie fs re fe rs to h as b e e n

la c k in g in the field

D e sp ite th e lack o f c o n s e n s u s in d e fin itio n a n d p o ssib le c o n fu sio n in u sag e , re se a rc h e rs

h a v e b e e n try in g to c la rify c o n c e p tu a liz a tio n s o f te a c h e rs ' b eliefs F o r e x a m p le , th e term

‘te a c h e r 's b e l i e f c a n b e d e fin e d a s an a ttitu d e co n siste n tly a p p lie d to an a c tiv ity th a t

g u id e s b o th o u r th o u g h ts a n d b e h a v io rs (E ise n h a rt et al., 1988 in F arrell & L im 2 0 0 5 ) It

is a ls o ca lle d by o th e r w o rd “te a c h e r s ' p e d a g o g ic a l b eleifs” (B o rg , 2 0 0 1 ) R ic h a rd s(1 9 9 8 ), on the o th e r h a n d , d e fin e s te a c h e rs ' b e lie fs m ore c o m p re h e n s iv e ly a s “ th e

le a rn in g th a t te a c h e rs b u ild up o v e r tim e an d b rin g w ith th e m to th e c la ssro o m s

W h e re a s so m e re s e a rc h e rs lo o k e d in to c o m m o n fe a tu re s id e n tifie d in v a rio u s e m p iric a l

w o rk s , a c c o u n ts, a n d d e fin itio n s D ra w in g on A b e lso n (1 9 7 9 ) N e sp o r (1 9 8 7 ) id en tified

fo u r fe a tu re s th a t c a n b e u sed in d is tin g u is h in g b e lie fs from k n o w le d g e T h e fe atu res

in c lu d e a ) e x iste n tia l p re s u m p tio n , b ) a lte rn a tiv ity c ) a ffe c tiv e and e v a lu a tiv e loading,

a n d d ) e p iso d ic s tru c tu re P a ja re s (1 9 9 2 ) p ro v id e d a m o re e x te n s iv e list, c o n sistin g o f 16

" fu n d a m e n ta l a s s u m p tio n s th a t m a y re a so n a b ly b e m a d e w h e n in itia tin g a stu d y o f

t e a c h e r s ' e d u c a tio n a l b e lie f s " (p 3 2 4 ) In c o n tra st M B o rg (2 0 0 1 ) lists fo u r features: a ) a

b e l i e f is a c c e p te d a s tru e by th e in d iv id u a l h o ld in g it, w h ile k n o w le d g e m u st b e tru e in

s o m e e x te rn a l s e n se , b ) b e lie fs g u id e p e o p le 's th in k in g a n d a c tio n , c ) in d iv id u a ls m a y b e

c o n s c io u s o r u n c o n s c io u s o f th e ir b eliefs, and d ) b e lie fs h a v e a n e v a lu a tiv e asp e ct (p 186)

O n th e b a sis o f th e s e d is c u s s io n s o f m a jo r fe a tu re s o f b e lie fs, it can b e said th at: a)

te a c h e r s ' b eliefs a r e o f p e rs o n a l tru th , b) te a c h e rs ’ b e lie fs a re a ffe c tiv e a n d e v a lu a tiv e , c) teach ers" b eliefs in flu e n c e th e ir b e h a v io r, d) te a c h e rs ' b e lie fs fu n c tio n a s filte rs th ro u g h

w h ic h in fo rm a tio n is p e rc e iv e d , e ) te a c h e rs ' b e lie fs se rv e a s m e a n s o f d e fin in g g o a ls an d

ta s k s and o rg a n iz in g th e k n o w le d g e an d in fo rm a tio n re le v a n t to th o se task s, a n d f)

te a c h e r s ' b e lie fs a re n o t e a s ily c h a n g e d

2.3.2.2 The source o f tea ch er's beliefs.

M u c h a tte n tio n w a s p a id to th e so u rc e o f te a c h e r 's b e lie fs th a t in flu e n c e d th e te a c h in g in

a p p re n tic e s h ip o f o b s e rv a tio n , a te rm L o rtie (1 9 7 5 ) d e fin e s a s th e im p a c t o f sch o o lin g

e x p e rie n c e o n th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f b e lie f s a b o u t te a c h in g

T o s u m u p th re e m a jo r so u rc e s o f b e lie f s c a n b e id en tified th ro u g h th e lite ra tu re : ( I )

s c h o o lin g e x p e rie n c e (2 ) e x p e rie n c e o f te a c h e r e d u c a tio n ( 3 ) p ra c tic a l te a c h in g

e x p e rie n c e In o rd e r to p ro b e in to te a c h e rs" b e lie f s re g a rd in g te a c h in g re a d in g strateg ie s,

in v e s tig a tio n w a s set o u t c e n te rin g th e s e th re e ty p e s o f e x p e rie n c e s

2.4 T e a c h e r 's beliefs a n d c la ss ro o m p rac tic es.

2 4 1 T h e ro le o f te a c h e r 's b e lie fs in la n g u a g e te a ch in g

It is e v id e n t th a t te a c h e r s ' b e lie fs a b o u t te a c h in g a n d le a rn in g h a v e a p o w e rfu l e ffe c t on

te a c h e r s ' p e d a g o g ic a l d e c is io n s W h a t th e y th in k and d o is th e re fle c tio n o f th e ir b eliefs (J o h n s o n 1994; P h ip p s 2 0 0 7 ) L a n g u a g e te a c h e rs ’ b e lie fs a n d u n d e rsta n d in g s o f

te a c h in g a s w e ll a s le a rn in g p la y an im p o rta n t ro le in th e ir c la ssro o m p ra c tic e s a n d in

th e ir p ro fe ssio n a l g ro w th (K u z b o rs k a (2 0 1 1 ) ) A s H arste a n d B u rk e (1 9 7 7 ) p o stu la te d ,

te a c h e rs m a k e d e c is io n s a b o u t c la s s r o o m in s tru c tio n in lig h t o f th e o re tic a l b e lie fs th ey

h o ld a b o u t te a c h in g a n d le a rn in g T e a c h e r s ' b e lie fs in flu en c e th e ir g o a ls, p ro c e d u re s,

m a te ria ls , c la s s ro o m in te ra c tio n p a tte rn s, th e ir ro le s , th eir stu d e n ts , and th e sc h o o ls they

w o rk S im ila rly , R ic h a rd s a n d R o d g e rs (2 0 0 1 ) a ffirm e d th a t te a c h e rs p o sse ss a ssu m p tio n s

a b o u t la n g u a g e a n d la n g u a g e le a rn in g , a n d th a t th e s e p ro v id e th e b a sis fo r a p a rtic u la r

a p p ro a c h to la n g u a g e in stru c tio n

H o w e v e r, th e re a r e s o m e re s e a rc h e s w h o s e fin d in g s in d ic a te d th a t te a c h e r b e h a v io rs are

n o t a lw a y s c o n s is te n t w ith t h e ir b e lie f s F o r e x a m p le ; G a lto n a n d S im o n (1 9 8 0 ) in d icated

th a t th e re la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n te a c h e r s ' b e lie f s a n d th e ir p ra c tic e s w a s n o t v ery stro n g A s

F a n g (1 9 9 6 ) s u g g e s te d , th e re m a y b e in c o n s is te n c ie s b e tw e e n te a c h e rs ' b e lie fs and

p ra c tic e s d u e to th e c o m p le x itie s o f c la s s r o o m life, w h ic h m a y c o n s tra in te a c h e rs '

a b ilitie s to fo llo w th e ir b e lie fs a n d p ro v id e in stru c tio n th a t is a lig n e d w ith th e ir

th e o re tic a l b e lie fs T e a c h e r s ' th e o re tic a l b e lie f s c o u ld be situ a tio n a l a n d m a n ife ste d in

in stru c tio n a l p ra c tic e s o n ly in re la tio n to th e c o m p le x itie s o f th e c la ssro o m