Transformative L2 Teacher Education Innovations features empirical research studies informed by Vygotskian Sociocultural Theory (VSCT) that are explicitly and intentionally designed to transform second language (L2) teacher reasoning and thinking, as well as L2 teaching practices and pedagogical choices.With contributions from scholars and practicing teacher educators, each chapter highlights a designed innovative professional development experience that has created a “new...

In this cutting-edge book on L2 teacher education, experts Johnson, Verity, and Childs demonstrate how praxis-oriented pedagogy grounded in the principles of Vygotskian Sociocultural Theory (VSCT) can have a meaningful impact on L2 teachers’ development. Starting with a clear definition of praxis-oriented pedagogy, the authors lay out a theoretical foundation and document how appropriately designed praxis-oriented L2 teacher education pedagogy supports the development of novice teacher rea...

Embracing a sociocultural perspective on human cognition and employing an array of methodological tools for data collection and analysis, this volume documents the complexities of second language teachers’ professional development in diverse L2 teacher education programs around the world, including Asia, South America, Europe, and North America, and traces that development both over time and within the broader cultural, historical and institutional settings and circumstances of teachers’ w...

Taking a Vygotskian sociocultural stance, this book demonstrates the meaningful role that L2 teacher educators and L2 teacher education play in the professional development of L2 teachers through systematic, intentional, goal-directed, theorized L2 teacher education pedagogy. The message is resoundingly clear: Teacher education matters! It empirically documents the ways in which engagement in the practices of L2 teacher education shape how teachers come to think about and enact their teach...

'… A beautifully written, articulate and compelling argument for a sociocultural perspective on second language teacher education . . . Essential reading for all who wish to understand this perspective.' – David Nunan, University of Hong Kong'…Significant and timely. Johnson is masterful at writing in an engaging, transparent prose about complex concepts. It’s a rare scholar who can write prose like this. Throughout my reading I wanted to engage in...

This book traces the historical development of major language teaching methods in terms of theoretical principles and classroom procedures, and provides a critical evaluation of each. Drawing from seminal, foundational texts and from critical commentaries made by various scholars, Kumaravadivelu examines the profession's current transition from method to postmethod and, in the process, elucidates the relationship between theory, research, and practice. The chief objective is to help reader...

Teachers are often told that new teaching methods and materials are 'based on the latest research'. But what does this mean in practice? This book introduces you to some of the language acquisition research that will help you not just to evaluate existing materials, but also to adapt and use them in a way that fits what we currently understand about how languages are learned.

Whether we grow up with one, two, or several languages during our early years of life, many of us will learn a second, foreign, or heritage language in later years. The field of Second language acquisition (SLA, for short) investigates the human capacity to learn additional languages in late childhood, adolescence, or adulthood, after the first language --in the case of monolinguals-- or languages --in the case of bilinguals-- have already been acquired. Understanding Second Language A...

This collection provides an overview of current issues, debates, and approaches in Second Language Teacher Education (SLTE) presented by internationally prominent researchers, educators, and emerging scholars. Chapters address such issues as distance education, non-native English-speaking educators, technology, assessment, standards, and the changing contexts of contemporary language teaching and teacher education.

In this volume researchers from Asia, Europe, the Middle East and North and South America employ a variety of theoretical perspectives and methodological approaches in their exploration of the links between identity, motivation, and autonomy in language learning. On a conceptual level the authors explore issues related to agency, metacognition, imagination, beliefs, and self. The book also addresses practice in classroom, self-access, and distance education contexts, considering topics suc...

The field of second/foreign language teacher education is calling out for a coherent and comprehensive framework for teacher preparation in these times of accelerating economic, cultural, and educational globalization. Responding to this call, this book introduces a state-of-the-art model for developing prospective and practicing teachers into strategic thinkers, exploratory researchers, and transformative teachers. The model includes five modules: Knowing, Analyzing, Recognizing, Doing, a...

Designed for novice as well as more experienced researchers, Reason & Rigor presents conceptual frameworks as a mechanism for aligning literature review, research design, and methodology. The book explores the conceptual framework—defined as both a process and a product—that helps to direct and ground researchers as they work through common research challenges. Focusing on published studies on a range of topics and employing both quantitative and qualitative methods, the u...