Interactions within, between and across Communities:
A Model for EFL Professional Development
This symposium reports on an on-going multiple-site study in which three EFL teacher educators, in-service EFL teachers, pre-service EFL teachers and EFL classroom students interact within, between and across various communities. Grounded on the notion of dialogic interaction (Bakhtin, 1984) and Vygotsky’s conceptual framework of mediation, this study aims to (1) document, analyze and interpret the discursive nature of interaction patterns, (2) explore the complex interrelationships between theory, belief and practice within, between and across the communities, and finally (3) examine how dialogic interaction through narrative inquiry enables collaborative reflection on and inquiry into evolving beliefs and practices of all parties.
This study intends to answer the following three questions.
- What is the role of dialogic interaction within, between and across different EFL professional communities?
- What are the interrelationships between theory, belief and practice within, between and across various EFL communities?
- What change can be made through dialogic interaction in order to enhance EFL learning and professional development?
This symposium will address the interactions between three teacher educators and how the interaction plays a role in the preparation of teacher study groups. Then, it will focus on the interactions within the community of teachers themselves and between the communities of in-service teachers and the teacher educators. Finally, it will demonstrate how dialogic interaction plays a role in classroom practice through a case study in which an EFL teacher educator, an in-service teacher and a group of pre-service teachers and EFL learners work together through community partnership.
This study concludes that dialogic interaction as mediation is the key for crossing the boundaries of various communities and the starting point for new learning and professional development for all parties. Practical and theoretical implications for EFL professional development within, between and across all communities will be discussed.
Yi-Hsuan Gloria Lo
glorialo@npu.edu.tw
National Penghu University
Chin-Chi Chao
cchao@nccu.edu.tw
National Chengchi University
Hui-Chi Vicky Yeh
hyeh@yuntech.edu.tw
National Yunlin University of Technology
