List of Figures 2.1 Aspects of relativizing and universalizing approaches to the 'quality of clas... more List of Figures 2.1 Aspects of relativizing and universalizing approaches to the 'quality of classroom life' 4.1 Shifts in thinking about pedagogy and classroom management 4.2 Elements of classroom life 4.3 Points of reference in research on classroom life 5.1 Levels of planning 5.2 Teacher and learner roles in classroom decision-making 5.3 Characteristics of teacher/learner planning 5.4 Decision-making related to the learner's motivation to 'attend' 6.1 The achievement of local adaptation in classroom events 7.1 The relationships between teaching and learning: a conceptual framework 11.
Dick Allwright, one of the most influential applied linguists in the field, retired in 2003 from ... more Dick Allwright, one of the most influential applied linguists in the field, retired in 2003 from a long and brilliant academic career teaching applied linguistics at the universities of Essex and Lancaster. Professor Allwright is still pursuing his interest in teacher, and especially learner, development, via the notion of 'Exploratory Practice', a form of practitioner research involving teachers and learners working together, during language lessons, to explore and develop productively their understandings of their classroom lives. In 2009, with Judith Hanks, he published his third book: The Developing Language Learner: An Introduction to Exploratory Practice (Palgrave).
In this article, we focus on students and teachers as practitioners of learning, a powerful notio... more In this article, we focus on students and teachers as practitioners of learning, a powerful notion seminal to Exploratory Practice, which is a form of practitioner research developed by working to understand local puzzles, by integrating research and regular pedagogic activities, and by emphasizing practitioners' understandings of the quality of their lives in educational settings. Exploratory Practice conceptualizes students and teachers as learners and puts forward Five Propositions about Learners: Learners are unique individuals who learn and develop best in their own idiosyncratic ways, they are social beings who learn and develop best in a mutually supportive environment, and they are people capable of taking learning seriously, of independent decision-making and of developing as practitioners of learning. We also claim here that teachers, students of all ages, future teachers, teacher educators, and research participants are lifelong learners (Barreto, Miller, and Monteiro 2015; Miller and Cunha 2017). We support this claim by drawing on instances of Exploratory Practice work developed in Brazilian and British language classrooms, teacher education settings, and academic research contexts in which those involved perform their learner identities. In our discussion, we interweave the Five Propositions with the Exploratory Practice principles.
DELTA: Documentação de Estudos em Lingüística Teórica e Aplicada, 2019
This paper draws on findings from three interrelated research projects to analyze ways of experie... more This paper draws on findings from three interrelated research projects to analyze ways of experiencing the practicum, teacher education and development from an interventionist collaborative perspective. The shared fundamentals are 1) learning and development are societal-historical activities inherent to the nature of human beings; 2) being and identifying are functions of our total life, not only of episodic engagement with some task; 3) knowledge and knowing are integral to human active engagement with the world. Results indicate how different forms of participation provide opportunities for colearning and for developing critical reflexivity, ethical attitude, (pre)professional confidence and autonomy.
This paper first reviews key concepts in language testing and discusses the use of the English La... more This paper first reviews key concepts in language testing and discusses the use of the English Language Placement Test administered at the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro to computer science students, who are required to take one of the two ESP courses offered by the English program. The analysis of the scores on two versions of a test administered to two different groups of computer science students who took the examination in sequential semesters is presented. For the original test, item facility and item discrimination were calculated, then overall test reliability was estimated. The statistics were carefully examined and a number of the test items were eliminated, revamped or replaced in creating a revised version of the test. This modified and improved version of the test was then administered to a second group of students and the same statistics were applied once more. The results are discussed in terms of the importance of item analysis and revision for providing more consistent and accurate language testing instruments.
The following article is based on an action-research project based on how to teach English to ver... more The following article is based on an action-research project based on how to teach English to very young learners as a foreign language. It provides an infirmed reflection on our Practicum at 1st and 2nd year of primary School 246. As this age group represents a challenge to teach, the article provides different teaching strategies and it aims at helping helps teachers find appropriate ways to guide their pupils’ learning. The paper first refers to the characteristics of YLE describing them according to their age, and also explaining the role of teachers in the learning process. It also discusses the importance of children’s identity. Next, the paper reviews different learning theories which describe children’s ways of learning and constructing their own knowledge. After that, it presents a list of approaches and methods that better suit children’s successful learning and that are closely related with their interests. Some techniques are presented as suitable ways to teach young learners in an enjoyable and funny way. Finally, it includes two examples of a personal teaching experience during our practicum, which includes a reflection about how to deal with children that present Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity and who may need a different method to learn; then we will indicate how we could overcome this diversity challenge during our practicum.
Resumo: Este trabalho tem por objetivo discutir a formação docente como um processo de construção... more Resumo: Este trabalho tem por objetivo discutir a formação docente como um processo de construção permanente, focalizando a construção de conhecimentos lingüísticos bem como a construção de uma atitude reflexiva através do olhar investigativo à sala de aula. Para tal, pretende-se apresentar a Prática Exploratória-uma forma de ensinar e aprender que encoraja os participantes de sala de aula a olhá-la como uma fonte inesgotável de puzzles ou questões a serem investigadas. Discutiremos os princípios deste paradigma de pesquisa do praticante e ilustraremos um processo de ação investigativa, que está gerando entendimentos sobre a vida no contexto estudado.
In this paper, we present Exploratory Practice, a critical-reflexive approach to teaching-learnin... more In this paper, we present Exploratory Practice, a critical-reflexive approach to teaching-learning languages and to research, which focuses on quality of classroom life as its main tenet. We understand that the discussions that have been in progress in the area of literacy studies are also of interest to language teachers and learners as exploratory practitioners. According to Miller (2013) and Moraes Bezerra (2012, 2014, 2015), practitioners' pedagogical work must be directed to the meaning-making possibilities which can empower language users and can contribute to reinventing the social world. We make some theoretical considerations on Exploratory Practice (ALLWRIGHT &
This paper provides much of the theoretical background to Exploratory Practice (EP) that it was n... more This paper provides much of the theoretical background to Exploratory Practice (EP) that it was not possible to cover in the introductory paper to this collection. It also illustrates how the framework of EP can be invoked in the context of doctoral research. I report and comment on my reflexive doctoral study, which focuses on my own professional development as an EP teacher-consultant (Miller, 2001). I added an academic investigative dimension to my already reflexive practitioner research with a view to creating opportunities for working towards enriched understandings of the unfolding of two longitudinal teacher-consultancy encounters in which I worked, within EP (Allwright, 1992-2002), individually, as an EFL consultant to/with two practising EFL teachers.I claim that my paradoxically reflexive positioning in both my practitioner and academic research practices combined to enhance my understandings of the ‘unrepresentable’ management of reflection in the sessions. I captured the interactional delicacy of the evolving teacher-consultant relationship through longitudinal topic-footing frame micro-analyses.
Facilitating In-Service Teacher Training for Professional Development, 2000
This chapter is constructed as a reflective professional narrative coming from the context of pub... more This chapter is constructed as a reflective professional narrative coming from the context of public and private continuing professional development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The authors start the text by making explicit their involvement and alignment with the rationale of Exploratory Practice, within the broader horizon of language Teacher Development (Allwright, 2001). The text establishes a theoretical dialogue with Reflective Practice, Action Research and Exploratory Action Research, considering them as recent trends in teacher education and other possible modes of Practitioner Research (Allwright & Hanks, 2009). The authors expand on Exploratory Practice as a paradigm that foregrounds inclusivity, ethics and criticality. Examples of Potentially Exploitable Pedagogic/Professional Activities (PEPAs) and Potentially Exploitable Reflexive Activities (PERAs) will be shared by showing that they result from integrating the 'work for understanding' with regular pedagogic activities or broader educational practice.
List of Figures 2.1 Aspects of relativizing and universalizing approaches to the 'quality of clas... more List of Figures 2.1 Aspects of relativizing and universalizing approaches to the 'quality of classroom life' 4.1 Shifts in thinking about pedagogy and classroom management 4.2 Elements of classroom life 4.3 Points of reference in research on classroom life 5.1 Levels of planning 5.2 Teacher and learner roles in classroom decision-making 5.3 Characteristics of teacher/learner planning 5.4 Decision-making related to the learner's motivation to 'attend' 6.1 The achievement of local adaptation in classroom events 7.1 The relationships between teaching and learning: a conceptual framework 11.
Dick Allwright, one of the most influential applied linguists in the field, retired in 2003 from ... more Dick Allwright, one of the most influential applied linguists in the field, retired in 2003 from a long and brilliant academic career teaching applied linguistics at the universities of Essex and Lancaster. Professor Allwright is still pursuing his interest in teacher, and especially learner, development, via the notion of 'Exploratory Practice', a form of practitioner research involving teachers and learners working together, during language lessons, to explore and develop productively their understandings of their classroom lives. In 2009, with Judith Hanks, he published his third book: The Developing Language Learner: An Introduction to Exploratory Practice (Palgrave).
In this article, we focus on students and teachers as practitioners of learning, a powerful notio... more In this article, we focus on students and teachers as practitioners of learning, a powerful notion seminal to Exploratory Practice, which is a form of practitioner research developed by working to understand local puzzles, by integrating research and regular pedagogic activities, and by emphasizing practitioners' understandings of the quality of their lives in educational settings. Exploratory Practice conceptualizes students and teachers as learners and puts forward Five Propositions about Learners: Learners are unique individuals who learn and develop best in their own idiosyncratic ways, they are social beings who learn and develop best in a mutually supportive environment, and they are people capable of taking learning seriously, of independent decision-making and of developing as practitioners of learning. We also claim here that teachers, students of all ages, future teachers, teacher educators, and research participants are lifelong learners (Barreto, Miller, and Monteiro 2015; Miller and Cunha 2017). We support this claim by drawing on instances of Exploratory Practice work developed in Brazilian and British language classrooms, teacher education settings, and academic research contexts in which those involved perform their learner identities. In our discussion, we interweave the Five Propositions with the Exploratory Practice principles.
DELTA: Documentação de Estudos em Lingüística Teórica e Aplicada, 2019
This paper draws on findings from three interrelated research projects to analyze ways of experie... more This paper draws on findings from three interrelated research projects to analyze ways of experiencing the practicum, teacher education and development from an interventionist collaborative perspective. The shared fundamentals are 1) learning and development are societal-historical activities inherent to the nature of human beings; 2) being and identifying are functions of our total life, not only of episodic engagement with some task; 3) knowledge and knowing are integral to human active engagement with the world. Results indicate how different forms of participation provide opportunities for colearning and for developing critical reflexivity, ethical attitude, (pre)professional confidence and autonomy.
This paper first reviews key concepts in language testing and discusses the use of the English La... more This paper first reviews key concepts in language testing and discusses the use of the English Language Placement Test administered at the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro to computer science students, who are required to take one of the two ESP courses offered by the English program. The analysis of the scores on two versions of a test administered to two different groups of computer science students who took the examination in sequential semesters is presented. For the original test, item facility and item discrimination were calculated, then overall test reliability was estimated. The statistics were carefully examined and a number of the test items were eliminated, revamped or replaced in creating a revised version of the test. This modified and improved version of the test was then administered to a second group of students and the same statistics were applied once more. The results are discussed in terms of the importance of item analysis and revision for providing more consistent and accurate language testing instruments.
The following article is based on an action-research project based on how to teach English to ver... more The following article is based on an action-research project based on how to teach English to very young learners as a foreign language. It provides an infirmed reflection on our Practicum at 1st and 2nd year of primary School 246. As this age group represents a challenge to teach, the article provides different teaching strategies and it aims at helping helps teachers find appropriate ways to guide their pupils’ learning. The paper first refers to the characteristics of YLE describing them according to their age, and also explaining the role of teachers in the learning process. It also discusses the importance of children’s identity. Next, the paper reviews different learning theories which describe children’s ways of learning and constructing their own knowledge. After that, it presents a list of approaches and methods that better suit children’s successful learning and that are closely related with their interests. Some techniques are presented as suitable ways to teach young learners in an enjoyable and funny way. Finally, it includes two examples of a personal teaching experience during our practicum, which includes a reflection about how to deal with children that present Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity and who may need a different method to learn; then we will indicate how we could overcome this diversity challenge during our practicum.
Resumo: Este trabalho tem por objetivo discutir a formação docente como um processo de construção... more Resumo: Este trabalho tem por objetivo discutir a formação docente como um processo de construção permanente, focalizando a construção de conhecimentos lingüísticos bem como a construção de uma atitude reflexiva através do olhar investigativo à sala de aula. Para tal, pretende-se apresentar a Prática Exploratória-uma forma de ensinar e aprender que encoraja os participantes de sala de aula a olhá-la como uma fonte inesgotável de puzzles ou questões a serem investigadas. Discutiremos os princípios deste paradigma de pesquisa do praticante e ilustraremos um processo de ação investigativa, que está gerando entendimentos sobre a vida no contexto estudado.
In this paper, we present Exploratory Practice, a critical-reflexive approach to teaching-learnin... more In this paper, we present Exploratory Practice, a critical-reflexive approach to teaching-learning languages and to research, which focuses on quality of classroom life as its main tenet. We understand that the discussions that have been in progress in the area of literacy studies are also of interest to language teachers and learners as exploratory practitioners. According to Miller (2013) and Moraes Bezerra (2012, 2014, 2015), practitioners' pedagogical work must be directed to the meaning-making possibilities which can empower language users and can contribute to reinventing the social world. We make some theoretical considerations on Exploratory Practice (ALLWRIGHT &
This paper provides much of the theoretical background to Exploratory Practice (EP) that it was n... more This paper provides much of the theoretical background to Exploratory Practice (EP) that it was not possible to cover in the introductory paper to this collection. It also illustrates how the framework of EP can be invoked in the context of doctoral research. I report and comment on my reflexive doctoral study, which focuses on my own professional development as an EP teacher-consultant (Miller, 2001). I added an academic investigative dimension to my already reflexive practitioner research with a view to creating opportunities for working towards enriched understandings of the unfolding of two longitudinal teacher-consultancy encounters in which I worked, within EP (Allwright, 1992-2002), individually, as an EFL consultant to/with two practising EFL teachers.I claim that my paradoxically reflexive positioning in both my practitioner and academic research practices combined to enhance my understandings of the ‘unrepresentable’ management of reflection in the sessions. I captured the interactional delicacy of the evolving teacher-consultant relationship through longitudinal topic-footing frame micro-analyses.
Facilitating In-Service Teacher Training for Professional Development, 2000
This chapter is constructed as a reflective professional narrative coming from the context of pub... more This chapter is constructed as a reflective professional narrative coming from the context of public and private continuing professional development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The authors start the text by making explicit their involvement and alignment with the rationale of Exploratory Practice, within the broader horizon of language Teacher Development (Allwright, 2001). The text establishes a theoretical dialogue with Reflective Practice, Action Research and Exploratory Action Research, considering them as recent trends in teacher education and other possible modes of Practitioner Research (Allwright & Hanks, 2009). The authors expand on Exploratory Practice as a paradigm that foregrounds inclusivity, ethics and criticality. Examples of Potentially Exploitable Pedagogic/Professional Activities (PEPAs) and Potentially Exploitable Reflexive Activities (PERAs) will be shared by showing that they result from integrating the 'work for understanding' with regular pedagogic activities or broader educational practice.
The Routledge Handbook of Teaching English to Young Learners - Sue Garton and Fiona Copland (Eds.), 2018
Countries where English as a Foreign or Additional Language (EFL/EAL) is taught have undergone th... more Countries where English as a Foreign or Additional Language (EFL/EAL) is taught have undergone the pressure of a worldwide trend by which English is being included in school curricula from the early years of education (Banfi 2015). Such is the situation of Teaching English to Young Learners (TEYL) within the last decade in most countries in Latin America, and, in this chapter, we will focus on Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Uruguay. As indicated in our title, we bring into discussion some voices from Latin American contexts from which we could draw sources to substantiate our research, while not claiming to represent the vast region in a conventional sense. We take this stand because we do not believe in reified views of EFL or EAL, of teaching and learning, of Young Language Learners (YLLs) or of blilingualism - a related notion that underlies the discourse generated by the TEYL enterprise.
Caminhos na Formação de Professores de Línguas: Conquistas e Desafios reúne uma parcela dos traba... more Caminhos na Formação de Professores de Línguas: Conquistas e Desafios reúne uma parcela dos trabalhos apresentados no II Congresso Latino-Americano de Formação de Professores de Línguas, realizado na Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, nos dias 27-29 de novembro de 2009. Adotando a metáfora expressa no título, os 97 artigos foram divididos em sete trilhas, a saber, (1) Crenças, subjetividades e identidades no ensino de línguas: docentes e discentes como agentes de mudança social; (2) Análise do discurso no contexto pedagógico/científico: vozes em perspectiva; (3) Formação de professores na universidade: a prática na teoria e a teoria na prática; (4) Formação continuada: o aperfeiçoamento profissional como processo; (5) Novas tecnologias na formação docente: possibilidades, recursos e desdobramentos; (6) Aspectos lingüísticos e literários na formação/prática docente: teoria e aplicação; (7) Políticas lingüísticas e o ensino de línguas: a influência dos documentos oficiais na formação e no fazer docente.
Uploads
Papers by Ines Miller
As indicated in our title, we bring into discussion some voices from Latin American contexts from which we could draw sources to substantiate our research, while not claiming to represent the vast region in a conventional sense. We take this stand because we do not believe in reified views of EFL or EAL, of teaching and learning, of Young Language Learners (YLLs) or of blilingualism - a related notion that underlies the discourse generated by the TEYL enterprise.
(1) Crenças, subjetividades e identidades no ensino de línguas: docentes e discentes como agentes de mudança social;
(2) Análise do discurso no contexto pedagógico/científico: vozes em perspectiva;
(3) Formação de professores na universidade: a prática na teoria e a teoria na prática;
(4) Formação continuada: o aperfeiçoamento profissional como processo;
(5) Novas tecnologias na formação docente: possibilidades, recursos e desdobramentos;
(6) Aspectos lingüísticos e literários na formação/prática docente: teoria e aplicação;
(7) Políticas lingüísticas e o ensino de línguas: a influência dos documentos oficiais na formação e no fazer docente.