Age and Uptake in TESL Training: Differing Responses to Declaratively- and Procedurally-Oriented Grammar Instruction

Abstract

This paper examines the way in which 36 TESL trainees of three different age groups used classroom theory and practical experience to shape their own knowledge of English grammar. The participants, TESL trainees in a Canadian university, completed a series of three grammatical explanation tasks over the course of two academic terms. In the first term, they received classroom-based grammar instruction with a declarative focus. In the second term, they received additional classroom instruction, this time with a procedural focus, and did a teaching practicum with adult ESL learners. The performance of the trainees on the grammatical explanation tasks was used to follow the development of their declarative and procedural knowledge of English grammar over time. Analysis reveals that the two groups of older trainees (ages 23–34 and 35–62) were able to make significantly better use of classroom instruction than their younger counterparts (ages 19–22). While all three groups profited from the internship experience and procedural focus, the younger trainees benefited the most. By the end of the internship, the members of the youngest group, who had done little learning in the first term and seemed impervious to classroom instruction, had partially caught up with their older counterparts. The consequences of these findings for second-language teacher education are discussed.