Balancing stability and flexibility in genre-based writing instruction: A case study of a novice L2 writing teacher

Abstract

Ongoing debates regarding explicit genre instruction have frequently focused on concerns that inexperienced teachers may be tempted to engage in formulaic genre teaching, ignoring the inherent variability and dynamism of genres. Yet despite the ubiquity of teachers within this debate, little research has examined how L2 writing teachers manage the simultaneous stability and flexibility of genres within their classroom practices. This case study provides a rich account of a novice teacher of L2 writing as she sought to balance genre stability and flexibility in her first semester of teaching. This study examines how the teacher’s representation of a pedagogical genre, the analytic essay, was influenced by her pedagogical content knowledge of genre, including her knowledge of the required curriculum, her students’ needs, and her underlying pedagogical values. Additionally, the analysis shows that the teachers’ representations of the genre were not static, but evolved over the course of the semester. By considering this teacher’s case, we can gain a more nuanced understanding of the multiple factors teachers consider, and the challenges they face, as they implement genre-based writing pedagogies.