Developing L2 writing teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge of genre through the unfamiliar genre project

Abstract

Genre-informed approaches to writing pedagogy have grown in influence and prominence over the past 25 years. Because of the crucial importance of writing teachers’ in the implementation of genre-focused instruction, more research investigating the impact of teacher education practices on teachers' genre knowledge and awareness is needed. This study examines the effect of a project designed specifically to promote L2 writing teachers pedagogical content knowledge of genre. This “Unfamiliar Genre Project” (UGP), asked teachers to research an unfamiliar genre, write their own genre example, and design curriculum to teach the genre to a multilingual student population of their choice. Drawing on data from multiple drafts of each teacher’s project, feedback from their instructor and peers, written reflections, and audio-recorded follow up interviews, this study seeks to answer the following research question: How does participation in the UGP impact teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge of genre, if at all? Results show that despite some significant challenges the teachers developed specialized knowledge of the rhetorical nature of genre along with knowledge of and empathy for L2 students’ writing challenges through completing the project. Implications for future research and teacher education pedagogy are considered.