Effective Foreign Language Teaching: Broadening the Concept of Content Knowledge

Abstract

Studies investigating teacher candidate performance on traditional assessments of content knowledge place emphasis on just one of many skills needed to be an effective foreign language teacher; they also fail to explain why many teacher candidates with advanced oral proficiency struggle in the classroom and why some with less advanced language skills perform well. Using both quantitative data from Oral Proficiency Interviews, the Praxis Subject Assessment, and the edTPA scores for 21 native- and nonnative-speaking teacher candidates of French and Spanish, as well as qualitative data collected from teacher candidate interviews, the study investigated the types of content knowledge that are necessary to be an effective foreign language teacher. Results suggest four distinct types of content knowledge, each of which is critical to being an effective teacher, and on which teacher candidate performance may vary widely. The results have implications for the establishment of program completion, teacher licensure, and accreditation requirements.