Abstract
While much has been written about teacher cognition in grammar teaching, research investigating non-native English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teacher cognition in grammar teaching remains limited. This study intends to investigate non-native EFL teacher cognition in teaching grammar to university students in the Saudi Arabian context. More specifically, the study examins the interplay between these teachers’ beliefs and practices in grammar teaching across mother tongue and gender. For this purpose, the study used mixed methods design, and employed a five-point Lickert scale questionnaire triangulated by a structured classroom observations checklist. Sixty teachers were selected for questionnaire, based on stratified random sampling; while eight teachers were observed multiple times. Teachers’ selection for observations was based on purposive sampling. Both types of data were analysed statistically using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Descriptive analyses and independent-samples t-tests were employed. The results of independent samples t-tests indicated that there were no statistically significant differences in the beliefs of teachers across mother tongue and gender. The main finding of the study, revealed through descriptive analysis of the data, is that beliefs and practices of teachers across mother tongue and gender were at odds resulting into weak teacher cognition. The study suggests pedagogical implications for improved teacher cognition and hence, better grammar teaching in the Saudi Arabian context.
Highlights
Teacher cognition research is a relatively new phenomenon that has yet to be explored in the Saudi Arabian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context (Alghanmi & Shukri, 2016)
Several studies have highlighted EFL teachers’ outdated teaching methods and students’ low proficiency level in English in Saudi Arabia (Al-Seghayer, 2011; Grami, 2010; Javid, Farooq, & Gulzar, 2012), grammar (Chowdhury, 2014; Khan, 2011); no research has attempted to investigate EFL teacher cognition, and there is a gap in research in the Saudi Arabian context regarding EFL teacher cognition in grammar teaching
Given the findings of the study, this study reveals that beliefs of non-native EFL teachers across mother tongue and gender are not aligned with their actual classroom practices in teaching grammar resulting in weak teacher cognition and low proficiency level of their students, as beliefs and practices of teachers are not mutually informing
Summary
Teacher cognition research is a relatively new phenomenon that has yet to be explored in the Saudi Arabian EFL context (Alghanmi & Shukri, 2016). Borg (1998) observes that empirical research has proved that teachers’ classroom practices are determined by their beliefs. He feels that teachers’ pedagogical belief system is still relatively unexplored. Borg (2009) argues that the primary concern of teacher cognition research lies with the unobservable dimension of teaching, teachers’ mental lives, which play a pivotal role in their instructional choices. Borg (2003) realizes that to better understand teaching it is imperative to understand teachers’ thoughts and beliefs that influence what teachers practice in the classroom. It is imperative to get profound knowledge of elt.ccsenet.org
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