The relationship between beliefs and practice in language teaching education

Abstract

According to Woods (2003), understanding the relationship between beliefs and actions is crucial for research on beliefs about language learning and teaching and for understanding teachers’ practices. The studies on this topic usually investigate what teachers say abouttheir believe regarding specific aspects of language teaching and learning and what they actually do in practice. These studies reveal that on the one hand, beliefs influence practice and these, in turn, influence beliefs. On the other hand, the results usually show either divergence or convergence between beliefs and practice. However, this relationship is not so straightforward, as many researchers have already pointed out (Barcelos 2006, Breen et al. 2001, Richardson 1996, Woods 1996). According to Richardson (1996), we need to understand the complexities of the teaching contexts and of teachers’ beliefs within their contexts. In view of that, in this article, I reflect on the relationship between beliefs and practice in general and highlight the complexity of this relationship by pointing out some factors that influence this relationship, such as contextual factors, methodology employed, among others. I conclude with implications for language teacher education and for research on the relationship between beliefs and practices. /Keywords: beliefs, language learning, language teacher education