Teacher candidates participate in project with educators across Canada on Second Language Research
Teacher candidates in the BEd French stream at Glendon College, recently participated in a unique project called Linking Second Languages Research and Practice. The project allowed them to engage in online discussions about recent research into the teaching of French as a Second Language in a forum comprised of Second Language teachers, researchers, teacher educators, faculty and other students across Canada.
A joint venture between the Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers and the Canadian Modern Language Review, the project was created to make research more accessible to educators. For 6 weeks the students were given access to 6 journal articles from the Canadian Modern Language Review and their accompanying guides, watched video clips of researchers presenting their work, and were able to interact with colleagues, researchers and other Second Language Educators from across Canada in live discussion forums.
Several of the students were excited about being able to converse with actual researchers and to share a first-hand account of their methodology which made their work more meaningful. The discussion of research articles was also framed in the light of the question, “How would you/have applied these findings to your own teaching?” which gave students an opportunity to think about their own future teaching practice.
“Often in methodology courses, students see theory as being presented in a disconnected manner”, commented Stefanie Muhling, course director, Glendon College, Bachelor of Education French Program. “Here they saw how classroom experiences inspired research which could then, in turn inform their practice. The reading guides developed for the articles as a part of the project, provided teacher candidates with the scaffolding to interpret the research as it pertained to their teaching context, thereby building their capacity to do so in the future”.
“I found this project to be an interesting and stimulating way to discuss many ongoing issues and themes we as FSL Teacher Candidates are beginning to see as we become more and more involved in the classroom”, commented one of the teacher candidates who participated in the project. “This project was elevated by the incorporation of papers that not only presented the topics at hand, but often presented research that reflected the FSL teaching practice. This dialogue was further enhanced and enriched by the perspectives of educators in different parts of the country. More teachers should be exposed to this type of experience which broadens our horizons and allows us to reflect on our ever-evolving teaching style and methods.”