Gj Harfitt

From attrition to retention: a narrative inquiry of why beginning teachers leave and then rejoin the profession

The issue of beginning teachers leaving the profession in the first few years of their career represents a global problem, and while discrepancies exist over precise numbers, there is consensus that the attrition rate of new teachers is high. This paper reports on a narrative inquiry into two beginning teachers who left the profession after just 1 year of practice, only to return 2 years later. By examining this continuum from attrition to retention through the lens of the two teachers’ narrative accounts it is possible to gain some insights into how new teachers’ personal and professional landscapes intertwine. Findings reveal that these beginning teachers’ experiences of their school contexts combined with their personal stories in the first year of practice shaped their professional identity culminating in them leaving and then rejoining the teaching fold. Insights gleaned may have significant implications for beginning teachers, school leaders, teacher education institutions, and policy makers.

Why "Small" Can Be Better: An Exploration of the Relationships between Class Size and Pedagogical Practices.

A central issue in the class size debate is that while cutting class size might lead to improved teaching and learning, it is also possible that it may not if teachers do not seek to exploit the advantages of a smaller class size through an alternative pedagogy. Research suggests that teachers do not change their pedagogy when moving from large classes to smaller ones. This paper focuses on pedagogical practices in large and reduced-size secondary school classes where the teacher is the same in both contexts; a research design that has not been employed in previous class size studies. The paper explores the relationships between class size and the pedagogical practices adopted by four experienced teachers in Hong Kong who are each responsible for one large and one reduced-size English language class of the same grade level. Drawing on mostly qualitative data, this study’s findings show that teachers did vary their teaching from one class to another with important differences noted in teacher–student interaction patterns, classroom organisation, the establishment of classroom rules and the teacher’s use of humour. At the same time, interview data reveal that teachers could not always explain or theorise their pedagogical decisions. Implications for professional practice are presented.

Class size and language learning in Hong Kong: the students’ perspective

Background: There is currently ongoing debate in Hong Kong between the teachers’ union and the Government on the reduction of large class size (typically more than 40 students) in secondary schools and whether smaller class sizes might facilitate improvements in teaching and learning. In fact, many Hong Kong secondary schools have already started to experiment with class size reduction. This study seeks to investigate from the students’ perspective how class size reduction might alleviate one key psychological aspect of learning in Hong Kong and Asia, namely language learning anxiety. Research has shown that language learning anxiety can have a debilitating effect on students’ classroom behaviour, and this study seeks to examine whether exposure to learning in a smaller class informs such findings. Purpose: This small-scale exploratory study aims to examine whether, and how, class size reduction might help to alleviate language learning anxiety, which has long been seen as an obstacle to second language acquisition. Method: This study employed multiple case studies in four Hong Kong secondary schools. Each case constituted one teacher teaching English language to first language Chinese students in a reduced-size class (where class size was between 21 and 25 students) and a large class (where class size was between 38 and 41 students) of the same year grade, and of similar academic ability. Multiple interviews were conducted with the four teachers, and data stemmed from group and individual interviews with 231 students. Student interview questions focused on their perspectives and experiences of studying in large and reduced-size classes. A total of 78 lessons were also observed across the four case studies. The data were analysed to identify any emergent patterns and themes. Findings: The research findings indicate that students reflect on their experiences of studying in reduced-size classes in a mature and confident way. Students reported that smaller classes promoted a strong sense of security within their classroom community and seemed to weaken students’ fears of negative evaluation from their peers and teachers. Students also reported that they felt more confident about participating in English lessons and these perspectives were supported by evidence from classroom observations. Conclusions: This small-scale exploratory research study suggests that the student voice can provide insights into language learning classrooms. Data from the case studies reveal that students’ sense of anxiety can be reduced in smaller classes and that class size reduction may assist in breaking down cultural barriers.

Brokering dialogue between secondary students and teachers to co-construct appropriate pedagogy in reduced-size classes

This study focuses on how two teachers working in reduced-size secondary classes of the same grade adapted their pedagogy as a result of a brokered dialogue between myself as researcher and 43 grade 10 students from the teachers’ classes. Research was carried out over the course of one academic year. First, students’ perspectives on studying in a reduced-size class were elicited before they were invited to suggest ways of improving the teaching and learning. These interviews were transcribed and given to the teachers of these classes. Next, these teachers were interviewed to gauge their opinions on what the students had reported in the earlier interviews. At a later stage, their teaching was observed to determine whether, and to what extent, the two teachers had attempted to incorporate changes based on the feedback from pupils. The study showed that the pupil voice is a very powerful and constructive trigger for enacting teachers’ pedagogical change and developing our understanding of students’ learning processes. Findings demonstrate that teachers responded positively to their students’ perspectives despite initial apprehensions. Implications for professional development and good practices in reduced-size classes are also presented.

A Parental Perspective of School and Familial Curriculum Making: A Narrative Inquiry of Early Childhood Education Planning in Hong Kong.

ABSTRACT This paper examines the early childhood context of Hong Kong (HK) which is characterised by an entirely privatised system. The level of knowledge a child possesses in early childhood can be a determining factor in their admission into desirable kindergartens or primary schools. Given HK’s privatised early childhood education system, the quality of a child’s learning is directly tied to the education services their parents provide independently or can afford financially. The study reported in this paper adopts a narrative inquiry approach to an under-researched area of early childhood education, namely the voices of parents within home learning environments and how the lengths they go to provide their children with a quality education.

The Role of the Community in Teacher Preparation: Exploring a Different Pathway to Becoming a Teacher

Viewing learning as a social and cultural process the premise of this paper is that learner teachers’ developing expertise should not only reside in the knowledge domains typically established by universities and schools. A crucial knowledge domain that is often overlooked by schools and teacher education institutes (TEIs) is the community beyond the walls of the school classroom and university lecture hall. This paper attends to the question of what constitutes an effective teacher in an era of rapid change and throws light on the process of becoming a twenty-first century educator through examining an innovative curriculum design which has made experiential learning (EL) mandatory for all novice teachers at a TEI in Hong Kong. This challenging curriculum initiative in teacher training has enabled a powerful synergy between the core functions of our teacher-training faculty and the wider community. I seek to present findings that point to real impact on student teachers’ professional development – or their sense of becoming – and also in the way TEIs work within their local communities which are positioned as a powerful knowledge space and knowledge holder in the teacher education process. I will also show how community partners such as non-governmental organisations (NGOs) play a highly significant role in the development of beginning teachers and how they might even be seen as ‘co-educators’ in the complex but compelling process of teacher preparation.

An examination of language teachers’ enactment of curriculum materials in the context of a centralised curriculum

Abstract This paper examines a ubiquitous yet under-studied area of language pedagogy, namely materials usage. It explores teachers’ enactment of curriculum materials by focusing on English language education (ELE) teachers’ use of prescribed textbooks to plan and deliver lessons at the tertiary level in Mainland China. A qualitative multi-case study involving three Chinese ELE teachers represents the design for this study. The interactive patterns of teachers’ enactment at the pre-lesson phase were generated along with four domains of influential factors. The implications for materials development and professional development are also addressed.

Understanding language teachers’ enactment of content through the use of centralized curriculum materials

ABSTRACT This study examines a timely yet under-studied area of language curriculum implementation in classroom settings. It explores teachers’ enactment of content by focusing on the use of prescribed textbooks for planning instruction in higher education by teachers of English as a foreign language in mainland China. This qualitative case study involved two Chinese teachers of English as a foreign language. Drawing on data from interviews with the teachers and their students, lesson observations and documents from one semester, the teachers’ use of curriculum materials was fleshed out into four interactional processes: reading, evaluating, appropriating and adapting. This study attempts to uncover the mediated relationships among the teachers, students and curriculum materials via these four processes. By conceptualising this ubiquitous pedagogical practice, our understanding of language teachers’ enactment of curriculum materials is deepened. Theoretical and practical implications are also addressed.

Insights and Implications: The Way Forward for Teaching Small Classes

This final chapter starts by considering the significance of the studies reported in earlier chapters and discusses the contribution this book makes to the body of research on class size. The chapter then brings together salient findings from the studies reported previously to offer some key insights that help to illuminate the often complex and controversial area of class size reduction (CSR). I argue that teachers do not always teach small classes in the same way as large classes, a finding that runs contrary to previous research findings. An original aspect of this book is the inclusion of a powerful student voice, previously silent in the literature on class size. The issue of what the student voice can tell us about their perceptions and experiences of small class teaching is a fundamental part of curriculum initiatives like CSR and will be examined in this chapter. At the outset of the book I also stated that I wanted to engage with the school context to throw light on what constitutes good teaching practice in small classes. Observation of ten teachers working in different secondary schools and interviews with hundreds of students has provided me with a rich bank of data on the type of pedagogical practices that appear to work best in small classes. I propose that teachers need to adopt a more purposeful and personalized pedagogy in small classes based around the type of dialogic teaching proposed by Alexander (Towards dialogic teaching: rethinking classroom talk, 4th edn. Dialogos, Thirsk, 2008). All of the issues raised through the case studies are inextricably connected and relate to pedagogy, instruction, culture, educational policy, school leadership, professional development and curriculum planning, and these will be addressed in this chapter. I conclude the chapter by making a number of suggestions for the way forward for class size research, policy and practice.

Class Size Reduction: A Global Debate

This chapter starts by examining the vigorous debate that has surrounded the global issue of class size reduction (CSR) for so many years. It then charts a possible way ahead for class size research by arguing for a more substantial evidence base on how and why teaching and learning can differ in classes of different size in the under-researched context of the secondary school classroom. There then follows a definition of key terms and concepts in the class size literature. The issue of class size in East Asia is complicated by a host of cultural factors, and what is described as the Asian paradox. This paradox will be discussed with particular reference to the many international attainment tests which have been used erroneously in my opinion to suggest a positive link between large class sizes in Asia and students’ consistently high achievement levels when compared with their Western counterparts who often study in smaller classes. The chapter concludes with a description of the research aims of the book, an overview of the educational landscape for this study, and a comment on Hong Kong’s central position in current research on CSR.