Foreign language acquisition and learning plays a pivotal role in the educational system and is of great interest for empirical investigations (Mehisto et al. 2008). Research in this field is termed Second Language Acquisition (SLA). Ellis (2010) defines SLA as “the way in which people learn a language other than their mother tongue, inside or outside a classroom”. The aim of SLA research is to explain the processes that occur when learning another language after the native language and what factors influence them (Kersten 2019). Every learner has individual, internal prerequisites determined by his or her personality, language and cognitive skills (ibid.). Furthermore, external factors such as the family and the social environment or institutional factors, for example educational policies and school administration and the teacher’s personality and professionalism contribute to his or her success in learning a foreign language (ibid.). The teacher as an external factor is of major importance for the present study, in particular the quality of input given by him or her in different instructional settings.
Since “teaching is a complex interaction among teachers, students and content that no single measurement tool is likely to capture” (Archer et al. 2014), this study aims to identify differences in input quality between two teaching approaches by using the Teacher Input Observation Scheme (TIOS), an observation scheme which is currently in the developing phase at Hildesheim University. The study outcomes are anticipated to make a limited contribution to the context field of teacher education by providing a single-case data measurement of Teacher Input Quality (TIQ) regarding two different approaches to reading literacy.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Theoretical Background
2.1. Classroom Observation
2.2. Input Theories
2.2.1. Input Hypothesis
2.2.2. Interaction Hypothesis
2.2.3. Output Hypothesis
2.3. Input Quality
2.4. Videography
2.5. The Two Teaching Approaches: Synthetic Phonics and Whole Word
2.5.1. Synthetic Phonics in English-Speaking Countries and in the L2-classroom
2.5.2. Whole Word Approach
3. Empirical Study
3.1. Methodology
3.1.1. Research question, hypothesis and expected eutcome
3.1.2. Methodological approach
3.1.3. Subjects
3.1.4. Elicitation Procedure
3.1.4.1. Elicitation Instrument: Teacher Input Observation Scheme (TIOS)
3.1.4.2. Rating participants
3.1.5. Data Analysis
3.1.6. Methodological and Analytical Limitations
3.2. Research Results
3.2.1. Individual and Mean Percentage Scores of R1 and R2
3.2.2. Individual High-Inference Category Scores
3.2.3. Comparison of Mean High-Inference Category Scores
3.2.4. Statistical Significance
3.3. Discussion
4. Conclusion
5. References
Research Objectives and Themes
This thesis aims to investigate whether teacher input quality (TIQ) varies significantly between two distinct teaching approaches—synthetic phonics and the whole word approach—within the context of a German primary school setting. By utilizing the Teacher Input Observation Scheme (TIOS) to analyze video-recorded lessons, the research seeks to determine if pedagogical differences in reading instruction influence the quality of input provided to learners.
- Comparison of input quality in synthetic phonics versus whole word teaching methods.
- Application of the Teacher Input Observation Scheme (TIOS) as a quantitative research instrument.
- Evaluation of teacher input through systematic video-based classroom observation.
- Analysis of high-inference categories such as verbal input, non-verbal input, and learner output.
- Assessment of the statistical significance regarding TIQ differences between the two observed approaches.
Excerpt from the Book
2.5.1. Synthetic Phonics
Synthetic Phonics programmes are widely spread and established in English-speaking countries (Treutlein et al.: 13). The main idea of synthetic phonics is to synthesise letter sounds to pronounce unfamiliar words (ibid: 6). Words are not taught as a whole or by sight, but children recode knew words themselves using grapheme-phoneme correspondence (GPC) rules (Johnston & Watson 2005: 11). Once the learners have learnt a few graphemes and their corresponding sounds, the teacher shows them how these letters can be blended with others to find out the pronunciation of an unfamiliar word (Johnston & Watson 2014: 7). By using this way from the beginning of SLA learners can recode many unfamiliar words for themselves (Johnston & Watson 2005: 11).
The Letters and Sounds programme is based on the British government’s synthetic phonics scheme, which is used by half the schools in England for L1 reading instruction (Walker et al., cited in Johnston and Watson 2014: 44). It is also used as the basis for the phonics instruction that was used in the observed classrooms in this study. The main aims of the programme is to teach children to distinguish between letter shapes, to associate letter shapes with sounds and vice versa, to learn letter formation and to teach fundamental skills of blending and segmenting (ibid.: 45, 49). The key idea of Letters and sounds is that “learning should be multisensory” (ibid.: 45).
In synthetic phonics programmes, grapheme-to-phoneme correspondences (GPC) are taught in accumulative order. In the Letters and Sounds programme, when children are taught a new letter, they blend it with the already known letters for reading and segment them for spelling using the previously taught letters. It also highlights the development of phonological awareness skills by implementing exercises on blending and segmenting phonemes in spoken words (ibid.: 27).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: The introduction outlines the significance of teacher input in second language acquisition and defines the research scope concerning different reading instruction methods.
2. Theoretical Background: This chapter provides foundational knowledge on classroom observation, input theories (Input, Interaction, and Output Hypotheses), and describes the specific teaching methods observed.
3. Empirical Study: This chapter details the research methodology, including the use of the TIOS instrument, subject selection, data analysis procedures, and presents the gathered quantitative results and discussion.
4. Conclusion: The conclusion summarizes the study's findings, confirming that no significant difference in TIQ was observed between the two methods, and acknowledges the limitations of this single-case study.
5. References: A comprehensive list of academic sources and literature cited throughout the thesis.
Keywords
Second Language Acquisition, Teacher Input Quality, Synthetic Phonics, Whole Word Approach, Classroom Observation, TIOS, Primary School, Grapheme-Phoneme Correspondence, SLA, Quantitative Research, Videography, Pedagogical Methodology, Instructional Settings, Learner Output, Language Teaching.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fundamental focus of this research paper?
The research focuses on evaluating and comparing the quality of teacher input (TIQ) when teaching English in a German primary school setting using two different methodologies: synthetic phonics and the whole word approach.
What are the primary thematic areas covered in this thesis?
The thesis covers second language acquisition theories, classroom observation techniques, the use of videography in educational research, and a comparative analysis of specific reading literacy teaching approaches.
What is the central research question?
The central research question is: Does the teacher's input quality vary between lessons of synthetic phonics and whole word approach?
Which scientific methodology is utilized in this study?
The study utilizes a quantitative research design, specifically a single-case study, employing the Teacher Input Observation Scheme (TIOS) to rate video-recorded classroom lessons.
What is addressed in the main body of the paper?
The main body covers the theoretical framework of input and observation, the methodological design of the empirical study, and the detailed presentation and statistical comparison of the results gathered from the two teaching approaches.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
Key terms include Second Language Acquisition, Teacher Input Quality, Synthetic Phonics, Whole Word Approach, Classroom Observation, and TIOS.
How did the observer ensure inter-rater reliability during the study?
Two trained student raters (R1 and R2) were recruited to evaluate the same recorded lessons independently, and their outcomes were compared to ensure consistency and reliability of the quantitative data.
What was the outcome regarding the statistical significance of TIQ differences?
The statistical analysis, using a two-tailed p-value, showed a p=0.7159, leading to the conclusion that the differences in TIQ between the two observed teaching approaches were not statistically significant.
Why was videography chosen as a method for this investigation?
Videography was chosen because it provides a reliable, replicable research resource that allows the observer to stop, review, and analyze specific teacher-student interactions and classroom dynamics in detail.
What limitations does the author mention regarding the study?
The author notes the study is a single-case study with a limited number of lessons and participants, which means the results cannot be widely generalized and might be subject to the Hawthorne Effect.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Anonym (Autor:in), 2019, Video-based Teacher Input Observation in a German Primary Classroom Setting, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/512660
