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Jasmine Luk, Ph.D. (Lancaster) Lecturer, English Department The Hong Kong Institute of Education

PNET Induction 1. Expectations of the school, the teachers, the students and their parents 2. Cultural & social backgrounds of primary school students and staff. Jasmine Luk, Ph.D. (Lancaster) Lecturer, English Department The Hong Kong Institute of Education. Brainstorming.

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Jasmine Luk, Ph.D. (Lancaster) Lecturer, English Department The Hong Kong Institute of Education

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  1. PNET Induction 1. Expectations of the school, the teachers, the students and their parents2. Cultural & social backgrounds of primary school students and staff Jasmine Luk, Ph.D. (Lancaster) Lecturer, English Department The Hong Kong Institute of Education

  2. Brainstorming What do you expect to achieve as a PNET in Hong Kong?

  3. Whose expectations are these? NETs should/would • Help improve students’ English results in exams. • Assist in the school-based English curriculum and syllabus development. • Make the lessons more fun and relaxed. • Develop an English speaking environment. • Act as resource persons or ELT consultants (particularly in terms of cultural knowledge). • Lead in extra-curricular activities. • Promote a positive image of the school. • Work collaboratively with other members of the English panel (conduct staff-development programmes). • Be able to understand Cantonese. • Speak perfect standard English.

  4. Cultural & Social Background What would you tell me about the cultural and social background of primary students and teachers in your country?

  5. What is culture? • Understanding culture as a ‘verb’ rather than a noun. • Ways of seeing, ways of believing, ways of acting upon people and events in our surroundings. • Not a static concept, but changing over time and space.

  6. Approaching Culture from multiple perspectives

  7. Culture as Observable Features • Artifacts and creations • Material culture • Language system • Perceivable behaviour

  8. A General Profile of Primary Students in Hong Kong • Places where they eat • Their favourite pastimes • Their idols, if any • The books they read • Their speech styles • Their classroom practices

  9. A General Profile of Primary Students in Hong Kong

  10. Culture as Inherited Beliefs & Value System • The values, attitudes and norms passed down from previous generations • Influenced by Confucian Heritage, but no longer strong in younger generations

  11. Key Confucian Heritage • Respect the seniors (conforming to authority) • Value learning from experts (value education & respect teachers, but weakens creativity) • Value harmony in interpersonal relationship :collectivistic (avoid boastful behaviour in public) • Careful in speech (lead to reticence) • Concern with face (dislike public criticism, but like public reward) • Hard work will lead to success

  12. Culture as Being Socially Constructed • Unconscious and invisible; fundamental assumptions such as people’s relationship to environment, nature, other people, time, space and their position in the universe • More unstable; socioculturally constructed

  13. Cultural and Social Background • Students coming from different social backgrounds and social classes usually display different behavioural and mental practices. • Must guard against forming totalistic cultural stereotypes based on ethnicities and social classes.

  14. Social & Cultural Background at Level Two in Practice • Beliefs about education • Beliefs about learning • Beliefs about proper behaviour in the classroom • Beliefs about feedback and reward

  15. Beliefs about education • highly valued in the society. • the major means for social advancement • Ultimate goal is to obtain proper qualifications -- leads to exam-oriented culture

  16. Beliefs about learning • Effort can compensate low ability • Laziness will lead to failure • Rote-learning/Memorization can come with understanding • Learning will come through attentive listening to the T’s instruction. Back to S17

  17. Beliefs about proper behaviour in the classroom • Average Ss tend to be quiet and appear to be passive, seldom answer Qs for fear of losing face. • Seldom ask questions in front of the class during lessons, sometimes seen as an act to challenge the teachers. • Questions usually come after class or during private interactions. Back to S17

  18. Cont’d • Keen to help teachers to maintain a good image, e.g. by helping to clean the board, distributing workbooks, or reporting “improper” behaviour of peers. • Male and female students should not get too close together in order to avoid inviting gossips about unusual relationships.

  19. Beliefs about feedback and reward • When and who to praise?  Public praise X lavishing praising on students too easily • What to reward and discipline? • Positions of responsibility to low-achievers • Offering solutions to improve behaviour X Sending problem students to high authority immediately without investigation Back to S17

  20. Social & Cultural Background at Level Three Beliefs about • Success • English and their everyday life

  21. Beliefs about success • Success usually measured by how much money earned, and social status. • A good job means one that enables you to earn a lot. • Good English abilities will lead to success. Back to S15

  22. English and their everyday life • A symbol for success, & being modern and educated. • Treated as a subject for exams by many working class kids, rather than a tool for communication. • More as a part of their daily life for middle and upper classes. • Ambivalent attitude : like learning English the fun way, but concerned about knowledge for tests/exams.

  23. How about local Ts (LETs)? • Emphasize “discipline first before teaching” • Emphasize rules and regulations • Emphasize mastering the formal aspects of the language before putting them to use • Emphasize consolidation and practice after school (practice makes perfect) • English serves functional and pragmatic purposes more than social and affective functions. • Younger Ts more ready to engage in innovative practice, and collaboration with fellow colleagues

  24. What makes primary students unhappy in HK?Are primary students happy in your country?

  25. Some recent survey findings about HK primary students Five major factors leading to unhappiness in life: • Poor academic results • Having lots of tests and exams • Too much homework • Quarrel with classmates • Being scolded by teachers The higher the year group, the lower the students’ confidence and learning motivation. (Related report: ‘Primary pupils unhappy, study finds, SCMP, 6 January 2006))

  26. What are the qualities of an ideal teacher from primary pupils’ perspectives?

  27. Qualities of an ideal teacher: • Showing concerns to students (78%) • Lively and effective teaching methods (51%) • Funny and humorous (51%) • Enthusiastic about teaching (48%) • Treat students like friends (44%) • Knowledgeable (37%)

  28. Useful references • Candlin, C. N., Lin, A. M. Y., & Lo, T. W. (2000). The Discourse of Adolescents in Hong Kong (City University of Hong Kong Strategic Research Grant #7000707). Hong Kong: City University of Hong Kong. • Lee, W.O. (1996). The cultural context for Chinese learners: Conceptions of learning in the Confucian tradition. In D.A. Watkins & J.H. Biggs (Eds.), The Chinese learner: Cultural psychological and contextual influences (pp.25-41). Hong Kong; Australia: CERC & ACER.

  29. Cont’d • Lin, A.M.Y. (2000). Lively children trapped in an island of disadvantage: Verbal play of Cantonese working-class schoolboys in Hong Kong. International Journal of Sociology and Language, 143, 63-83. • Luk, J. (2001). Exploring the sociocultural implications of the Native English-speaker Teacher Scheme in Hong Kong through the eyes of the students. Asia-Pacific Journal of Language in Education, 4(2), 19-50.

  30. Cont’d • Luk, J.C.M. (2002). Communication behaviours of EFL learners in a native English-speaker teacher’s class: A case in Hong Kong. In A. Kirkpatrick (Ed.), Englishes in Asia: Communication, identity, power and education. Melbourne: Language Australia Ltd. • Nissila, S. (1997). Raising cultural awareness among foreign language teacher trainees. In M. Byram & G. Zarate (Eds.). The Sociocultural and Intercultural Dimension of Language Learning and Teaching. Germany: Council of Europe Publishing.

  31. Salili, F. (2001). Teacher-student interaction: Attributional implications and effectiveness of teachers’ evaluative feedback. In D.A. Watkins & J.B. Biggs (Eds.). Teaching the Chinese Learner: Psychological and Pedagogical Perspectives. Hong Kong: Comparative Education Research Centre & The University of Hong Kong. • Walker, E. (2001). Roles of native-speaker English Teachers (NETs) in Hong Kong secondary schools. Asia-Pacific Journal of Language in Education, 4(2), 51-78.

  32. I wish you all a very fruitful first year as a PNET in Hong Kong!

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