Graduation Year

2017

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree

Ed.D.

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

Degree Granting Department

Curriculum and Instruction

Major Professor

Jennifer Jacobs, Ph.D.

Co-Major Professor

Deoksoon Kim, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Ilene Berson, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Danielle Dennis, Ph.D.

Keywords

teacher preparation, second language instruction, video reflection

Abstract

English Language Learners (ELLs) are students who speak a language other than English; they are the fastest growing student population in United States’ (US) public schools and will include over 17 million students by the year 2020 (NCES,2015). The dramatic increase in the ELL student population means that all mainstream classroom teachers will teach at least one ELL within their first year of graduating from a teacher preparation program. However, most US teachers hold misconceptions about ELLs and feel unprepared for ELL instruction (Coady, Harper, & de Jong, 2011). More empirical research is needed to inform teacher preparation programs on the practices that work best to prepare teachers for effective ELL instruction.

Video refection and video annotation tools have become increasingly popular in teacher preparation (Calandra & Rich, 2015; Rich & Hannafin, 2009). Video annotation tools provide affordances to teacher candidates’ understanding of pedagogy and support teacher professional development (Borko et al., 2008). Still, most of the empirical research that has been done on teacher candidates’ use of video reflection reports on general education, English-speaking student learning contexts, and the research that has been done on teacher candidates use of video to reflect on ELL instruction is limited. This research aimed to fill the gap in what is known about video reflection for ELL teacher preparation, and examined how three, undergraduate, final semester teacher candidates used V- Note (a video annotation tool), and instructional coaching to reflect on instruction for elementary-aged ELLs.

Sociocultural Theory was used to answer the following research questions: (a) How does video-elicited reflection shape undergraduate teacher candidates’ beliefs about ELLs and instruction for ELLs? (b) How does video-elicited reflection affirm, challenge, or reconstruct teacher candidates’ beliefs about ELLs and instruction for ELLs? Data included interviews, written reflections, and a researcher’s journal. A qualitative multiple-case study analysis (Stake, 2013) was used to generate case and cross case findings surrounding Taylor, Susan’s and Erica’s cases.

Taylor’s case revealed that as Taylor used video-elicited reflection, her instruction increasingly included more language accommodations and began to include student-centered learning, video-elicited reflection reconstructed Taylor’s beliefs about using one-on-one instruction with ELLs, and collaborative coaching behaviors influenced Taylor’s instruction of ELLs more than directive coaching behaviors did.

Susan’s case findings showed that video-elicited reflection challenged Susan’s misconceptions about ELLs’ language needs, Susan needed more explicit modeling to demonstrate how teachers can intentionally support ELLs’ language needs with accommodated instruction, and instructional coaching supported Susan’s understanding of ELLs’ English language proficiency levels and how these levels could be used to inform instruction.

Erica’s case findings revealed that video-elicited reflection reconstructed Erica’s beliefs about collaborative learning, video-elicited reflection created a space where Erica explored using accommodations to support ELL comprehension, and video-elicited reflection developed Erica’s beliefs about language.

Cross case findings reported on similarities across Taylor’s, Susan’s and Erica’s cases. The first cross case finding showed that video-elicited reflection challenged teacher candidates’ misconceptions about ELLs. The second cross case findings reported that video-elicited reflection allowed teacher candidates to develop an understating of language through appropriation, and the third cross case findings illustrated that video-elicited reflection mediated teacher candidates’ ELL pedagogical development.

Findings from this research led to a discussion on the continuous use of video annotation and instructional coaching as permanent scaffolds that promote teacher candidates’ understanding of ELL pedagogy. Additionally, a discussion surrounding a cyclic model of teacher professional development that employs video-elicited reflection is shared, and the use of video-elicited reflection to facilitate teacher candidates’ participatory appropriation is discussed.

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