Guest Lecture – Cognition-in-Interaction: A Case of Novice Language Teachers

Speakers: Prof. Li Li, Associate Pro Vice Chancellor & Professor of Applied Linguistics at the University of Exeter (UK)
Date: Tuesday, November 26, 2024
Time: 10:00 AM
Location: Multipurpose Room, Ponderosa Commons North (PCN 2012)

Theme:
Cognition-in-interaction: a case of novice language teachers

Teacher cognition has been an important agenda of language teacher education in recent decades, and it has advanced the field’s understanding of L2 teachers’ work. Thus far, language teacher cognition has been understood from different epistemological perspectives and researched with different methodological approaches. Given that teacher cognition is social and situational, more research is needed from an emic perspective to understand how teachers develop and renew their cognitions in their professional context.

This presentation and discussion will focus on a discursive psychological perspective on teacher cognition, investigating novice teacher cognition using applied conversation analysis. As part of a more extensive study, the study discussed here offers an in-depth analysis of novice Chinese EFL teachers’ thinking, knowing, understanding, conceptualising, and stance-taking regarding language teaching.

In the study, the teachers were recruited through a combination of convenience and snowball sampling strategies. The dataset includes 330 minutes of classroom teaching, 217 minutes of interviews, and 605 minutes of video-based guided reflection on teaching. The data revealed the key theme in teachers’ understanding of 1) focusing on linguistic knowledge, 2) establishing teacher authority, and 3) developing practical pedagogical knowledge. The findings reveal teachers’ moment-by-moment cognition-in-interaction and multiple roles in facilitating learning. Substantial implications are put forward for teacher learning and teacher education.

Dr. Li Li is Professor of Applied Linguistics and Language Education at the University of Exeter (UK). Her research areas include teacher cognition, ‘applied’ conversation analysis, social interaction, thinking skills, and technology-enhanced language learning. Professor Li is the author of Language Teacher Cognition (2020),Social Interaction and Teacher Cognition (2017) and New Technologies and Language Learning (2017), and edited Thinking Skills in Second Language Education(2019), Routledge Handbook of Researching for Teaching Thinking Skills (2015). She leads multiple international projects, and the most recent projects are developing digital literacies for modern language teachers and decolonising curriculum in higher education.

Professor Li’s research interests include: language teacher cognition; thinking skills; social interaction; technology use in (language) education and mixed methodology and sociocultural theory. https://experts.exeter.ac.uk/3161-li-li