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Item "They come because they know the teachers are gringos" : a post-colonial exploration of the perceived value of volunteer English teaching in Lima, Peru : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of International Development at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand(Massey University, 2019) Thomas, JohannaOver the past three decades, there has been a growing trend among young people from developed countries to spend time undertaking short-term voluntary activities in developing countries before, during or after university. This phenomenon is known as ‘volunteer-tourism’. Although typically unqualified, volunteer-tourists participate in a wide range of activities, including English language teaching. There is, however, limited exploration on the dynamics of English language education through volunteer-tourism. Furthermore, literature on the role of English in development indicates an uncritical and positive bias towards English as an international language and a tool of ‘development’. This research thus contributes to current literature in two key ways, considering both the dynamics of volunteer-tourism and English language, in a post-colonial context. The research explores the perceived value of volunteer English (EFL) teaching in both elite and disadvantaged communities of post-colonial Peru. Focusing on a volunteer English teaching agency that operates in both public and private schools in Lima, interviews were conducted with both private and public school staff and former students, agency representatives and volunteers, as part of a qualitative study. A post-colonial lens was adopted to frame the research, addressing the following research questions: • What motivates different actors’ involvement in volunteer English teaching programmes and how do they perceive the value of volunteer English teaching and the English language itself? • How is volunteer English teaching and the English language experienced and perceived in elite and disadvantaged environments by different actors? Drawing on a post-colonial analytical strategy, the research discussion highlights three key themes. Firstly, the perceived value of volunteer English teachers is dependent on their having a positive and willing attitude rather than any form of qualification. Furthermore, their role ambiguity means they are absolved of much responsibility both in and outside of the classroom. Secondly, the value of volunteer English teaching lies in its characterisation as a ‘cultural exchange’, whereby volunteer teaching assistants provide ‘authentic’, linguistic and cultural exchange with Peruvian school students, host families and staff. Finally, stepping into the wider context in which the research is situated, English language is seen by Peruvian participants as a way of ‘opening doors to the world’, with direct associations made by all participants between English and the discourse of ‘development’. Overall, the research reveals power relations and subjectivities that are embedded in post-colonial power structures. Elite members of the host community benefit more from the programme and from the English language than those who are less advantaged, and generalisations are made about different groups of actors based on stereotypes that embody post-colonial ways of thinking. Uncritical promotion of the English language as a tool for personal and national ‘development’ is symbolised by notions of superiority regarding the volunteers and the ‘world’ from which they originate. This suggests that neo-colonial processes may also be involved in spreading the English language and its associated ‘culture’. Nevertheless, while local initiatives such as this one may reproduce systemic inequalities, the positive impacts that participants feel they have experienced should not be overlooked. As such, further research into the overlap between English language and volunteering is required to continue unpacking how these areas interact and operate within underlying power relations, expanding the focus from perceived value, to tangible impacts.Item Netting the maroro : an exploration of Cook Islands teachers' beliefs about language learning and teaching : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Second Language Teaching at Massey University(Massey University, 2003) Edwards, Frances Catherine EdithTeachers' beliefs play an important role in teachers' decision making processes and affect their practice. Beliefs are situated within specific contexts. Little work has been done to investigate the beliefs of language teachers in the South Pacific. This study investigated the beliefs about language learning and language teaching of Cook Islands teachers working in Rarotonga, Cook Islands. The research used a qualitative approach based on questionnaires, interviews, and stimulated recall, including detailed case studies of three teachers. The findings suggest that the Cook Islands teachers involved in this study held beliefs about the language learning process, the nature and use of language, Cook Islands learners, the challenge of risk-taking by students in schools and the teacher's role within the classroom. Beliefs about the language learning process included those relating to initial and ongoing language acquisition, the relationship between written and spoken language, and the teaching strategies best suited to effective language learning. The role of phonics, reading, and the place of modelling were identified as particularly important. Beliefs relating to the nature and use of language included strongly identified beliefs about the links between culture and language and about the relationship between the languages used in the Cook Islands. Bilingualism was seen as an ideal goal but getting there was seen as problematic. Teachers' beliefs about learners included beliefs about affective factors and the idea of learner readiness. Beliefs were held about the particular problems associated with risk-taking in Cook Islands classrooms. Teachers held beliefs about their roles, particularly in the relationships they have with students and school administrators including the ideas of tolerance and patience in providing a good learning environment for students. In situations where decision-making was needed, but individual beliefs were in conflict with each other, the process of more centrally held beliefs overriding other less centrally held beliefs was observed. Many of the beliefs held were influenced by teachers' own language learning experiences. Significant events in the teachers' lives were identified as important sources of beliefs and motivation. The influence of the historical colonial setting was particularly evident. The research shows that Cook Islands teachers have specific beliefs that influence their practice. These beliefs were found to be strongly related to the historical, social and professional context of the believer. Because of the effects of beliefs on practice it is important for beliefs to be considered in any process of teacher change. The findings of this research should help towards an understanding of teacher beliefs necessary for future initiatives aimed at improving language teacher practice.Item Language change : linguistic imperialism or empowerment? : observations on the use of English in contemporary urban Samoa : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Social Anthropology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand(Massey University, 2014) Vague, PhillipaEnglish is widely considered to be a global language, the lingua franca of the modern world, and the language of globalisation. For some cultures, this English imperialism equates to the loss of their indigenous language(s). Amidst growing concerns that language loss is occurring in the Pacific, this research seeks to explore the use and purpose of English in contemporary urban Samoa, and considers the effect this is having on Gagana Samoa – the Samoan language. Drawing on Pierre Bourdieu’s practice theory, this study argues that English occupies an important place in Samoan society as it possesses symbolic and economic capital which can be utilised by both individuals and family units, within Samoa and overseas. Furthermore I explore the role of music in English language acquisition and use, and assert that music is a means of gaining symbolic capital within Samoan society. Finally I discuss Samoan perspectives of language change and consider the future of the English and Samoan languages in Apia. The fieldwork for this research was conducted over a period of six weeks in the village of Moata’a, and the wider Apia area in Upolu, Samoa. My research methods consisted of participant observation, discussions with key informants and informal interviews. I also carried out observations at three early educational establishments, Sunday school, preschool and primary school.Item What is the socio-linguistic context for teaching English writing to senior high school students in Fiji? : a thesis completed in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy (Humanities and Social Sciences) in Second Language Teaching, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand(Massey University, 2014) Nicholls, LynnThis study explores teaching practices for expository writing in a developing world context. A qualitative approach draws on a grounded theory model with three different high school case studies in Suva, Fiji. The participants were teachers and students from Form 6 English classes. The linguistic landscape is diverse, with the two majority ethnicities comprising of indigenous Fijian and Fijian both learning different vernacular languages as mediums of instruction for the first three years of school. Standard Fijian and Standard Hindi taught in schools are not always the languages these students speak at home. While English is the medium of instruction taught in schools from Class 4, there is no official language of instruction policy. Students who have English as their second language face challenges in achieving the academic genre of writing. A pass criterion for English proficiency comes with high stakes for success in tertiary studies, with writing for examinations being the only method of assessment. The study found that teachers lacked appropriate resources for teaching this genre of writing, and therefore resorted to teaching more simple formal writing options. Teacher training and professional development in the areas of second language teaching and unit writing appear inadequate in supporting the teaching and learning writing process, and as a result students may not be adequately prepared for their aspirations of going to university.Item A comparative study of the language used by New Zealand children of European and of Samoan descent aged 6 years 10 months to 8 years in conversation with an adult : a dissertation presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Language at Massey University(Massey University, 1979) Moynihan, Isobel MaryThe research represents an attempt to establish some normative data for the oral language performance of native-English speaking children aged 6 years 10 months to 8 years in conversation with an adult, and by examining the performance of Samoan children in the same age-group to determine those areas which discriminate most strongly between the performances of both groups. Children were interviewed individually and the conversations recorded over a thirty-minute period. Tapes were transcribed on the same day as the recording, and the data quantified according to the procedures of Developmental Sentence Analysis Lee, L.L. and Koenigsknecht 1974, Developmental Sentence Analysis., which established a rank-order for each group. A more detailed analysis of the data was then made in order to identify those areas of development and/or of uncertainty which were common to both groups, and those which appeared only, or mainly, among the Samoan children. The statistical analysis, based on the developmental weighting of syntactic items, (DSS scores) indicated that where errors were specific to the Samoan children they occurred in structures described as early-developing among native-English speaking children. At the higher developmental levels, the performance of Samoan children above the 50th percentile (for that group) was similar to that of their English speaking age-mates. The classification of error-patterns also distinguished between 'growth errors' (where performance was characterized by over-generalizing or by substitution, for example), and 'deficiency errors' (where morphemes and syntactic items were omitted), the latter occurring more consistently among the Samoan children. In addition, a general indication of language development in relation to chronological age was derived by comparing the DSS scores of the Samoan children falling below the 25th percentile for that group with those obtained by younger children at the 50th percentile point for each one-year interval from age 4 to age 6. In the absence of New Zealand DSS norms for these age-levels, it was necessary to use those derived from a study of American children (Lee 1974), but the results are in accord with other New Zealand-based studies (See 0.1, Introduction) which have noted the "two-year gap" appearing around age 7 among Polynesian children when their achievement on a variety of measures and tests is compared with that of their Pakeha age-mates. In the present study, the "gap" ranged from about 20 months at the 25th percentile (for the Samoan group) to over 41 months at the 10th percentile. The general intention has been to sharpen the focus for teachers wishing to develop compensatory language programmes so that effort may be directed to those specific areas where non-native speaking children appear to have missed a developmental stage in their acquisition of English. The findings also suggest that difficulty with certain syntactic structures, semantic concepts, and phonological realizations is a function of age-level and the language-situation for both groups of subjects rather than of the ethnic background of the Samoan group.Item Keep them coming back : an investigation and analysis of adult eikaiwa classes in Japan : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Second Language Teaching at Massey University, Palmerston North Campus, New Zealand(Massey University, 2010) Banwell, Donal Rory SeanEikaiwa, or private English language classes for adults in Japan, can be characterized as being relatively small, having teachers from English-speaking countries and students that are looking for face-to-face interaction in the English language. The aim of this research is to gain a deeper understanding of what goes on in these EFL classrooms. More specifically the purpose is to give a thick holistic description of four adult English language classrooms. The study is located in a qualitative paradigm and uses the ethnographic methods of interviews, focus groups and participant observation to collect the data. The data was collected from four different classrooms in Utsunomiya, a city 100km north of Tokyo. The results of the study can be divided into three major themes. Firstly, the study showed that the sociocultural factors of the context influenced the content and behaviour in these classrooms. Secondly, in this context, unique classroom cultures were formed with participants involved in ‗sociopedagogical relationships‘ as they adjusted to create a comfortable environment with mutual understandings. And lastly, often the sociolinguistic aspects of language learning are given secondary importance as participants focused on the more tangible and easier to understand aspects of language learning. The research suggests that the participants in these classes need a greater awareness of the sociocultural influences on language learning and teaching and the sociolinguistic nature of language use. Implications about classroom practice are drawn in relation to the teaching of intercultural communicative competence (ICC) in conjunction with using certain basic principles from ethnography to address these needs.
