AUTHENTICITY IN A GLOBAL CONTEXT: LEARNING, WORKING AND COMMUNICATING WITH L2 TEACHERS OF ENGLISH

Richard Pinnerrpinner@sophia.ac.jp

Overview

Conclusion

Results and discussion

Definitions

Context and background

All about me…

Pinner, R. S. (2014). The Authenticity Continuum: Empowering international voices. English Language Teacher Education and Development, 16(1).

Pinner, R. S. (forthcoming). The Authenticity Continuum: towards a definition incorporating international voices. English Today.

Context

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The course name is:

Using and Adapting Authentic Materials to Help Motivate Students

N= 33 (10 Osaka and 25 Tokyo, 2 opted out)All High school and Junior High school Japanese Teachers of EnglishExperience ranged from 10 years to 30 years

What is Authenticity?

What is authenticity?

Native

Real

Self

Classroom

Task

Social

Assessment

Culture

Gilmore, A. (2007). Authentic materials and authenticity in foreign language learning. Language Teaching, 40(02), 97-118

The Authenticity Continuum

Example A:

Example B:

Example C:

The teacher brings an English language newspaper to class and has students read the text and underline every instance of the present perfect aspect or passive tense, and then asks them to copy each sentence out into their notebooks.

The teacher uses an ‘inauthentic’ text from a published course book which was contrived specifically to practise reported speech and then discusses other ways in which the speakers from the text could have said the same thing in a different way.

The teacher asks students to use the internet to research about their favourite celebrity or hero and then create a short presentation in English to the rest of the class about that person.1

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Report Question

What is your opinion about the authenticity continuum? Has your

idea about authenticity changed by participating in this workshop? In

what way (if any)?

Native-speaker Centric

Before this workshop I just thought that ‘authentic’ means ‘native’; using a newspaper in English class is better than using a textbook. But now, at the end of the workshop, I can talk more

about authenticity, giving my experiences today as an example. (Momoko)

“

Native-speaker Centric

Before I took this lesson, I thought that the authenticity should be “native”. I mean that the

material should be written by native speakers (Kyoko)

“

Holliday, A. (2005). The struggle to teach English as an international language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Houghton, S. A., & Rivers, D. J. (2013). Native-speakerism in Japan: Intergroup dynamics in foreign language education Bristol: Multilingual Matters.

Authenticity, Self and Efficacy

[...] I have felt negative about myself as a non-native English speaker who teaches English. Now,

I don’t. Authenticity connects me not only to English but also learning. (Momoko)

“

Authenticity, Self and Efficacy

My idea about authenticity has changed dramatically by participating in this workshop. Before I joined this workshop, my definition of authenticity was the language material source

from native speakers. […]

“

Authenticity, Self and Efficacy

[…]Now, I have learned what really makes material, lesson to be authentic is how we teacher

use it. (Aiko)

“

The Continuum The authenticity continuum tells me how to

evaluate the authenticity of materials, and it’s interesting. Before I participated in this workshop, I believed that authentic materials were the English

statements use in the countries like UK or USA, English native countries. However, when we

evaluated the authenticity of the Wall Street Journal according to the continuum, its authenticity was not

high. […]

“

Authenticity, Self and Efficacy

Also, by comparing three examples of tasks, I realised that I chose A, the task using an English

language newspaper, as the least authentic. I was surprised at the result myself, and it was

interesting to know that most of the teachers here had the same choice. […]

“

Authenticity, Self and Efficacy

This experience made me think it is important to have several points of view, or factors, to assess

the authenticity of materials, and of course how to use them. (Ai)

“

2014 GROUP AND CURRENT RESEARCH

British American Indian Singaporean Korean Geordie0

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Averages

Comprehensibility Authenticity

Conclusion and Summary• Authenticity is still conceptualised from a Native-Speakerist

and culturally embedded perspective• (Japanese) L2 teachers are vulnerable to efficacy issues around

authenticity• The authenticity continuum helps to ‘shift the centre of gravity’

and empower other linguistic varieties

Summary

• You can download the slides and additional resources atwww.uniliterate.com• Please email me!

rpinner@sophia.ac.jp

KEEP

IT R

EAL

Thanks for your attention!

Gilmore, A. (2007). Authentic materials and authenticity in foreign language learning. Language Teaching, 40(02), 97-118. Holliday, A. (2005). The struggle to teach English as an international language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Houghton, S. A., & Rivers, D. J. (2013). Native-speakerism in Japan: Intergroup dynamics in foreign language education Bristol: Multilingual Matters.Pinner, R. S. (2014). The Authenticity Continuum: Empowering international voices. English Language Teacher Education and Development, 16(1). Pinner, R. S. (forthcoming). The Authenticity Continuum: towards a definition incorporating international voices. English Today.