Cultural Continuity and ELT

Cultural continuity and ELT
teacher training
Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/54/3/227/2924524 by King Abdulaziz University user on 10 December 2018

Ray Brown
To deny that there is a conflict in contemporary ELT, particularly but not

exclusively in the 'importing' of new techniques associated with commu-
nicative language teaching into the state sector educational systems of
developing countries, is to deny a reality with which many are familiar.
This article, which focuses on teacher training, argues that we should
attempt to ensure that changes are gradual, and that cultural continuity
should be respected, by not losing contact with current practice. It
attempts to analyze the problems from a practical point of view, looking at
some real-life aspirations of in-service teacher trainees, and at the real-life
frustrations and obstacles they encounter in implementing change in their
classrooms. It also reports on a number of ways of resolving conflict
which, while not free of problems, do at least justify a degree of optimism.
Background There have been many changes in language teaching over the past 20
years. These changes are usually summarized within the framework of a
shift from a form-focused, or structural approach, to a meaning-focused,
or communicative approach. They have entailed changes in the way
language is described, from structural syllabuses to notional-functional
syllabuses and, more recently, to content/topic-based syllabuses, and
changes in the ways in which language is taught in the classroom, from
lockstep to group and pair-work. These changes have profound
implications for teacher training, although their far-reaching effects
are only gradually becoming apparent. It has been evident to anyone
who has been working in the public sector education field in a
developing country context throughout these years that these changes
have seldom been easy to accept or implement. It has also been evident
that acceptance and implementation have been far from universal, even
in the developed contexts where changes originated. But the difficulties
in the developing context are hardly surprising, since they have
generally involved a western adviser saying to people who have been
working with a methodology familiar to them for years that they have
got it all wrong—that they have, in fact, been wasting their time. To
begin by insulting your client is hardly the best sales technique,
especially if—as I will try to demonstrate—there may be other problems
with the wares in question. In this article, while realizing that
'communicative language teaching' can mean different things to
different people (Thompson 1996) I propose to call these wares
'communicative language teaching techniques'.
Changes are normal and necessary. But they may be easier to accept and
to assimilate if they emerge from current practice. At the moment, there
ELT Journal Volume 54/3 July 2000 © Oxford University Press 2000 227
are two schools of thought about the extent to which communicative
language teaching techniques can be adopted in, say, developing
contexts. One could be represented by Hayes (1995), who sees some
potential in using group and pair-work in large classes, provided a

number of problems can be overcome. He suggests that this can done on
in-service courses by procedures which draw upon lesson observation,
reflection on one's own practice, and problem-solving. The other side
could be represented by Shamim (1996), who implies that large classes
are impossible ground for pair and group activity:
(...) the learners in most school classes in Pakistan seem to
work better when the source of control is external and imposed
rather than internal and voluntary. Thus it becomes very difficult for
the teachers to use group work effectively in these large classes.
(Shamim 1996: 143)
Although she is cautious in limiting her remarks to the context of her
observation of large classes in Pakistan, it is not difficult to accept that
her observations could be extrapolated to other contexts.
It has also been argued that some at least of the changes advocated in
language teaching are essentially 'western' in nature, and unsuited to
other contexts. Phillipson (1992) takes it as a given that the West, the
developed world, or the centre, as he calls it, is always trying, as it has
always tried, to impose its ways of pedagogical thinking on the
developing world, or, in his terms, the periphery. Following the same
direction of thought, but still some distance from it, is Holliday (1994,
1997), for whom the crux of the problem may be found in the possible
differences in the interpretation and perception of what communicative
language teaching techniques might be. In other words, that behaviour
which the typical western specialist might not consider to be commu-
nicative may well be so. And that these phenomena represent local
interpretations of the meaning of 'communicative', and are more likely
to survive precisely because they emerge from the local learning and
teaching culture. Holliday (1994: 12-13) makes the useful distinction
between BANA cultures and TESEP cultures. The first are the small
class, heavily resource-reliant classrooms of European, North American,
and Australian language schools or institutes, for example, which as
Holliday points out are the models for the methodologies and materials
that are widely disseminated in other countries. The second are the large
classes with few resources that prevail in state education at primary,
secondary, and tertiary levels throughout the developing world.
Drawing on my personal experience, I now propose to look at what sorts

of problems arise when CLT techniques are introduced into a TESEP
culture (to borrow Holliday's term), then at an example of the
aspirations of teachers in such a culture, how these aspirations are
often shattered, and what possible solutions might be found to the
conflicts and resistance encountered.
228 Ray Brown

Problems The problems are many, and will be familiar to all teachers who have
worked in the developing world. It is also a noticeable fact that the
problems have not reduced over the years. One sees the same large
classes now that were there 20 years ago. Worse still, perhaps, there is

the same lack of resources, the same basic furniture or lack of it, in the
classrooms, and the same dearth of visual aids other than the
blackboard. Syllabuses may have changed and exams may have
changed, but by their very existence they often represent serious
obstacles to progress: teachers and learners become reluctant to
introduce any changes that could reduce exam preparation time.
Textbooks may have changed, too, but they either tend to be relentlessly
'traditional', or are used by teachers who prefer to use them in
relentlessly 'traditional' ways. Less visible, but none the less of great
importance, is the weight of the local teaching/learning tradition:
the role of the teacher as explainer, the expectations that everyone—
the teacher, the learner, the learner's parents, the teacher's
peers, the teacher's administrators, society as a whole—all have of the
role of the teacher and his or her learners. It is not at all uncommon
these days for a teacher to return from an in-service period of training,
hoping to introduce change into his or her classes, and meet resistance
from every one of those interested parties.
Aspirations Teachers, like everyone else, do have aspirations. It is not that they do
not want to see change, as can be seen from the following comments
made by teachers half-way through a one year in-service course in which
I was involved:
1 / would like to introduce more group work and pair-work into my
own teaching in order to make the class more interesting and
attractive.
2 / will introduce discovery techniques. For example, when I teach a new
word I will create a context and ask the students to guess the meaning.
3 / would like to introduce communicative activities into class teaching,
and I would try my best to get students' minds involved through the
use of authentic materials.
4 / will make my students participate more and be more mind-engaged
in class, and make them learn English in a more relaxing and
interesting way by group/pair-work, games and other activities.
These were teachers of young adults in a teaching/learning culture that
values the teacher as explainer, and where a typical lesson might consist
of the class repeating new words chorally after the teacher, the class
readingaloud from a text, one-by-one, a grammar explanation, and non-
contextualized language exercises done in lockstep. Although these
teachers returned to their institutions determined to bring about
changes, they were soon to be disappointed.
Aspirations The teachers' hopes were dashed because their peers disapproved of
shattered what they were trying to do, and thought they were being superior. The
Cultural continuity and ELT teacher training 229

administrators did not understand their aims, and therefore offered
them no support. The students felt that the teacher was no longer doing
his or her job of explaining things to them. The textbook could not be
easily adapted to CUT techniques, and the classes were too big for group

and pair-work—though the students were hostile to that anyway, not
seeing that it was of any use to them. To make matters worse, the
returning teachers had no access to photocopying resources or to
alternative teaching materials. They were left with nothing but the
blackboard and chalk, and the textbook that they had been using before
the course. It was only a matter of time before they reverted to their old
style of teaching, when some semblance of contentment was restored.
Interlude: a view During the period of teaching practice associated with the in-service
from the benches course referred to above we gathered some of the students' perceptions
of the kind of teaching being done by the in-service trainees. In this
particular context, at least, there was an interesting convergence with the
aspirations of the trainees, as in the following examples:
1 She teaches very vividly.
2 The new teacher uses role play, discussion and exercises, which is more
welcome (sic) by the students.
3 He pays more attention to speaking, listening.
4 New (sic) teacher uses more cards (clipped photocopy paper) which
activates (sic) the whole class.
5 She pays more attention to our ability to speak, listen and do things.
6 He speaks English all the time.
7 The new teacher's teaching is more suited to the better students.
As can be seen from the last comment quoted, not all are positive, but
the majority are. And this raises some interesting questions. If the
teachers have strong aspirations in the direction of CLT techniques, and
if the students are able to view them in a generally positive way, then
how does one account for the rejection when the trainees eventually
return to the institution full-time? At the moment, the only real answer
to this seems to be that teaching practice is an interlude, and not real life
either for the student or for the trainee teacher. The rules of what is
acceptable or not are relaxed for a time, but when real life takes up
again, other rules and traditions come into play, not to mention the
numerous physical constraints (lack of resources, class size, etc.) which
soon make themselves fully felt.
Solutions? To claim to have found some wonder cure for this problem would be
preposterous. But there may be a way forward. And that is to bear in
mind the notion of cultural continuity (Holliday 1997: 230-5). The
importance, to put it in a different way, of not breaking with the cultural
tradition of teaching and learning, of 'grafting' what is new on to what is
old. I would like to describe an attempt to do this that emerged from the
in-service course referred to above.
230 Ray Brown

First of all, after meetings with former trainees, the staff involved in the
programme mentioned above reached a consensus that the course had
probably been laying too much emphasis on group work and similar
CLT techniques, while appearing to reject other less communicative

techniques. It was decided that, for our new trainees, we would produce
a public statement of the key points of our methodology. This resulted in
the following 'manifesto':
igure 1 p ro [j| ern _ so | v j n g/[)jscovery learning
2 Pair-work rather than group work
3 Seat work
4 Time-on-task
5 Teacher questioning and eliciting language
6 Encouraging learner questions
7 Teacher's skill as explainer and in presenting information
8 Use of English for classroom management
9 Teaching large classes
10 Handling errors
11 Using local materials effectively and imaginatively
12 Evaluating materials and practice: telling good materials from bad, good practice
from bad practice.
It was hoped that these action points would draw from the tradition that
existed and from the new inputs in a way in which they could find
harmony. Thus, seat work, time-on-task, and teacher as explainer, which
are all strong traditional points, were brought together in the list, to be
redefined and honed in terms of the teacher's skills. Pair-work and group
work are also there, but pair-work is given precedence, on the grounds
that it is easier to handle in large classes. Particular attention is to be
paid to handling large classes, to teachers' questions, and to the effective
and imaginative use of local materials.
This last point was the focus of our second main strategy. Our trainees
had been exposed to up-to-date BANA-type language learning
materials. How could we help them to use their own local materials in
a more imaginative way? For the methodology course, one way was to
issue them all (along with other books, of course), with a fairly standard,
even somewhat out-of-date, locally produced textbook, still widely used,
not so much in universities as in vocational institutes, and to give the
trainees ideas for using this material in their classes in a more creative
and imaginative way. In this way, we hope to activate their imaginations
and to make them realize that creativity and imagination are among the
attributes of the good teacher. For example, they could be given practice
in the many uses that can be found for a simple picture.

Figure 2

inn
Suggested supplementary activities based on the picture:

1 Name four things you can see in the picture. (Pair-work followed by
whole class feedback.)
2 What time of the year is it? Find evidence. (Pair-work followed by
whole class feedback.)
3 Give a name to the student cleaning the floor. Compose a story about
him, beginning: 'X was bom in the village of... He ...
(Seat work followed by pair-work and whole-class feedback.)
Such activities are calculated to provide for cultural continuity by
combining the old and familiar with the new and communicative in a
way that can be handled even in a large class, in spite of all the
constraints that have been detailed.
Another approach is to help trainees to make some of the rather
traditional and context-free exercises more interesting, creative, and
'communicative' for their students, as in the following exercise, taken
from the locally-produced book referred to above:
Figure 3 1 By the end of 1958 all the peasants of the village had joined the people's
commune.
(1) April 28, (the students) come back
(2) a quarter to eight, (the visitors) arrive
(3) the end of last week, get all the crops in
(4) eleven o'clock, (the train) pass Wuhan bridge
Xu Guozhang [English 1962: 59)
A first activity—teacher questioning the class—could be to contextualize

Question 4, for example, by asking 'Eleven in the morning or the
evening?'; 'Where is the train coming from?'; 'Going where?'; 'What
year is it?'; 'What time of year?'; 'What is the weather like in Wuhan?';
'What do you know about Wuhan?', etc.
232 Ray Brown

Then the students, working in pairs, could be asked to compose a story
with a leading character to whom they give a name: he may be travelling
from, say, Guangzhou to Beijing, and the train crosses the Yangtse at
Wuhan at eleven at night. Something happens. What? And somehow or

other they must include each of the previous sentences in their
composition. If possible, the pairs should combine to form groups,
with each group first of all giving oral presentations of their story and
then producing a final written version. (The amount of guidance given
would depend on the students' abilities; it would even be possible to
propose guidance as an option, thus introducing an element of
individualization.)
This sort of activity is less threatening to use, and it does not conflict with
established cultural behaviour. The teacher remains in charge, and the
pair-work is easy to handle even in a large class. The students also
engage in seat work and whole class questioning, and produce some
written work. They could even make a list of new words to learn outside
class—a favoured local study method. The activities also create
opportunities for communication and creativity, in addition to which
such adaptations are easy to do once a teacher acquires the knack, and
does not feel dependent on expensive or unobtainable resources.
Postscript I do not wish to give the impression that the above strategies are some
sort of magic wand to solve the problems of maintaining cultural
continuity at the teacher training level. While they represent an
acceptance of the problem, at most they only point out a possible way
ahead, no more. Indeed, it cannot be said that trainees were in universal
agreement with the strategies laid out above. While they had little
difficulty with the list of key points, their acceptance of using a more
traditional textbook was not unanimous, as shown by some quite
revealing adverse comments, such as:
1 Our main purpose is to write academic papers to achieve a higher rank.
No leaders or colleagues care about your teaching results for there is no
standard to measure your teaching.
2 We need some teaching material which can help us to use the new
techniques we have learned.
3 / don't think we can improve teaching by changing the way of using the
exercises in a wrong textbook. We should try to choose the right books
for our students.
What these comments reveal, above all, is the depth of the conflict facing
teachers in the developing world. They do not absolve us from taking
any action to try to ensure adaptation with continuity. On the contrary,
they oblige us to continue our action, and to go on trying to refine it.
Received June 1999

References Xu Guozhang. 1962. English. Beijing: Foreign
Bailey K. M. and D. Nunan. (eds.). 1996. Voices Language Teaching and Research Press.
from the Language Classroom. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Hayes, D. 1995. 'In-service development: some The author

basic principles'. ELT Journal 49/3: 252-61. Ray Brown graduated from Oxford University in
Holliday A. R. 1994. Appropriate Methodology modern languages, and from the University of
and Social Context. Cambridge: Cambridge Reading in applied linguistics. He has worked for
University Press.
many years as an English Language Teaching
Holliday A. R. 1997. 'Six lessons: cultural con-
tinuity in communicative language teaching'. Officer and adviser/consultant for the British
Language Teaching Research 1/3: 212-38. Council on British Government-funded projects
Phillipson, R. 1992. Linguistic Imperialism. in Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, East Asia,
Oxford: Oxford University Press. Latin America, and China. His main professional
Shamim, F. 1996. 'In and out of the action zone', interests are in teacher education and in autono-
in K. M. Bailey and D. Nunan (eds.). mous learning. He now works as a Military
Thompson, G. 1996. 'Some misconceptions about English Adviser on a project for three countries
communicative language teaching'. ELT Jour- in the Transcaucasus.
nal 50/1: 9-14. Email: Ray.Brown@britishcouncil.org.ge
234 Ray Brown

Cultural Continuity and ELT

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Cultural continuity and ELT

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/54/3/227/2924524 by King Abdulaziz University user on 10 December 2018

To deny that there is a conflict in contemporary ELT, particularly but not

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/54/3/227/2924524 by King Abdulaziz University user on 10 December 2018

Drawing on my personal experience, I now propose to look at what sorts

228 Ray Brown

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/54/3/227/2924524 by King Abdulaziz University user on 10 December 2018