ESOL pre-service teachers’ culturally and linguistically responsive teaching in mixed-reality simulations

Abstract

Purpose Simulation technology has been used as a viable alternative to provide a real life setting in teacher education. Applying mixed-reality classroom simulations to English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) teacher preparation, this qualitative case study aims to examine how pre-service teachers (PSTs) practice culturally and linguistically responsive teaching to work with an English learner (EL) avatar and other avatar students. Design/methodology/approach Using an embedded single case study, three PSTs’ teaching simulations and interviews were collected and analyzed. Findings This study found PST participants made meaningful connections between theory and practices of culturally and linguistically responsive teaching, particularly by connecting academic concepts to students’ life experiences, promoting cultural diversity, using instructional scaffolding and creating a safe environment. Nevertheless, they needed further improvement in incorporating cultural diversity into content lessons, creating a challenging and supportive classroom and developing interactional scaffolding for ELs’ language development. The findings also show that while PST participants perceived simulation technology as very beneficial, expanding the range of technological affordances could provide PSTs an opportunity to undertake a full range of critical teaching strategies for ELs. Originality/value This research contributes to broadening the realm of mixed-reality technology by applying it to ESOL teacher education and has implications for both ESOL teacher educators and simulation technology researchers.

How virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality facilitate teacher education: A systematic review

“…The metadata and methodological features of the selected studies. training teaching skills, such as culturally and linguistically responsive teaching (Lew et al, 2021) and constructing teaching materials (Chookaew et al, 2017).…”

“…A number of advantages to employing MR in teacher education deserve to be noticed. For example, it provides teachers with repetition and rehearsal opportunities to practise skills concerning high‐stakes situations and thus avoid the waste of valuable resources (Dieker et al, 2014; Lew et al, 2021). Like VR, it also provides a safe learning environment for PSTs to take on the role of being a teacher and mitigates the risks of damaging actual students (Gundel et al, 2019).…”

Untitled

“…Practice teachers identified criteria of success in CRT, which comprise knowledge about students' culture and identities, attention to various dimensions of text selection, and the use of culturally relevant text selection and pedagogy. Lew, Gul, and Pecore (2021) found that practice teachers can make meaningful connections between the theory and practices of culturally and linguistically responsive teaching by associating academic concepts with students' life experiences. They were able to use instructional scaffolds and created a safe learning environment.…”

Application of the Extended Reality Technology for Teaching New Languages: A Systematic Review

“…Eleven articles reported that MR technology has been a successful tool to facilitate the process of learning amongst educational institutions [24][25][26][27][28][29][30]. Franciosi [26] states that the use of computer game-based lessons positively impacts vocabulary acquisition, vocabulary learning, vocabulary retention and writing tasks.…”

“…Garcia and Silva [27] believe that MR technology can facilitate collaborative learning and increase students' fluency in a language, leading to a better understanding of the education materials. Furthermore, Lew et al [28] claim that the MR technology improves the quality of the learning experiences and supports students' motivation and creative self-sufficiency.…”