Land as Interlocutor: A Study of Ojibwe Learner Language in Interaction on and With Naturally Occurring ‘Materials’

Self Cite

Language learning and teaching (LLT) materials—like teacher‐created handouts, textbooks, and overhead transparencies—are central elements of language classrooms worldwide. Nonetheless, how language students and teachers actually engage with and deploy LLT materials has rarely been the focus of research. In response, this issue offers the first compilation of classroom‐based studies of ‘materials use’ in language education and includes research on Ojibwe, Japanese, French, and English language pedagogy. In this introductory article to the special issue, we set the stage for the 7 empirical articles by offering much‐needed definitions for the concepts of ‘LLT materials’ and ‘materials use.’ These definitions are based on a metasynthesis (i.e., an integrative qualitative analysis) of all of the materials used throughout the 7 empirical articles. Additionally, we explore sociomaterialism as a compelling and well‐suited framework for the study of materials in use. Sociomaterialism is not a unified theory but rather a research orientation that seeks to examine connections between the social and the material world. In addition to substantively and theoretically advancing the field, all the articles of this special issue also have practical implications for language pedagogy.

Section: Metasynthesis: Empirically Defining ‘Materials’ and ‘Materials Use’mentioning

confidence: 99%

Empirically Defining Language Learning and Teaching Materials in Use Through Sociomaterial Perspectives

Guerrettaz

Engman

Matsumoto

2021

Self Cite

“…Conversely, interaction — like the talk between Maeve and Edgar (Excerpt 1, 8–11)—is a semiotic exchange between animate beings, namely humans (cf. Engman & Hermes, 2021, this issue).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Importantly, classroomscape is just one type of cultural and physical pedagogical space. While not all language learning occurs in Euro‐Western‐style classroomscapes like this FFL course, the broader and more flexible concept of ‘space’ is applicable to diverse pedagogical settings (e.g., Indigenous language learning in nature; [Engman & Hermes, 2021, this issue]).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Materials‐in‐Action: Pedagogical Ergonomics of a French‐as‐a‐Foreign‐Language Classroom

Guerrettaz

2021

Materials use is a critical yet poorly understood dynamic of language classrooms. This study examines ‘materials‐in‐action,’ meaning how materials shape classroom interaction and activity, in a beginning‐level French‐as‐a‐foreign‐language classroom. The conceptual framework, ‘pedagogical ergonomics,’ similarly centers on materials‐in‐action, and more specifically on ‘intra‐action.’ This refers to actions, influences, engagements, and exchanges among (a) materials, and (b) the students and teacher. Polysemiotic analyses and action analyses of classroom activity were triangulated with interviews and focus groups. Findings first expound the pedagogical ergonomics framework as comprising intra‐actions among human and material ‘actants’ that are co‐substantiated with sociocultural and physical space. This involves the concept of ‘classroomscape.’ Then—drawing on pedagogical ergonomics—macro‐level analyses of materials‐in‐action reveal 4 genres of materials use, each of which influenced classroom activity and interaction differently. Additionally, micro‐level analysis reveals 3 polysemiotic patterns of materials‐in‐action: (a) cloze worksheet prompts that ‘mapped’ onto the students, (b) learners’ ‘snowball languaging’ in French—involving extended meaning‐focused descriptions of images—and (c) a physically dynamic information gap where students unexpectedly avoided using French. Additionally, this article hones the definition of ‘materials use,’ substantively focusing on activity and interaction. Theory and practice converge in pedagogical ergonomics, with implications for both.

“…(2021, this issue) revisit and expand traditional definitions of materials, arguing that our understanding of materials should cover “(a) physical entities, (b) texts, (c) environments, (d) signs, and (e) technologies used with the ultimate intention of facilitating language learning and teaching in some sort of principled way” (p. 11). Referencing the wider environment, Guerrettaz et al.’s broader definition encompasses the study of out‐of‐class settings and the role these settings play in impacting teaching materials in general and language learning in particular, perhaps most vividly conveyed in this issue by Engman & Hermes's (2021) work on Ojibwe learners, in which elders utilize the land and the wider environment as ‘materials’ for Indigeneous language learning resources on forest walks. Also relevant to the themes of expanding traditional conceptualizations of materials and of out‐of‐class learning are the language learning opportunities afforded by technology, as in the augmented reality (AR) game focused on in Thorne, Hellermann, & Jakonen (2021, this issue).…”

Section: Theme 1: a Wider Conceptualization Of Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(2021, this issue) claim, there is clearly a need for more research on materials use. Teaching materials printed on the textbook page, on the teacher‐produced handout, or that are part of the wider environment (like Engman & Hermes's [2021, this issue] ‘materials’ found in the woods) only truly become pedagogic artifacts and affordances when in use; without enactment by teacher and learners, their potential strengths and weaknesses lie dormant, unrealized. This in turn limits the value of varieties of materials evaluation that do not take use into account.…”

Section: Conclusion: There Is More To Materials Research Than Studies Of Use or Consumptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coda: An Expanding Research Agenda for the Use of Instructional Materials

Harwood

2021

The rationale behind this special issue is to underscore the importance of studying instructional materials in context—that is, how materials and textbooks are used by teachers and learners. Research on teaching materials needs to reach beyond traditional ‘armchair’ analyses and evaluations to appreciate the place of instructional materials in the wider social and educational context, and to do so in a methodologically and analytically principled manner. I begin by comparing and contrasting the concept of ‘materials use,’ which underpins the contributions to this issue, with my own concept of ‘materials consumption.’ The bulk of the coda identifies and explores various themes emerging from this special issue, including student‐generated materials, teacher and learner resistance to materials, practitioner takeaways, and the importance of content and production focused research. I compare and contrast the articles with high quality research on materials elsewhere, highlighting potentially fruitful avenues of enquiry for the next generation of studies in this rapidly growing field.