1. Teaching and Study Practices in Finnish Foreign Language Classrooms
Seppo Tella
Waseda Institute for Advanced Study Waseda University
Tokyo, Japan and
Department of Applied Sciences of Education
University of Helsinki
Pirjo Harjanne
Research Centre for Foreign Language Education (ReFLEct)
Department of Applied Sciences of Education
University of Helsinki

2. Contents of the presentation
Introduction:
- Finnish national core curricula: CLT
- CLT in Finnish foreign language classrooms?
KIELO—Research and Developmental Project in Foreign Language Teaching, Studying and Learning (2008–2012)
KIELO research and other research on Finnish foreign language classrooms
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3. Finnish national core curricula (LOPS, 2003; POPS, 2004)
Aim of language teaching: communicative language proficiency
Means: communicative language teaching (CLT)
What should CLT include in FL classrooms? Some salient features of CLT and TBLT
(Harjanne, 2006; based on e.g. Nunan, 1989; Donato, 2000; van Lier, 2000;
Brown, 2001; Richards & Rodgers, 2001; Ellis, 2003; Skehan, 2003)
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4. Socioculturalism in classrooms
The participation metaphor/
Socioculturalism
Learning
Participation in social interaction and communication
Knowing
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5. *Functional and linguistic; the starting point: the
Theory
of language
*The function of language is the expression of meaning; above all interaction and communication
Theory of learning
*Real communication, trial and error; meaningful tasks, meaningful language to the learner
Objectives
*Functional and linguistic; the starting point: the
student’s needs, experiences and contents
*Meaningful authentic communication
Communication
*A communicative goal, the connection with life outside the classroom
*Taking all the components of communicative language proficiency into consideration
*Integrated practising of listening, reading, speaking and writing
*Primary focus on meaning, secondary focus on form
*Interaction, negotiating of meaning, risk-taking
Student’s role
*Co-operative participator in communication
Teacher’s role
*Mentor, instructor, needs’ analyst, task organizer, resource, feedback, researcher and learner
Role of material
*Task-based, authentic, supporting communicative language use

6. KIELO
A Research and Developmental Project in Foreign Language Teaching, Studying and Learning (2008–2012)
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7. Premises of the KIELO project
the FL teacher’s cognition • conceptions of students, teaching, studying and learning based on values, beliefs, prior experience, practical knowledge and theoretical knowledge & the sociocultural context of school and language classroom • define what and how foreign languages are taught, studied—and learnt
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8. The key components of KIELO’s theoretical framework
**A holistic view on Communicative Language Teaching **A communicative task as a crucial part of teaching and studying **The didactic teaching–studying–learning process (TSL process) **The FL teacher’s own personal didactics and pedagogical thinking
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9. Research task
To analyse, describe and interpret the present state of foreign language (FL) teaching in Finnish FL classrooms – the way foreign languages are taught, studied and learnt. A special focus is laid on the role, status and significance of communicative language teaching (CLT) and task-based language teaching (TBLT) as a current and topical teaching practice and as a methodological approach among FL teachers.
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10. Research questions
1 What salient features and emphases are found in Finnish FL classrooms? 2 What teaching and study practices are used in Finnish FL classrooms? 3 In what ways are the teaching and study practices justified by the teachers? 4 In what ways do FL teachers implement communicative language teaching and task-based language teaching?
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11. Research Setting • Exploratory practice • Mixed methods Target groups
 Research methodology
•  Exploratory practice
•  Mixed methods
Target groups
•   FL teachers
•   Students
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12. Exploratory Practice (Allwright, 2000; 2003; Allwright & Hanks, 2009)
Key objective: to increase understanding of
the quality of language classroom life
the salient features of an “ordinary” classroom’s activities
Teachers and learners are equal partners in researching their own classroom lives – teaching and studying
Research has to be relevant to the teacher and the students
Academic researchers are research consultants
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13. Research Setting • Questionnaires • Interviews • Classroom observation
 Data gathering
•   Questionnaires
•   Interviews
•   Classroom observation
•   Electronic and digital documentation
Data analysis
•   Content analysis
•   Discourse analysis
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14. Harjanne & Tella 14

15. KIELO research and other research on Finnish Foreign Language Classrooms Current research on teaching and study practices in Finnish FL classrooms is scarce. Only a few doctoral theses; most studies are Master’s theses or Bachelor’s theses; still, they are important and indicatory.
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16. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs
CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs. mother tongue
60% of the Finnish teachers of English: English at most 50% of the teaching time
Under 10% of the Finnish teachers of English: the target language at least 75% of the teaching time
(The assessment of pupils’ skills in English in eight European countries, 2002).
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17. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs
CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs. mother tongue
English / lower and upper secondary school /
four (two and two) video-recorded lessons :
60% (lower secondary) / 51% (upper secondary) of the teacher talk was Finnish
Grammar: in Finnish
(Reini, 2008 / Master’s thesis)
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18. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs
CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs. mother tongue
KIELO research
English / lower and upper secondary school
Interviews of the teachers (N=11),
observation of lessons (N=11)
The aim of the teachers: maximum use of English in the lessons
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19. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs
CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs. mother tongue
Observation
At the beginning of the lesson: English / 11
Instructions: English / 5, English and Finnish / 4, Finnish and English 2
Grammar: Finnish / 8, English / 3
General conversation: English / 5, English and Finnish / 4, Finnish and English 2
Private conversation: English / 3, English and Finnish / 4, Finnish and English / 4
Dicipline: English / 6, English and Finnish / 1, Finnish and English / 4
Intervention in the students’ use of Finnish: yes / 4, not always / 3, no / 4
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20. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs
CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs. mother tongue
The experienced teachers used much more English than the inexperienced teachers
The students used much more English, when the teacher used English and especially, when they were encouraged to speak English
(Kuoppala, 2009 / Pedagogical thesis)
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21. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs
CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs. mother tongue
KIELO research
English / lower secondary school
Classroom observation (1–3 lessons per 5
teachers) and a questionnaire
Instructions / 5 teachers: primarily English >>
Observation: Finnish and English
Grammar / 5 teachers: Finnish
Small talk / The teachers: English > Observation: English
To praise the students / The teachers: English > Observation: English
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22. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs
CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Target language vs. mother tongue
Paying attention to the students’ use of
Finnish / 5 teachers: try to pay attention to the use of Finnish > Observation: The teachers asked the students to be quiet or they let them continue in Finnish but didn’t encourage them to speak English
(Järnberg, 2009 / Pedagogical thesis)
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23. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
English / lower secondary school:
Teaching and studying focused on linguistic items isolated from meanings and language functions (Alanen, 2000)
English / upper secondary school:
Little (if any) evidence of student-centredness or of the student’s role as an active user of the target language (Nikula, 2007)
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24. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
English / primary school:
The teacher
had a high level of control and
focused her teaching on isolated linguistic units
The teacher usually used English communicatively only for a few minutes during a lesson
(Hinkkanen & Säde, 2003 / Master’s thesis)
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25. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
English / primary school:
The pupils:
The exercise book exercises and listening to and reading the textbook chapters played a major role
Their use of English was minimal, as even discussion tasks in pairs were written down in their copybooks
(Jalkanen & Ruuska, 2007 / Master’s thesis)
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26. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
English / upper secondary school
Classroom ethnography, conversation analysis /
One double-lesson of English (a part of a larger
data collection of face-to-face ordinary EFL lessons)
The nature of EFL conversation in classroom:
The teacher had control, focusing on checking the exercises
Teacher-centred
Genuine conversation was scarce
(Turunen, 2007 / Master’s thesis)
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27. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
English/ primary school
Three case studies about drama; teacher as
a researcher, observation, interviews of the
teachers, questionnaires to the pupils
Drama enabled
to simulate authentic communication in English
to practise all the components of
communicative competence
(Ropponen, 2006 / Master’s thesis)
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28. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
Swedish / lower and upper secondary school
Microethnography, exploratory practice, teacher
as a researcher / audio-recorded lessons,
a questionnaire
Oral practice of Swedish with the aid of
collaborative scheme-based and elaboration
tasks
Student-centred lessons
Teacher: a mentor
Students: active participators in communication in Swedish
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29. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
The students’ communication:
co-construction of the dialogue
peer-scaffolding
much more attention to meaning than form
Conclusion:
students’ collaboration and interactional communication came true, having the connection with life outside the classroom.
(Harjanne, 2006 / Doctoral thesis)
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30. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
KIELO research
What tasks do FL teachers at a university of
applied sciences use in their lessons?
A questionnaire to 8 FL teachers (English, Spanish,
French, Swedish, German and Russian) (> 9 teachers
participated!)
Many more oral than written tasks
The oral tasks were more communicative than the written tasks
Co-operative tasks
Authentic materials, self-edited materials
About same number of group work and individual tasks
About same amount of teacher-centred and student-centred teaching
(Naumanen, 2009 / Pedagogical thesis)
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31. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
KIELO research
What kind of foreign language teaching do the
pupils at lower secondary school find
interesting?
A questionnaire, N=42
Group work and projects in addition to grammar >> to hear and use foreign languages
More speaking in foreign languages
Varied FL teaching including culture and communication
(Keskinen, 2009 / Pedagogical thesis)
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32. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
KIELO research
Which teaching approaches do the FL teachers
in primary school and lower secondary school
prefer on their lessons and why?
A questionnaire (N=23)
Teacher-centred (58% of the teachers), a need to control
Student-centred and co-operative (42% of the teachers), to activate the students to inspire, participate and take more responsibility
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33. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching
Authoritarian teaching style (59% of the teachers)
clear rules and goals > learning
if too much control to the students > non-learning;
Democratic teaching style (33% of the teachers)
to enable the students to participate and to assume more responsibility
(Lehtinen, 2009 / Pedagogical thesis)
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34. Conclusions from research on Finnish FL classrooms
The results are in line with many international research results (e.g,. Karavas-Doukas, 1996; D. Li, 1998; Sato & Kleinsasser, 1999): Most second language (L2) teachers claim to use CLT approach
Communicative FL classrooms still seem to be in the minority (teaching still being teacher-centred and focused on grammar)
(Gatbonton & Segalowitz, 2005)
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35. Conclusions from research on Finnish FL classrooms
The language tasks used mirror the teachers’ views on FL proficiency, teaching, studying and learning.
The language tasks used seem to have a decisive role on defining what happens in FL classrooms.
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36. CLT vs. ‘traditional’ language teaching Tasks
KIELO research
What kind of tasks do the exercise books in
French at lower secondary school include in
Finland, Sweden and Canada?
Task classification modified on basis of Nunan
(1989), Skehan (1998) and Littlewood (2004)
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37. Tasks in French Non-communicative 49.2% 62.6% 49.8% Pre- communicative
A Finnish book (132 tasks)
A Swedish book (390 tasks)
A Canadian book (295 tasks)
Non-communicative
49.2%
62.6%
49.8%
Pre- communicative
37.1%
32.1%
38.3%
Communicative
13.6%
5.4%
11.9%
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38. Why do FL teachers prefer ‘traditional’ (teacher-centred, focus on grammar) language teaching?
It’s hard for the FL teachers used to teach grammatical rules and isolated words and word lists, to see that communicative tasks improve learning (Gatbonton & Segalowitz, 2005)
The FL teachers’ beliefs determine their teaching crucially (e.g., Borg, 2006)
Misunderstandings of communicative language teaching and of a communicative task: Purely oral practice, no grammar teaching or practising
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39. on teaching and study practices in Finnish FL classrooms
KIELO research
on teaching and study practices
in Finnish FL classrooms
is continued…
What, how and why?
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