My research activity is centered on using Vygotskian sociocultural theory as a basis for praxis in second language teacher cognition and second language teacher education. I synergize Vygotskian research methodology with qualitative discourse analytic methods to both document and provoke L2 teacher development. In what follows, I describe the relevant research terrain surrounding my work, foreground the importance of Vygotskian theory in my research program, exemplify the outcomes of my research to date, and propose intriguing avenues for further investigation.
While the second language teacher cognition literature has extensively addressed what L2 language teachers think, know, believe, and do (cf. Borg, 2006), far less is known about the dynamics of L2 teacher development arising from engagement with second language teacher education pedagogies. In accordance with the work of other scholars, such as Johnson, Feryok, and Kubanyiova, I contend that the field has yet to elaborate a coherent account of the development of L2 teacher expertise and the role of second language teacher education in systematically and intentionally leading such development. In particular, two key questions at the core of the second language teacher education enterprise, “[h]ow do language teachers create meaningful learning environments for their students?” and “[h]ow can teacher education, continuing professional development, and the wider sociocultural context facilitate such learning in language teachers?” (Kubanyiova & Feryok, 2015, p.435) remain inadequately addressed and ripe for further inquiry. My research program takes up these questions as imperatives to be confronted with the explanatory and practical power of Vygotskian sociocultural theory in making sense of and intervening into language teacher development.
Vygotskian sociocultural theory is uniquely situated to address these key imperatives on the second language teacher cognition agenda. In contrast to solely documenting L2 teachers’ cognitions, Vygotskian sociocultural theory – as a transformative theory of mind – turns our attention toward how second language teacher education pedagogies can provoke and lead L2 teacher cognitive development through systematically and coherently organized interventions into teachers’ thinking and doing (Johnson, 2009; Johnson & Golombek, 2016, 2018). This perspective is in line with a broader trend in the sociocultural-theoretic L2 teaching/learning literature that places the pedagogical imperative (Lantolf & Poehner, 2014) at the core of the Vygotskian project. In other words, from a Vygotskian stance, it is no longer sufficient for second language teacher cognition to remain observational. Rather what is beckoned is a commitment to intervention and transformation through praxis – the inseparable unity of theory and practice intentionally deployed to lead L2 teachers’ psychological development and their engagement in the practical activity of L2 instruction.
The primary strand of my research agenda endeavors to open up new avenues for Vygotskian praxis inside the practices of second language teacher education, and in the process, expand the horizons of second language teacher cognition inquiry. Accordingly, I have published a series of sole-author articles that use Vygotskian theory to reconceptualize core practices in teacher education including the microteaching simulation and the language teaching practicum as arenas for actively cultivating the development of L2 teacher reasoning. In addition, I have interrogated teacher embodiment as another site to examine how teachers learn to reason the mediational potential of their bodies in L2 instruction. These articles were published in Second Language Teacher Education, Language and Sociocultural Theory, and The European Journal of Applied Linguistics and TEFL, respectively. Each of these studies has contributed to my profound interest in investigating teacher reasoning as central to understanding the dynamics of the learning-to-teach process. As a natural outgrowth of this interest, my dissertation, “Provoking the genesis of a teaching as dialogic mediation instructional stance: A Vygotskian concept-based language instructional intervention” seeks to both document and provoke the emergence of teacher reasoning in the form of novice teachers’ growing into and inhabiting of a novel teaching stance. A teaching as dialogic mediation instructional stance compels novice teachers to consider the quality and character of their mediation in L2 instruction and examine how this interaction shapes student engagement and learning. The intervention, formulated in accordance with the principles of concept-based language instruction (Lantolf, Xi, & Minakova, 2021) propelled the teacher-participants’ development toward more sophisticated reasoning surrounding L2 teaching/learning activity.
Throughout this work and that which I will undertake in the future, I aim to make a compelling case that language teacher education matters for the development of L2 teachers’ thinking and activity. To do so, I intend to further interrogate concept-based language instruction as a potent means by which to lead L2 teachers’ psychological development. Another intriguing route for my work, building upon my argument in the language teaching practicum article, is to tap the potential of perezhivanie (cognitive/emotional lived experience) to explicate, in precise terms, how L2 teachers’ experiences in pre- and in-service teacher education shape how they orient to teaching/learning activity in their instructional contexts. Finally, in line with my work on the microteaching simulation and teaching practicum, I believe there is considerable value to be found in reconceptualizing other central practices in second language teacher education as sites for pedagogical innovation rooted in Vygotskian theorizing.
Another strand of my research agenda is concerned with methodological innovation in second language teacher cognition inquiry. In this vein, I have written co-authored paper with Karen E. Johnson, my advisor, examining how the in-depth interview can be oriented to as a developmentally-relevant experience for teacher-participants. This paper, which was recently accepted for a special issue on language teacher cognition at TESL-EJ, demonstrates how mutual researcher and teacher-participant engagement in dialogic narrative inquiry can open up the potential for development, even in post-graduation contexts. We show how the interviews not only allowed access into the teacher-participants’ perceptions of their learning-to-teach experiences but also functioned as sites where developmental value could be intentionally cultivated to the benefit of the teacher-participants. I intend to interrogate other common research practices in second language teacher cognition, such as stimulated recalls and classroom observations, as venues for the promotion of Vygotskian praxis that make a difference in the thinking and activity of teacher-participants.
I also strive to engage in interdisciplinary scholarship across different sub-fields of education. In particular, I have published a co-authored paper with colleagues Brett Diaz and Stella Ng in Advances in Health Sciences Education exploring the potential of Vygotskian concept-based instruction in health professions education. We propose a novel pedagogical intervention targeting the development of health professionals’ engagement in critical reflection and offer concrete recommendations for practitioners in health professions education to deploy Vygotskian pedagogical principles in their instruction. This work is representative of my willingness to seek out opportunities to collaborate across disciplinary boundaries and promote the power of Vygotskian praxis in tackling discipline-specific concerns in teaching/learning activity.