Synchronous (Onsite) Teacher Empowerment through Collaboration: Teaching Grammar as a Meaning-Making Resource more

Sun, Apr 30, 12:00-12:25 Asia/Seoul

This paper will discuss the benefits of the collaborative efforts of a team comprising seven EL teachers from a Singapore primary school and an EL academic from the local, national institute of teacher education engaged in an action research (AR) project. The AR project focused on the teaching of grammar as a meaning-making resource within the EL writing classroom. The project involved professional development sessions on the knowledge of grammar as a meaning-making resource, the revision of existing instructional materials to integrate the teaching of grammar within the teaching of writing, and the actual classroom teaching of grammar as a meaning-making resource in writing. Based on findings from interviews of two teachers on the team who were involved in the classroom teaching phase, the paper will present how such a collaborative project can be empowering in terms of enhanced teacher knowledge and improved teaching practices in the EL writing classroom.