By its nature, inclusive practitioner research is committed to classroom inquiry that welcomes and supports all practitioners in reflecting on the learning-teaching process (Allwright & Hanks, 2009). An important, yet often overlooked aspect of inclusivity in practitioner research lies in the very languages teachers and learners use in instruction. While practitioner research has found wide appeal globally, the vast amount of English-language scholarship on the topic can be challenging for teachers of languages other than English who desire to engage in inquiry with their learners and colleagues in the target language (TL).
Within the model of exploratory practice (EP), practitioners from the Rio EP tradition have published ample work in Portuguese to support (primarily) L2 English/L1 Portuguese teachers and learners (see, e.g., Miller, et al., 2008). As Moraes Bezerra & Miller (2015) note, making space for multiple language repertoires in practitioner research not only supports practitioners' individual agency in reflective inquiry, but also contributes to mutual, collective development.
Aligned with this commitment to a plurality of understandings in teacher inquiry, this presentation reports on the experiences of a virtual German-language EP community of practice made up of K-16 German teachers in the US, set to begin in spring 2023. Designed to serve both individual German teachers and the broader L2 German teaching profession, the group supports multiple, interconnected professional learning goals: (1) introducing German teachers to EP, (2) creating community among teachers and learners of German, and (3) offering teachers whose L1 is not German a sustainable source for ongoing professional development and language support.
The presentation highlights participants' experiences developing and investigating puzzles in German and reflecting on their own professional learning as German teachers. Additionally, it focuses on the challenges and opportunities participants experience in 'translating' EP principles and terms into German. Here, issues concerning translatability of cultural concepts (e.g., puzzles) provide moments to consider how different 'languacultures' (Agar, 1994) can frame and position practitioner research in unique ways. To provide a developmental profile of individual and group experiences doing EP in German, the study draws on: (1) participants' written reflections; (2) transcribed Zoom recordings of regular group meetings; and (3) ongoing collaborative development of a German-language handbook for German teachers new to EP. Importantly, the presentation provides teachers of languages other than German (and English) with a model for 'translating' EP into their TLs for professional learning.
References:
Agar, M. H. (1994). Language shock: Understanding the culture of conversation. William Morrow & Co.
Allwright, D. & Hanks, J. (2009). The developing language learner: An introduction to Exploratory Practice. Palgrave Macmillan.
Miller, I. K.; Barreto, B. C.; Moraes Bezerra, I. C. R.; Cunha, M. I. A.; Braga, W. G.; Kuschnir, A. N.; Sette, M. de L. (2008). Prática exploratória: questões e desafios. In: G. Gil, & M. H. Vieira-Abroahão (Eds.). A formação do professor de línguas: Os desafios do formador. Pontes.
Moraes Bezerra, I. C. R., & Miller, I. K. (2015). Exploratory Practice and new literacy studies: Building epistemological connections. Pensares em Revista 6, São Gonçalo. 90–128.
