Agentive Apprenticeship of Observation and English Teacher Identity - A Pakistani Case of Learning to Teach English

Oct 15, 2026

The paper explores literature on second/foreign language teaching and focuses on how Pakistani primary school teachers learn to teach English and develop their English teacher identity within recent curriculum reforms. Using a qualitative design, it examines lived experiences and shows how teachers draw agentively on their own preferred learning experiences. Findings challenge the apprenticeship of observation idea that teachers teach only as they were taught, and highlight identity negotiation implications.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages20

Reading Time50 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Research focus and context

Prior scholarship on L2/FL teacher learning

Apprenticeship of observation and research questions

Agentive Apprenticeship of Observation and English Teacher Identity: A Pakistani Case of Learning to Teach English Liaquat Ali Channa Balochistan University of Information Technology, Engineering & Management Sciences (BUITEMS) Abstract An exploration of literature on second/foreign language (L2/FL) teaching suggests that the phenomenon in question has been investigated either by examining classroom processes or by exploring teachers’ lived experiences. Situated in the latter area, this paper reports a qualitative study that understands how Pakistani primary school teachers learn to teach English—the subject mandated in recent curricular reforms—and develop their English teacher identity. The findings problematize the apprenticeship of observation concept and demonstrate that the teachers agentively draw upon their favorite English learning experiences. They teach English not the way they were taught, rather, they teach the way they loved learning English. Thus, they develop the English teacher identities they adored while they were students. The paper presents pertinent implications. Resumé Une exploration des écrits scientifiques sur l'enseignement des langues secondes/étrangères (L+) suggère que le phénomène en question a été étudié soit en examinant les processus declasse, soit en explorant les expériences vécues par les enseignants. En adoptant la dernière approche, le présent article rend compte d'une étude qualitative qui examine comment lesenseignants du primaire pakistanais apprennent à enseigner l'anglais -la matière prescrite dans les récentes réformes des programmes - et développent leur identité de professeur d'anglais. Les conclusions problématisent le concept d'apprentissage d’observation et montrent que les enseignants s'inspirent de leurs expériences d'apprentissage de l'anglais préférées. Ils n'enseignent pas l'anglais comme ils l'ont appris, mais plutôt comme ils ont aimé l’apprendre. Ainsi, ils développent les identités des professeurs d'anglais qu'ilsadoraient lorsqu'ils étaient élèves. L'article présente des implications pertinentes. Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics: 23, 1 (2020): 117-136 RCLA * CJAL Channa 118 Agentive Apprenticeship of Observation and English Teacher Identity: A Pakistani Case of Learning to each English Reviewing scholarship on second/foreign language (L2/FL) teaching suggests that how a teacher teaches English as an L2/FL has been examined at broad two levels. First, how a teacher teaches English as an L2/FL has been studied at the language classroom level. This line of inquiry has examined English language teaching techniques and methods, teachers’ and students’ interactions, students’ behavior with respect to their anxiety, motivation, and willingness to speak, and assessment and error treatment in the classroom (Allwright & Bailey, 1994; Chaudron, 1988; Larsen-Freeman, 2000; Lier, 1988; Markee, 2000; Richards & Rodgers, 2001; Schachter & Gass, 1996) . Second, how a teacher teaches English as an L2/FL has been investigated in the context of how a teacher has, in effect, learned to teach English. This professional development strand of research has looked into how teachers have learned to teach, and what sources have taught a teacher to teach English as an L2/FL in a certain way (Bullock, 2011; Johnson, 2006; 2009; Lantolf & Poehner, 2008 ; Lantolf & Thorne, 2007; Smagorinsky & Barnes, 2014) . The first line of inquiry has focused upon events, processes, and individual differences of a target language classroom. The second strand of research, however, has explored teachers’ lived experiences of teaching a target language. Unlike former research that has been informed by psycholinguistic, sociolinguistic, and social theories of language learning and teaching, the latter area of knowledge has drawn upon various psychological and sociocultural theories of human development. While target language students and their language development have largely been i

FAQs

What does the study investigate about Pakistani primary teachers?

It investigates how Pakistani primary school teachers learn to teach English and how they develop their English teacher identity.

Which framework does the paper critically examine?

It critically examines Lortie’s (1975) apprenticeship of observation, questioning whether teachers always teach the way they were taught.

How do teachers in the study learn to teach English?

Teachers agentively draw upon their favorite English learning experiences, leading them to teach in ways aligned with what they loved about learning English.

Oct 15, 2026

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