ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION IN CUBA …eprints.qut.edu.au/59959/1/Steven_Smith_Thesis.pdf · ii English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity Abstract

ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION

IN CUBA: CONTEXT, PEDAGOGY AND

IDENTITY

Steven John Smith

Ph.D., B.Sc. (Honours)

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of

Master of Education (Research)

School of Cultural and Language Studies in Education

Faculty of Education

Queensland University of Technology

July 2012

English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity i

Keywords

bilingual, case study, communicative approach, communicative competence, context,

Cuba, culture, education, English language teacher education, identity, intelligibility,

internationalism, linguaculture, pedagogy, ‘pedagogy of tenderness’, postcolonial

theory, speaking, teaching strategies.

ii English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity

Abstract

In this study, I investigate the model of English language teacher education

developed in Cuba. It includes features that would be considered innovative,

contemporary, good practice anywhere in the Western world, as well as having

distinctly Cuban elements. English is widely taught in Cuba in the education system

and on television by Cuban teachers who are prepared in five-year courses at

pedagogical universities by bilingual Cuban teacher educators.

This case study explores the identity and pedagogy of six English language

teacher educators at Cuba’s largest university of pedagogical sciences. Postcolonial

theory provides a framework for examining how the Cuban pedagogy of English

language teacher education resists the negative representation of Cuba in hegemonic

Western discourse; and challenges neoliberal Western dogma. Postcolonial concepts

of representation, resistance and hybridity are used in this examination.

Cuban teacher education features a distinctive ‘pedagogy of tenderness’.

Teacher educators build on caring relationships and institutionalised values of

solidarity, collectivism and collaboration. Communicative English language teaching

strategies are contextualised to enhance the pedagogical and communicative

competence of student teachers, and intercultural intelligibility is emphasised. The

collaborative pedagogy of Cuban English language teacher education features peer

observation, mentoring and continuing professional development; as well as

extensive pre-service classroom teaching and research skill development for student

teachers. Being Cuban and bilingual are significant aspects of the professional

identity of case members, who regard their profession as a vocation and who are

committed to preparing good English language teachers.

English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity iii

Table of Contents

Keywords .................................................................................................................................. i

Abstract .................................................................................................................................... ii

List of Figures ...........................................................................................................................v

List of Tables .......................................................................................................................... vi

List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................................. vii

Statement of Original Authorship ......................................................................................... viii

Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................. ix

Chapter 1: Introduction ............................................................................................ 1

Background ...............................................................................................................................1

Teaching English in Cuba ............................................................................................................ 1

Kachru’s Three Circle Model of English Language Use ............................................................. 3

Global growth of English Language Teaching ............................................................................ 6

Personal background .................................................................................................................... 7

Context ......................................................................................................................................9

Colonialism and neocolonialism .................................................................................................. 9

Cuba’s education system ............................................................................................................ 11

English language teacher education in Cuban universities ........................................................ 16

Internationalism ......................................................................................................................... 21

Purpose ....................................................................................................................................23

Significance and Scope ...........................................................................................................23

The research gap ........................................................................................................................ 23

Conceptual framework ............................................................................................................... 24

The Significance of the Research ............................................................................................... 25

Thesis Outline .........................................................................................................................26

Chapter 2: Literature Review ................................................................................. 29

Postcolonial Theory ................................................................................................................30

Representation ........................................................................................................................... 33

Resistance ................................................................................................................................ 35

Hybridity ................................................................................................................................ 37

Context for English language teacher education .....................................................................39

Ownership of English ................................................................................................................ 40

The native speaker fallacy.......................................................................................................... 41

Culture and language ................................................................................................................. 43

Adapting English language teaching to the local context .......................................................... 45

Pedagogy of teacher education ...............................................................................................47

‘Pedagogy of tenderness’ and teacher education ....................................................................... 50

Approach to English language teaching in Cuba ....................................................................... 56

Teacher educator identity ........................................................................................................61

iv English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity

Development of a teacher educator’s identity ............................................................................ 63

Communities of practice of teacher educators ........................................................................... 65

Imagined communities of teacher educators .............................................................................. 66

Summary and Implications ..................................................................................................... 69

Chapter 3: Research Design .................................................................................... 73

Methodology and Research Design ........................................................................................ 73

Methods .................................................................................................................................. 77

Participants ............................................................................................................................. 80

Instruments ............................................................................................................................. 84

Procedure and Timeline.......................................................................................................... 84

Analysis .................................................................................................................................. 89

Ethics, Risks and Trustworthiness .......................................................................................... 91

Chapter 4: Pedagogy and the Cuban Context ....................................................... 97

Communicative competence .................................................................................................. 97

Pedagogical competence ...................................................................................................... 101

Salient features of Cuban pedagogy ..................................................................................... 112

Summary .............................................................................................................................. 121

Chapter 5: Professional identity and the Cuban context .................................... 125

Development of the professional identity of teacher educators ........................................... 125

Communities of Practice ...................................................................................................... 136

Imagined communities ......................................................................................................... 139

Summary .............................................................................................................................. 141

Chapter 6: Teaching strategies in the Cuban context ......................................... 145

General techniques ............................................................................................................... 145

Teaching strategies ............................................................................................................... 156

Collaborative teaching workshops ....................................................................................... 164

Summary .............................................................................................................................. 167

Chapter 7: Conclusions .......................................................................................... 171

Findings and Implications .................................................................................................... 171

Limitations of the study ........................................................................................................ 178

Implications .......................................................................................................................... 179

Further research .................................................................................................................... 181

Bibliography ........................................................................................................... 183

Appendices ............................................................................................................. 199 Appendix A Procedure for fieldwork in Cuba (Stage 2) .......................................................... 199 Appendix B Interview Questions and Topics .......................................................................... 201 Appendix C Schedule of Collaborative Workshops ................................................................ 203 Appendix D Interim written evaluation ................................................................................... 205 Appendix E Final written evaluation ....................................................................................... 207

English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity v

List of Figures

Figure 1.1 Kachru’s Three Circles (adapted from Kachru, 1992a; p.356) .............. 4

Figure 1.2 Degree in Education: allocation of time to curriculum areas

(Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, 2011) ............................................................. 18

Figure 1.3 Field experience in 5 year degree course (Díaz-Canel Bermúdez,

2011) .................................................................................................... 19

Figure 1.4 Conceptual framework .......................................................................... 25

Figure 2.1 Influences on the professional identity of teacher educators

(adapted from Mockler, 2011, fig. 1, p.521) ....................................... 64

Figure 3.1 Theoretical framework .......................................................................... 74

Figure 3.2. Methodology and research design ......................................................... 75

Figure 3.3. Stages of research .................................................................................. 78

Figure 3.4 Phases of Stage 2 - research in Cuba ..................................................... 80

Figure 6.1 Structured lesson sequence: A good teacher ....................................... 163

vi English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity

List of Tables

Table 1 Data sources ............................................................................................... 85

Table 2 TESOL presentations in Collaborative Teaching Workshops ................... 87

Table 3 Risk Management Plan ............................................................................... 93

English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity vii

List of Abbreviations

CA Communicative Approach

CLT Communicative Language Teaching

EFL English as a Foreign Language

ELT English Language Teaching

ELTE English Language Teacher Education

FLEX Facultad de Lenguas Extranjeras (at UCPEJV)

L1 The first or native language or ‘mother tongue’, learned from birth

L2 A second language acquired after the first language

NEST Native English-Speaking Teacher

Non-NEST Non-Native English-Speaking Teacher

SLA Second Language Acquisition

TESOL Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages

UCPEJV Universidad de Ciencias Pedagógicas ‘Enrique José Varona’

viii English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity

Statement of Original Authorship

The work contained in this thesis has not been previously submitted to meet

requirements for an award at this or any other higher education institution. To the

best of my knowledge and belief, the thesis contains no material previously

published or written by another person except where due reference is made.

Signature: _________________________

Date: _________________________

English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity ix

Acknowledgements

I am grateful to my supervisors Associate Professor Anne Hickling-Hudson

and Dr Erika Hepple. Their experience, guidance, academic expertise, advice and

constructive critiques have contributed significantly to development of this thesis.

I also acknowledge the generosity and hospitality of the teacher educators and

pre-service teachers at the University of Pedagogical Sciences ‘Enrique José

Varona’, Marianao, Havana, Cuba, and in particular the six English language teacher

educators who agreed to participate in this case study. This research project would

not have been possible without the assistance and contribution of Vice Dean Dr

Alejandro Torres Saavedra, who facilitated my engagement with the University,

selection of the case members, and conduct of the series of Collaborative Teaching

Workshops. So many people at the University in Marianao, Havana were

instrumental in enabling this research project that I cannot mention all of them;

however I want particularly to thank the Director of International Relations, Dr

Mercedes Mora Carnet; and also Dr Isora Enriquez O’Farrill, Dean of the Faculty of

Foreign Languages, who invited me to participate with her on a nationally televised

English language program about Australia.

I am grateful to those Australian colleagues and friends who kindly commented

on earlier drafts of this thesis particularly Diane Lane, Dr Anna Pertierra, Dr Helen

Stapleton, Lance Davey and Richard Dearden; and finally acknowledge my partner,

Richard, who has steadfastly supported and encouraged me in this endeavour.

English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity

Chapter 1: Introduction 1

Chapter 1: Introduction

In this chapter I introduce the research topic and locate it in the global context

of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) and the enigmatic

nation that is Cuba in the 21st century. The purpose of this chapter is to explain why

the research was undertaken and the significance of the results.

This chapter is organised into five sections. In the first I discuss the place of

English language in Cuba at a time when it has become a global language; and

describe my personal involvement and background. The second section outlines the

context of this study; together with an introduction to Cuban education before and

since 1959. I also provide an overview of the five-year English language teacher

education course provided at pedagogical universities throughout the country; and

Cuba’s commitment to internationalism. The research problem and research

questions are stated in the third section. In the fourth section, the scope and

significance of the research are presented which includes describing a gap in the

literature on English language teacher education; the conceptual framework adopted

for this study; and the significance of the research findings. The final section outlines

the organisation of the rest of the thesis.

Background

Teaching English in Cuba

In this Spanish-speaking nation of 11 million people located 150 km from the

coast of Florida, bilingual Cubans, born and educated in Cuba, teach English using

locally produced teaching resources. Although Cuba, the largest of the Caribbean

islands, has endured a tense relationship with its powerful northern neighbour for


2 Chapter 1: Introduction

over 50 years, it maintains close relationships with its Caribbean neighbours

(Thorburn, 2006), with Latin America and with many nations around the world

(Feinsilver, 2008).

The effects on the Cuban people of an economic embargo by the USA, which

the Cuban government estimates has cost the nation more than $US 975 billion since

1962 (Rodríguez Parilla, 2011), have been described as “disastrous” by the Personal

Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

(Amnesty International, 2009; p.14). Despite the UN General Assembly voting

annually for 20 years to lift the embargo, it remains in place. On 25 October 2011,

only the USA and Israel voted to continue it while 186 countries, including Australia,

voted to end it (UN General Assembly, 2011).

Notwithstanding the embargo and historic links between English language and

US domination, Cuba decided to promote the use of English for its own purposes: to

meet its socialist objectives and contribute to its economic independence. Cuba needs

the English language for a variety of reasons including international relationships and

business partnerships; a growing tourism industry, scientific and technological

research, and solidarity with developing nations.

Cuban teacher education

Several international studies have indicated that Cuba has the most educated

population in Latin America (MacDonald, 2009), and an outstanding record of

educational success which is in part attributable to strong teacher education and in-

service teacher training programs (Malott, 2007). In recent years, several visiting

educators from the USA have praised the contribution made by Cuban teacher

education to Cuba’s educational achievements (Hunt, 2003; Miller, 2002; Schultz,



Tiner, Sewell, & Hirata, 2011). Gasperini, a specialist in Latin American and

Caribbean education, reported to the World Bank on Cuba’s educational

achievements and its unconventional education system.

Cuba is a poor country, and the past decade has been particularly difficult

economically. Yet the success of its schools flaunts conventional wisdom:

Education in Cuba is entirely public, centrally planned, and free, in a global

reform environment of privatization, downscaling of the state role, and cost

recovery. (Gasperini, 2000, p.14)

Unfortunately the political stigma which has been attached to Cuba and its

independent path by the USA, the World Bank and the IMF among others, has

resulted in a lack of acknowledgment and under-reporting of Cuba’s achievements

(Breidlid, 2007). Educators in North America and Europe call for more research into

Cuba’s teacher training system to explore the reasons for its success (Breidlid, 2007;

Gomez Castanedo & Giacchino-Baker, 2010). This thesis responds to that call by

examining one aspect of the system, English language teacher education, at a time

when international research is increasingly focused on the pedagogy of teacher

education and when global use of English continues to grow (Graddol, 2006;

Loughran & Russell, 2007).

Kachru’s Three Circle Model of English Language Use

A three circle model of English spread, acquisition and function, first proposed

by Kachru (1985, fig.1), is helpful in discussing the global use of English (Figure

1.1). The model recognises that different varieties of English have evolved under

different circumstances in different parts of the world. The Inner Circle comprises

native speakers for whom English is their mother tongue or first language (L1), and



most of whom are monolingual, coming from Western countries including USA, UK,

Australia, New Zealand and Canada; the Outer Circle consists of non-native users of

English, who use a standard variety of English from the UK or USA, or a local

variety, as an additional or second language (L2), and who are mainly from former

British colonies such as Singapore, India and Kenya, where English has acquired

some form of official or institutional status; and the Expanding Circle are non-native

English users for whom English is a foreign or international language used in

restricted domains (e.g. China, Saudi Arabia, Hungary and Cuba).

Expending circle

Expanding Circlee.g. Brazil, Colombia, China, Egypt,

Japan, Russia, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, most of Europe and Cuba

Outer Circlee.g. India, Jamaica, Nigeria,

Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Singapore

Inner Circlee.g. UK, USA,

Australia

Figure 1.1 Kachru’s Three Circles (adapted from Kachru, 1992a; p.356)

With the rapid global expansion of English use, the numbers of English

language users in the Outer and Expanding Circles now exceeds the number of

‘native speakers’ in the Inner Circle (Crystal, 2003). Most current use of English



language involves people of the Outer and Expanding Circles for whom English has

been learnt as a second, additional or foreign language (Graddol, 2006).

Hidden messages

Critical theory and critical pedagogy have prompted reflection on “the hidden

curriculum and ideologies that sometimes underlie language teaching policies and

practices” (Richards, 2002, p.3). The theory of linguistic imperialism argues that

education and English Language Teaching (ELT) in particular, are not politically

neutral activities; and that mastery of English enhances the power and control of a

privileged few (Phillipson, 1992). In many countries, English language functions as a

“gatekeeper” to positions of prestige and influence (Pennycook, 2001b, p.81).

Nowadays, English is frequently referred to as a global lingua franca, however,

Phillipson (2009, p.338) disagrees with using this term to describe English, which he

says falsely indicates that “the language is neutral, free of cultural ties and serves all

equally well”.

In the past decade, a rapidly growing body of computer-based language studies

have analysed digitised samples of naturally occurring language to characterise the

way that English is used by speakers in different contexts outside the Inner Circle,

such as in Asia (Bolton, 2008; Kirkpatrick, 2010) and continental Europe (Mauranen,

2011; Seidlhofer, 2011), where English is increasingly used for international

communication. Such research led inevitably to consideration of the implications for

the pedagogy of ELT; in particular, the need to raise awareness of variations in

English language use around the world, rather than focusing solely on the standards

of English applied in the UK and USA.



In this thesis, considering the Cuban context of English language use, I

describe English in Cuba as a foreign language taught by bilingual teachers that has

particular significance and value because of its global use in many domains.

Linguistic strategies available to bilingual users of English that draw on first

language (L1) knowledge, are “crucial bilingual pragmatic resources” that put them

at a communicative advantage in intercultural situations over monolingual ‘native

speakers’ (Jenkins, Cogo, & Dewey, 2011, p.284). Cuban English language teacher

educators demonstrate elective bilingualism, in that they chose to learn a foreign

language that is not commonly used in their community; and are functionally

bilingual because while they use Spanish in all areas of their lives, they also use

English, primarily in their professional context (C. Baker, 2006).

Global growth of English Language Teaching

The global increase and spread of ELT is remarkable and seems likely to

continue (Canagarajah, 2006b). The English language grew from being a fairly minor

Anglo-Saxon language to have about 4 million speakers in 1500, to 40 million

speakers in 1800, to about 120 million speakers in 1900 and an estimated 700 million

to one billion speakers at present (Graddol, 2006). Facilitated by the cultural and

economic influence of the USA and UK, English has assumed a monopolistic

position as a global language, particularly in the domains of business, computing,

science and international relations. Many people who develop English

communicative competence benefit materially and their success perpetuates the

growing demand for English classes around the world (Edge, 2003). While the

present dominance of the English language is likely to continue, internet use in

different languages and scripts, and changing global trading patterns, may see the



rise of other global languages such as Mandarin Chinese, Arabic and Spanish

(Graddol, 2001).

For now, the demand is for English, and TESOL is big business. Publication

and promotion of teacher training courses, international testing systems, course

books, and adult classes on-line and in private colleges, comprise a multi-billion

dollar, multi-national industry dominated and marketed by Western countries.

Although definitions of ‘Western’ vary, in this thesis I use it to refer particularly to

the USA, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. In addition, ‘native’ English-

speaking teachers (NESTs) have dispersed to teach in all parts of the world; many

like myself, having had only limited teacher training in short courses, such as

Cambridge University’s postgraduate CELTA, Certificate of English Language

Teaching to Adults (A. Baxter, 2003). The implicit assumption in such Western

courses has been that teaching methods which work in Britain and the USA will

work equally well in any location and culture around the world i.e. “what is good for

Europe or the USA, had to be good for KwaZulu” (Chick, 1996, quoted in

Kumaravadivelu, 2006, p. 63). This simplistic view has been found to be inadequate

as classroom-based research shows the importance of local culture and identity in

language teaching outcomes (Canagarajah, 2006a; Rubdy, 2009; Woods, 1996);

Personal background

My interest in this project arose from an experience in Havana in November

2009 when voluntarily presenting a series of five workshops for English language

teacher educators. Prior to the workshops, in a written self-assessment, the

participants had indicated that their greatest need was to practise and improve their

English speaking skills. The workshops were conducted at the Faculty of Foreign



Languages, University of Pedagogical Sciences, Havana (la Facultad de Lenguas

Extranjeras, Universidad de Ciencias Pedagógicas ‘Enrique José Varona’, known as

El Varona). A critical incident occurred one afternoon, when introducing an activity

that I had used many times with foreign students in TESOL classes in Brisbane. To

practise conditional sentences and articles, I asked the participants to imagine and

discuss in pairs what they would do if they won $1 million in a lottery - an

unremarkable exercise in a Western capitalist society like Australia. However, in

Cuba, where salaries are uniformly low, lotteries are illegal and international travel is

impossible for most people, the exercise was insensitive to the participants’

economic and socio-political circumstances. The group played along in good

humour; however the incident raised my awareness of the cultural assumptions

embedded in my English language teaching (ELT) pedagogy and the need to ensure

that my teaching practices are appropriate for and adapted to local contexts.

Having lived in England, Malaysia and Sri Lanka during my childhood,

travelled widely as an adult, and studied French and Spanish for many years, I am

multilingual and keenly interested in different cultures, particularly of Latin

America. After teaching biology for 8 years and gaining a doctorate in zoology, I

worked in wildlife conservation in Tasmania for 25 years. Following retirement in

2008, I gained a CELTA (University of Cambridge Certificate of English Language

Teaching to Adults) in January 2009 and have taught English in Brisbane to adult

students from many countries.

I have visited Cuba four times over 10 years and am fascinated by the country

and its people. For me it “remains a symbol of hope or inspiration” (Pertierra, 2011,

p.245). I, like Raby (2009), find much to admire in its achievements in terms of



literacy; free, universal education; access to high quality health care; and the

significant advances made in opposing racism, respecting the rights of women, and

more recently combating homophobia and promoting acceptance of sexual diversity

(Hearn, 2008, p.175).

During those Cuban workshops in November 2009, I assumed the universality

of the communicative approach and associated methodology which I learned in a

four-week CELTA course. I did not explore how Cuban teacher educators taught

English in their classes. Reflection on those experiences in Cuba led to the present

project which seeks to understand the pedagogy and identity of Cuban teacher

educators who prepare specialist English language teachers.

Context

Colonialism and neocolonialism

Cuba was a Spanish colony from 1510 until 1898. In 1898, after a long struggle

for independence from Spain and a short military intervention by the USA, Cubans

saw the end of Spanish rule – only to be replaced by US military occupation. The

USA had long intended that Cuba should come under its control. John Adams, the

second president of the USA, in 1783 designated Cuba as a natural point of

expansion for the USA; in 1805 President Thomas Jefferson advised that the USA

would consider possessing Cuba for strategic reasons (Rumbaut & Rumbaut, 2007,

p.134); and in 1823, Secretary of State John Quincy Adams stated his ‘ripe fruit

theory’ according to which, as an apple separated from its tree will fall to the ground,

Cuba separated from Spain would naturally gravitate to the USA (Ford, 1917, p. 372-

3, 379). In 1898, the Spanish flag over the Governor’s residence in Havana was

replaced, not by the Cuban flag, but by the “Stars and Stripes”.



Cuba began a period of neocolonialism during which it was first governed by

and then dominated by the USA, the world’s emerging English-speaking

superpower. The USA set about rebuilding and remodelling the Cuban education

system as “Cuba effectively had no tradition of public education under Spain, and the

war of 1895-98 devastated her few educational resources” (Johnston, 1995, p.26).

The US Governor General in Cuba, Leonard Wood, believed that after two or three

years of self-government, Cubans would recognise the benefits of being annexed to

the United States and “insist upon being part of us” (Roosevelt, 1899).

English language as a tool for annexation

In 1898, the USA saw English language as the tool needed to build a closer

relationship with Cubans, for greater mutual understanding, and eventual

“annexation by acclamation”, rather than force (Pérez, 1995, p.39). The US Secretary

of War in 1899 drew this analogy:

It is better to have the favours of a lady with her consent, after judicious

courtship, rather than to ravish her (Pérez, 1995, p.39).

To this end, all Cuban institutions including schools were rapidly reorganised

to conform to US practices. The school law of the state of Ohio provided the model

for Cuba's school law and a US curriculum formed the basis of the new Cuban

curriculum (Pérez, 1982, p.44). In 1900, the US military government sent nearly

3,000 Cubans to the United States for teacher training (S. Baxter, 1900), and

introduced US textbooks translated into Spanish, which gave a US view of Cuban

history. Cuban teachers were required to teach the US perspective, and hence the

three year “Cuban war of national liberation was transfigured into the three week



Spanish-American War” which denied the participation of Cubans in fighting for

their own independence (Pérez, 1995, p.46).

All educational reforms during the next decades included English as a

compulsory requirement in the curriculum, a period when promotion of the language

“had all the characteristics of linguistic imperialism”; and English was used to

promote US business and political interests and maintain “the social stratification

that favoured the Cuban elite” (Corona & Garcia, 1996, p.91). The US occupation

ended in 1902; however, the USA reserved the right to intervene militarily as it saw

fit, which it did several times before legislative changes were made in May 1934

(Chomsky, Carr, & Smorkaloff, 2003, p.143); changes which ceded to the USA

perpetual rights to occupy Guantanamo Bay.

Cuba’s education system

Cuban education pre-1959

Johnston (1995) provides a detailed account of Cuban education over the 50

years from 1902. By 1952, public education “had steadily deteriorated”, according to

a World Bank report, due to lack of funding and large-scale government corruption

(Breidlid, 2007, p.620). Private schools multiplied extraordinarily, impervious to

state direction or control; such as the prestigious Jesuit-run schools and colleges that

educated Fidel Castro, son of a wealthy landowner (Johnston, 1995; Ramonet, 2008).

For Cuba's poor, the completion of even primary education became an increasingly

remote dream (Johnston, 1995). In 1955, under the US-supported Batista regime,

“the percentage of primary school-aged children enrolled in Cuban schools was



lower than in all but three Latin American countries” (UNESCO, 1962:146, quoted

in Blum, 2011, p.42).

With the ‘triumph of the revolution’ on 1st of January 1959, “Education was the

number one priority of the Revolutionary Government” (Alarcon De Quesada, 2011,

p.137). It was seen as a human right, as well as being essential to foster revolutionary

values of solidarity, equality and internationalism (Breidlid, 2007, p.622).

Cuban education post-1959

A UNESCO study in 1997-1998 concluded that Cuban primary school children

performed significantly better in mathematics and language than students from

twelve other Latin American countries (Gasperini, 2000; UNESCO, 1998). A report

to the World Bank observed that:

The only Latin American country which would score at a level similar to that

of the United States would be Cuba. (Wolff, Schiefelbein, & Schiefelbein,

2002, p.11)

Cuban students showed similarly outstanding results in more extensive testing

of third and sixth form students from sixteen Latin American and Caribbean nations

in 2008 (UNESCO, 2008). Cuba is one of few nations to have addressed “the

dysfunctionality of its neocolonial education” system and to have significantly

improved not only educational equity but also effectiveness (Hickling-Hudson, 2010,

p.300). Independent US-based studies, which investigated reasons for Cuba’s

“academic advantage”, concluded that the social context of learning is significant,

particularly what they termed state-generated “collective social capital” (Carnoy &

Marshall, 2005, p.261).



After 50 years, the outstanding achievement of Cuban education is the

provision of access to free public schooling for all school age students, together with

policies which make access equitable for previously marginalised groups, and a

parallel system of accessible mass adult education (Griffiths, 2009). Prior to 1959,

Cuban schools were not accessible to many of the poorest Cubans (Jeffries, 1967),

which resulted in a lower literacy rate for rural areas (58%) than the cities (89%) and

even lower literacy rates for rural black Cubans and other marginalised groups

(Breidlid, 2007, p.621; UN, 1957). By 2000, 97% of Cubans aged 15–24 were

literate and Cuba now has the lowest rate of illiteracy in Latin America (UN, 2000;

UNESCO, 2010). As a small nation, which inherited massive problems of social

inequity, with gross disparities between urban and rural populations, men and

women, and blacks and whites, Cuba has achieved remarkable success in the face of

persistent external threats (Brundenius, 2009). Gasperini (2000, p.1) reported to the

World Bank,

The record of Cuban education is outstanding: universal school enrolment

and attendance; nearly universal adult literacy; proportional female

representation at all levels, including higher education; a strong scientific

training base, particularly in chemistry and medicine; consistent pedagogical

quality across widely dispersed classrooms; equality of basic educational

opportunity, even in impoverished areas, both rural and urban.

UNESCO (2006) considers that Cuba is the only Latin American country

which is meeting all of the ‘Education for All’ Millennium Development Goals, and

it leads the way in Latin America in terms of the proportion of GDP spent on

education per annum (Johnstone, 2008, fig.1, p.4). If Cuban education, including

English language teaching, has evolved in relative isolation from the dominant



influences on Western education, what are its distinctive features? A 2002 Inter-

American Development Bank report concluded that the high quality of Cuban

teachers and the system of teacher education together with strong community

involvement contributed significantly to Cuba’s educational success (Wolff, et al.,

2002). These conclusions are consistent with more recent studies by Norwegian and

US educational researchers who assert that Cuban education represents a model that

warrants greater attention (Breidlid, 2007; Schultz, et al., 2011).

Its uniqueness in a global perspective – cultural capital more or less

universally distributed – represents an alternative educational route that

ought to be studied carefully, not only by other countries in the region, but

by countries in Africa and Asia (and the north) as well. (Breidlid, 2007,

p.633)

Breidlid (2007) observes that the state-generated social capital invested into

Cuban communities since 1959 has resulted in cultural capital being spread among

the majority of the population, rather than being concentrated in the wealthy elite as

in capitalist societies.

Promotion of English language since 1959

Since 1959, despite the fact that English is no longer widely used in everyday

life, the importance of English language to Cuba has increased (Irizar, 2001).

Throughout this period, English has consistently been the most studied foreign

language (Martin, 2007). Corona and Garcia (1996) describe how English language

teacher education (ELTE) gradually became more professional, from Language

Institutes in the 1960s, which gave way to Pedagogical Institutes (Teacher Training

Colleges) during the 70s and 80s; and then Higher Pedagogical Institutes and



pedagogical universities, until there are now sixteen universities of pedagogical

sciences preparing specialist foreign language teachers, particularly English teachers

– one in each province and one on the Isle of Youth

When the Soviet Union and Soviet bloc collapsed in 1991, bringing generous

subsidies and preferential trade agreements to an abrupt end, Cuba experienced a

crisis known as the Special Period (El periodo especial en tiempo de paz). Between

1990 and 1993, the Cuban economy, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP),

declined by 33 percent (Brundenius, 2009). An important part of the Cuban response

was to develop and promote the tourism industry and a project was undertaken to

train thousands of competent English speakers to work in tourism (Irizar, 2001). The

challenge for Cuba was to find how to teach English communicative skills while

maintaining respect for Cuban culture, history and socialist values. Former President

Fidel Castro has been at the forefront of initiatives to improve opportunities for

Cubans to learn English and instigated development of a course of English available

nationally on television, part of the “Universidad Para Todos” program (University

For All). In a speech in Havana on 15 March, 2001, he said:

Why should they (Cuban students) study Russian, when the Russians and the

Chinese are studying English? It turns out that this is the language for

communicating with Russians, with Chinese, with Finns and with 80 to 90

percent of people, as well as tourists from just about everywhere. (Castro,

2001)

Castro understood the importance of English for international communication

and for Cuba’s future. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, programs were offered

to re-train former Russian language teachers, and many became English teachers or



changed to other professions (Torres Saavedra, pers. comm., April 2012). English

classes are now freely available and accessible to children and adults throughout the

country; and the quality of teaching in these classes is largely influenced by the

quality of English language teacher education in Cuban universities of pedagogical

sciences.

English language teacher education in Cuban universities

Pedagogical universities provide five-year courses for students to qualify to

teach in the education system, graduating with a Licenciatura en Educación or

Education Degree; as well as offering postgraduate degree courses. Students may

graduate with one or more specialisations such as Language Education, Special

Education, Primary Education, General Integrated Teaching, and Pre-University

Education. This study was located in the Faculty of Foreign Languages at the

University of Pedagogical Sciences ‘Enrique José Varona’ (known as El Varona) in

Havana, the largest of Cuba’s pedagogical universities. It plays a leading role in the

enhancement of foreign language teaching nationally, particularly of English. Gomez

Castanedo and Giacchino-Baker (2010) provide an outline of the five year degree

course taken by teachers in Cuban Higher Pedagogical Institutes or Universities of

Pedagogical Sciences. The requirements for entry to a language teacher training

course, described by Gomez Castanedo and Giacchini-Baker (2010) and Torres

(pers. comm., March 2012), include a test of foreign language skills and an interview

to examine ethical values and professionalism, vocational interests and motivation to

complete the course.



National curriculum

There are two major components of the five-year university course to gain a

degree in education: field work and academic work. More than half of the time in the

curriculum is allocated to pre-service field experience (known as ‘Estudio-trabajo’)

which is based in schools and includes teaching and action research. The academic

component occurs in university classes and includes compulsory basic subjects (el

currículo básico, 43%); specialist subjects which vary for different specialisations

and may vary between provinces (el currículo propio, 4%); and elective subjects (el

currículo electivo, 1%), which students may choose to study in a different field,

different faculty or even at a different university. (Figure 1.2). The national

curriculum allows each university to design its own currículo propio and currículo

electivo.

Pre-service teachers, or student teachers, who study to become specialist

English language teachers at El Varona, must satisfactorily complete basic subjects

in a variety of academic disciplines (el currículo básico). In common with the

inclusive concept of pedagogy in continental Europe and Russia (Alexander, 2008,

p.5), the range of basic subjects is broad, from hygiene and physical education to the

psychology and philosophy of teaching. For specialist language teachers, linguistic

studies of Spanish are compulsory as well as of English and French. Within the basic

curriculum are general academic subjects such as Pedagogy, Grammar, Phonetics

and Didactics (formerly known as ‘Methodology of Teaching English Language’);

while most contact time for pre-service teachers studying to teach English is

allocated to Integrated English Practice (IEP).



Other compulsory basic subjects in this bilingual faculty (English and French

languages) include Cuban History, Marxist-Leninist Philosophy and Studies of Jose

Martí, Physical Education, Artistic Education and Preparation for National Defence.

During their five year course pre-service teachers specialising in English Language

attend 889 hours of IEP classes, compared to 420 hours of Pedagogy, 200 hours of

Linguistic Studies of English, 186 hours of Marxist-Leninist Philosophy and Studies

of Jose Martí, and 100 hours of Cuban history (Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, 2011).

Figure 1.2 Degree in Education: allocation of time to curriculum areas (Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, 2011)

The course book used for IEP in Years 1 and 2, called “Integrated English

Practice 1: An elementary-lower intermediate course-book for undergraduate

English teacher education in Cuba” (Enriquez O'Farrill et al., 2010), was developed

quite recently by a team of Cuban teacher educators and academics, several of whom

are based at El Varona. It includes 20 units, each of which focus on particular

communicative functions, as well as useful grammar, vocabulary and advice about

pronunciation (based on Standard American English).

52% 43%

4% 1%

National curriculum (study plan D)

Field experience (52%)

Academic, basic (43%)

Academic, specialist (4%)

Academic, elective (1%)



Pre-service teaching practice or practicum

Field experience is regarded as “the framework upon which teacher education

is built” in Cuba (Gomez Castanedo & Giacchino-Baker, 2010, p.101). The schools

in which student teachers are placed are “meant to serve as a micro-university where

experienced teachers become mentors to students in the areas of professional

preparation ... and ... general development” (Gomez Castanedo & Giacchino-Baker,

2010, p.102). In Cuba, as distinct from typical Western practicum, pre-service

teachers do not practice their teaching skills under the supervision of a classroom

teacher, but are the responsible class teacher for the whole school year.

YEAR University study: School teaching TEACHINGDays/Wk

5 Present research paper

4

4 Conduct research; elective subjects

3

3 Research proposal re teaching issue; scientific method and academic English

2

2 Pedagogy, linguistics and psychology of teaching

1

1 English language skills enhancement 0

Studying at University Teaching in school: practicum

Figure 1.3 Field experience in 5 year degree course (Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, 2011)

Teaching practice at El Varona occurs in different types of schools to broaden

the experience of pre-service teachers before graduation. In 2nd

Year, they teach in

primary schools and from 3rd

to 5th

Year they teach in Junior or Senior High Schools,

or in pre-university colleges or technological secondary schools – and might change



their schools during these years (Figure 1.3). For various reasons, including the

availability of experienced teachers as mentors, pre-service teachers in other

provinces generally commence their practical teaching in 3rd

Year (Torres, pers.

comm., February 2012).

Research project and diploma paper

Experiential learning is emphasised in English language teacher education

(ELTE) courses through both extensive teaching practice and action research in

schools. Student teachers learn to apply research skills to real problems that exist in

their surroundings, whether in the school, family or community (Gomez Castanedo

& Giacchino-Baker, 2010, p.103). They are required to complete two research

projects in the schools where they teach, presenting a ‘term paper’ in Year 4, and a

major ‘diploma paper’ at the end of Year 5. Pre-service teachers study educational

research methods as part of the basic curriculum in Years 3, 4 and 5; and apply them

to investigate specific pedagogical problems or issues they have identified in the

schools where they are teaching. In their 5th year they complete and submit a report

on their major research project in academic English and defend their ‘diploma paper’

in a final oral seminar in English before a board of examiners at the end of the

academic year.

Literature of the Anglophone Caribbean

Pre-service teachers gain an appreciation of the regional variation of the

English language and the creole languages of the Caribbean, as well as learning how

English has been appropriated and used to define and express Caribbean identity, in

the subject ‘English language literature of the Anglophone Caribbean’. Introduced in



the national curriculum in 2002, the subject is offered both in the compulsory basic

curriculum (currículo básico) and in the elective part (currículo electivo). The

literature of the Anglophone Caribbean area has developed its own features,

influenced by socio-cultural processes in the region; and it “engages with

transculturality, religious syncretism, négritude and the search for and reflection of a

common Caribbean identity” (Torres Saavedra, pers. comm., November 2011).

During this course, students are required to critically analyse a range of literature,

including work by leading figures of Caribbean literature, such as Edward Kamau

Brathwaite and Nobel Prize winners Derek Walcott and V. S Naipaul.

Faculty administration

The Dean, two Vice Deans, and the Heads of each year (Years 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5)

comprise the Scientific Board or ‘Board’ of the Faculty of Foreign Languages at El

Varona. The Heads of Year positions, responsible for coordinating all subjects in

each year, are rotated annually among Faculty staff. The Board oversees

development of operational plans to implement the national curriculum in

accordance with parameters set by the University administration; and ensures support

and professional development for teacher educators.

Internationalism

Foreign language skills, particularly English, Portuguese and French, are

essential for Cubans involved in international Cuban missions which have been a

feature of post-revolutionary Cuba’s commitment to internationalism and solidarity

with other developing postcolonial nations. Internationalism is concerned with

peaceful economic and political cooperation between nations to support the rights of

all people to live and develop in dignity and security (Long & Schmidt, 2005;



Young, 2001); and was embraced by post-revolutionary Cuba as a principled way of

developing foreign relationships. Cuba provides humanitarian aid to countries around

the world in response to natural disasters; and has established long-term, social

justice-oriented aid programs in diverse fields in many countries on the basis of

principles of ‘solidarity’ (Hickling-Hudson, 2009, p.55). These principles respect the

sovereignty and rights of the recipient countries and avoid the ‘brain drain’ that has

characterised many other aid programs (MacDonald, 2009, p.100). The teaching of

English, and other foreign languages, and the commitment to accessible, high quality

education, has meant that Cuba, an economically poor, developing nation, has been

able to export doctors, engineers, teachers and many other professionals to build

capacity and empower people in postcolonial developing nations in Africa, Asia,

America and Oceania.

Feinsilver (2008, p.3) discusses the benefits to Cuba of its exceptional aid

programs, in terms of international prestige and political capital; and also draws

attention to the economic benefit that Cuba gains from such diplomacy, such as

through the “Oil for Doctors” agreement with Venezuela. While demonstrating

international solidarity, Cuba also benefits economically from one of its most

valuable resources, its skilled, professional workforce.

In 2007, Cuba had 42,000 workers in international collaborations in 103

different countries (Huish & Kirk, 2007). Cuban educational projects have been or

are being delivered or are planned in many English-speaking countries (Hickling-

Hudson, Corona Gonzalez, & Preston, 2012); as well as with indigenous peoples in

New Zealand and Canada (Wetere, 2009); and recently, Australia (Boughton, 2009;

Schultz-Byard, 2012).



To clarify how I will explore English language teacher education at El Varona,

I present the following research goals and research questions.

Purpose

The research goals of this study are:

to understand the pedagogical background and experiences of a group of

university English language teacher educators in Cuba; and

to learn what teaching strategies they consider to be effective, practical and

culturally appropriate, for teaching English speaking skills to Cuban

undergraduate student-teachers.

The specific research questions are:

1. What is the pedagogy of English language teacher education of these

Cuban teacher educators?

2. How are the professional identities of these English language teacher

educators influenced by the Cuban context?

3. What teaching strategies do these teacher educators consider to be most

suitable for teaching English speaking in Cuba?

Significance and Scope

The research gap

This study will help to fill a research gap in understanding English language

teacher education (ELTE) in Cuba. The history of English language teaching (ELT)

in Cuba and the pedagogy used by Cuban teachers have been described by Cuban



and international linguists (Corona & Garcia, 1996; Irizar, 2001; Martin, 2007;

Schultz, et al., 2011). Little attention in the literature, however, has been given to

ELTE in Cuba, or to the pedagogy and professional identity of English language

teacher educators. It is timely to examine the current state of ELTE pedagogy in 21st

century Cuba. This study explores the perspectives and experiences of Cuban teacher

educators who are engaged in preparing specialist English language teachers to teach

English language skills to Cubans.

Conceptual framework

The preparation of English language teachers in Cuba is examined through the

lens of postcolonialism, which is appropriate given Cuba’s colonial and neocolonial

history. I recognise that the Cuban situation is different from that of many former

colonies of European powers and the USA, because of its revolutionary history, its

post-revolutionary development as an independent socialist republic, its thirty year

relationship with the Soviet Union and post-Soviet social and economic changes.

Notwithstanding these differences, a postcolonial paradigm is suitable for

illuminating the legacies of Cuba’s singular colonial history, the continuing influence

of former colonists, and to investigate how Cuba has shown agency in independently

forging its own distinctive path (Figure 1.4).

The postcolonial paradigm respects the voices of Cuban teacher educators that

have been largely ignored by Western educational discourse; and acknowledges local

knowledge systems while challenging Western Eurocentric assumptions (Hickling-

Hudson, 2010; Hoff & Hickling-Hudson, 2011). The Cuban context for English

language teacher education (ELTE) includes the social and linguistic environment.

This study explores the pedagogy of ELTE through a group of teacher educators of

different ages, backgrounds and teaching experiences. It seeks to understand their



professional identity in relation to the English language and their careers as English

language teacher educators at the University of Pedagogical Sciences Enrique José

Varona, or ‘El Varona’.

pedagogy identity

Postcolonial paradigm

Cuban context

Figure 1.4 Conceptual framework

The Significance of the Research

The significance of this study lies in two domains. Firstly, its analysis of the

work and identity of Cuban teacher educators foregrounds the perspectives of the

practitioners themselves. Secondly, the utilisation of a postcolonial paradigm yields

important cultural insights into the relevance of context in English language teacher

education in Cuba.

Previous research has analysed aspects of pedagogy in Cuba from the

perspectives of international and Cuban academics – whereas this study reveals

salient features of the pedagogy of ELTE in Cuba through the perspectives of local

practitioners at ‘the coal face’ of language teacher education.. The study provides an



insight into the professional identity of Cuban teacher educators and explores how

their multi-faceted identities develop and are influenced by their own experiences of

learning and teaching English and by the Cuban context.

This research throws light on the ways that ELTE in Cuba resists neoliberal

discourse and Western hegemony and is contextualised, by incorporating Cuban

culture and themes to make learning relevant and engaging for pre-service teachers,

and by making use of Cuban resources and bilingual Cuban teacher educators.

Thesis Outline

In the next chapter I critically review and evaluate literature that is pertinent to

this research project, particularly in relation to elements of the study’s conceptual

framework: postcolonialism, context, pedagogy and identity (Figure 1.4), and focus

attention on key issues that arise from the literature.

Research design is described in Chapter 3, outlining the theoretical framework

and explaining why case study and qualitative research methodology are appropriate

for this study. Research methods are described next, followed by an outline of the

research context, participants, data sources, data analysis, limitations and relevant

risks and ethical issues.

Research results, analysis and discussion have been integrated to address each

of the three research questions. Chapter 4 relates to research question 1 and explores

the pedagogy of English language teacher education of the case members; and

Chapter 5 relates to research question 2 which considers how the professional

identities of the case members are influenced by the Cuban context. Chapter 6 relates

to research question 3 and describes teaching strategies considered by these teacher



educators to be suitable for teaching English speaking in Cuba. Conclusions are

presented in Chapter 7, and include findings, implications of the research, limitations

of the study, and recommendations for future research.


Chapter 2: Literature Review 29

Chapter 2: Literature Review

In this chapter, I develop further the conceptual framework for this study

(Figure 1.4). I draw on the literature in order to construct an argument about the

nature of English language teacher education (ELTE) in Cuba; and to explore the

concepts of context, pedagogy and professional identity in relation to teacher

education, particularly ELTE. From the literature on postcolonial theory (for

example Andreotti, 2011; McLaughlin, 2002), I select and present concepts that are

relevant to this exploration: namely representation, resistance and hybridity.

This chapter is organised into five sections. Firstly, I examine postcolonial

theory and discuss postcolonial concepts which are pertinent to the Cuban situation.

Secondly, to explore the significance of the global and local context, I explain how

ideas about ownership of English have changed as it has become a global language;

and discuss the relationship between culture and language. In the third section I

examine the meaning of pedagogy and particularly the pedagogy of teacher

education; introduce the ‘pedagogy of tenderness’; and provide an overview of the

changing pedagogy of ELTE in Cuba. In the fourth section I explore the notion of

professional identity, particularly in relation to teacher educators, a professional

group that had received surprisingly little attention from educational research

(Murray & Kosnik, 2011; Swennen, Volman, & van Essen, 2008), until the identity

of teacher educators was recognised as a key factor in the pedagogy of teacher

education (Loughran, 2011). The final section summarises the implications from the

literature for ELTE in Cuba and anticipates the next Chapter on research design.


30 Chapter 2: Literature Review

Postcolonial Theory

Postcolonial theory is chosen in this study to explore how Cuba has

purposefully challenged and addressed the negative legacies of its colonial and

neocolonial past, and used agency to forge an independent, socialist way, particularly

in the field of English language teacher education (ELTE). The participants in this

study speak from a position that is distinct from the dominant Western perspective -

that is, an alternative ‘locus of enunciation’ (Mignolo, 1993). When Spivak (1985)

asked rhetorically about the oppressed, colonised Other or ‘subaltern’, “Can the

subaltern speak?”, one response could have been “the subaltern has always spoken,

although scholars and social scientists were not always willing to listen” (Mignolo,

1993, p.130). The voices of six Cuban teacher educators in this study come from a

space that has been ostracized, marginalised and largely ignored in the dominant

Western educational discourse. This study listens to their voices.

An international conference held in Havana in 1966 was significant in the

development of postcolonial theory and internationalism. The “Tricontinental

Conference of Solidarity of the Peoples of Africa, Asia and Latin America” initiated

a “global alliance against imperialism” and established a postcolonial critique of the

colonialism of the Western powers (Young, 2001, p.213). Application of

postcolonial theory has generally been in relation to understanding the continuing

effects of colonial and neocolonial experiences of former British colonies of Asia,

Africa and the Caribbean. It has not often been applied to Latin American studies and

it “often faces resistance from Latin Americanists for whom it is one more in a long

line of foreign imports tainted by imperial origins” (Colás, 1995, p.382). Colás

alleges that “postcolonial critics and theorists have failed to examine the difference



of Latin America” and “until this interrogation is undertaken, a partial, false concept

of postcoloniality will dominate postcolonial studies” (Colás, 1995, p.383). Ashcroft

(2001, p.26) recognises the differences in the nature of colonialism and

postcolonialism in Latin America, which he states “all radically widen the scope of

post-colonial theory”. However, he asks rhetorically “does the cultural provenance of

theory invalidate such categories as epistemological tools?” (Ashcroft, 2001, p.27). I

acknowledge the differences between most Latin American countries, which gained

their independence in the first decades of the 19th

century, and the postcolonial

circumstances of former British colonies, many of which gained independence in the

20th

century. However, Spanish colonialism in Cuba persisted until 1898 when it was

replaced by US neocolonialism. Domination by the USA continued in one form or

another in Cuba until ‘the triumph of the revolution’ in 1959; and its influence

persists directly through a crippling trade embargo, and indirectly through the US’

influence on neoliberal policies of organisations such as the World Bank and IMF.

Postcolonial theory, which has been defined and interpreted in different ways,

is complex and contested (Andreotti, 2011). For this study of independent, socialist

Cuba, I understand postcolonial theory as an epistemological tool to examine beliefs

and perceptions of knowledge. I use it to critique the intolerance of dominant

Western perspectives to alternative ideas emerging from the global South; a

“hostility to difference” which is embedded in Western discourse (Andreotti, 2011,

p.1). I adopt postcolonial theory to promote the voice of the ‘subaltern’ (Spivak,

1988) and respect “local knowledge systems, ways of learning and local concerns”

(Hoff & Hickling-Hudson, 2011, p.6); and to probe the ways that power and control

can be taken back through resistance to the negative impacts of Western colonialism,

neocolonialism and imperialism (Ashcroft, Griffiths, & Tiffin, 1998).



If colonial history, particularly in the 19th century, was the history of the

imperial appropriation of the world, the history of the 20th century has

witnessed the peoples of the world taking power and control back for

themselves. Postcolonial theory is itself a product of that dialectical process

(Young, 2001, p.4).

After gaining independence in 1959, Cuba entered into a 30 year relationship

with the Soviet Union, during which Cuban education was influenced by the Soviet

system, Russian rivalled English as the most-studied foreign language (Irizar, 2001),

and Cuba was once more economically dependent on a ‘superpower’ (Katz, 1983).

During the 1980s, Cuban educators recognised and addressed the weaknesses of its

Soviet-influenced education system (Lutjens, 2007); and since the collapse of the

Soviet Union in 1992, as an independent, socialist state, Cuba has forged its own

way, promoting English as a language for international communication to support its

economic independence, development and internationalism. Postcolonial theory is

valuable for helping to understand this process against a historical background of

colonial repression and subjugation. Hickling-Hudson (2010, p.299) argues that

“Postcolonial theory provides tools with which we can interpret the powerful and

lingering effects of European and (later) North American global dominance” and

explore the alternatives. I examine English language teacher education in Cuba

through a postcolonial lens which highlights the agency shown by Cuba. The next

section focuses on postcolonial theoretical concepts which I have selected to interpret

the results of this study: representation, resistance and hybridity. The relevance of

these concepts is revealed in my analysis of the identity of Cuban teacher educators

and the pedagogy they use in English language teacher education (Chapters 4 and 5).



Representation

Western representation of non-Western cultures became a dominant discourse

that was “a necessary accompaniment of coercive power and the justifications for

colonialism” (Andreotti, 2011, p.19). In his book “Orientalism”, Said (1978),

emphasised the relationship between Western representation and Western material

and political power. He argued that in the guise of scientific and objective

knowledge, the Western discourse of the Orient was negative, stereotypical and

anecdotal.

Orientals were rarely seen or looked at: they were seen through, analysed not

as citizens, or even people, but as problems to be solved or confined, or – as

the colonial powers openly coveted their territory – taken over” (Said, 1978,

p.207).

Said posited that Western views of non-Western peoples and cultures were

neither objective nor deliberately dishonest, but were filtered through cultural biases

and self-interests, distinguishing between the familiar West and the exotic Other.

This kind of subjective representation can be recognised in popular Western images

of 21st century Cuba: Buena Vista Social Club with its ageing, talented musicians

harking back to pre-revolutionary times; grand US-made cars from the 1950s;

crumbling, Spanish colonial buildings; and a dominant Western discourse which

portrays Cuba as a dependent and unstable neighbour of the USA (Clemente, 1985;

Speck, 2005). The colonised Other has been represented by Europeans and North

Americans as the opposite of themselves.



If colonised people are irrational, Europeans are rational; if the former are

barbaric, sensual and lazy, Europe is civilisation itself, with its sexual

appetites under control and its dominant ethic, that of hard work…This

dialectic between self and other… has been hugely influential in subsequent

studies of Africans, Native Americans and other non-European peoples

(Loomba, 1998, p.47)

This discourse was manifested in US views of Cubans in the early 20th

century

and the importance given by the USA to English language in the process of

educating Cubans to accept the USA and its institutions. Following the defeat of

Spain in 1898, cartoonists in the USA portrayed Cubans as

…carefree children, or rowdy, undisciplined youths, requiring the constant

guidance and tutelage of the United States. Cubans are not only infantilized;

they are frequently represented as blacks who are alternately cheerful,

irresponsible, lazy, dim and grotesquely deformed (J. Johnson, 2003, p.135)

This representation explicitly or subconsciously aimed to justify conquest and

the establishment of colonial systems of administration (Bhabha, 1994, p.40). The

education system and English language were seen as the means through which to

spread the ideological dominance characteristic of North American hegemony and

promote the emulation of North American cultural norms (Perez, 1995). In 1900, the

American superintendent of education in Cuba asserted that “All the Cubans

recognize the fact that the commercial language of the future in Cuba will be

English” (Frye, 1900). The paternalistic treatment of Cuba by the US government

continued after granting independence in 1902, through the Platt Amendment which

gave the USA the right to intervene militarily in Cuba as and when it saw fit; and it



continues through the ongoing trade embargo, a punitive measure against a former

colony which gained independence over 50 years ago.

In Cuba, resistance to this hegemonic discourse has been demonstrated in the

writings of Martí (Martí, 1895, 1953) and other 19th

century revolutionaries; through

the philosophy of 20th

century revolutionaries (Castro, 1953; Guevara, 2003;

Ramonet, 2008); and through the education system, particularly since 1959 (Lutjens,

1998; MacDonald, 2009).

Resistance

The concept of resistance to colonial discourse has developed over time with

significant contributions from Fanon (1967) and Said (1978), and been taken up and

used by scholars including Bhabha (1994) and Spivak (1990) in the development of

postcolonial theory. The global TESOL industry has been criticised for disseminating

Eurocentric values and perspectives of the Inner Circle, while eroding the cultural

identity and linguistic diversity of developing nations of the Outer and Expanding

Circles (Canagarajah, 1999; Valdez, 2011). However, Canagarajah (1999) draws

attention to appropriation of English in resistant and innovative ways by people in

postcolonial contexts, and shows how postcolonial communities may find ways of

taking up and using a language that has been a tool of oppression and turning it

against itself. When Salman Rushdie (1982, p.8) wrote “The Empire writes back with

a vengeance” he was referring to a phenomenon that has arisen from the

globalisation of English language, whereby the language no longer belongs to the

English, but “now grows from many roots; and those whom the empire once

colonized are carving out large territories within the language for themselves”. From

a postcolonial perspective of the global spread of English, a view of culture, identity

and global politics is needed that considers and values forms of resistance and



appropriation; and respects the local context (Pennycook, 2001a, p.71). It is true that

English is the language of multi-national global marketing – used to sell everything

from Coca Cola and McDonalds to Microsoft and Mercedes-Benz - on every

continent. Yet, through the capacity for human beings to show agency, that is to

make and implement choices, English language can also be a language of

empowerment, protest and resistance (Pennycook, 2010).

Despite international recognition of the success of Cuban education (Carnoy,

Gove, & Marshall, 2007), Western neoliberal discourse continues to under-report the

alternative model that Cuban education represents and ignores the voice of the Other,

coming as it does from a different ‘locus of enunciation’ (Mignolo, 1993). Cuba

demonstrates resistance to the dominant discourse of Western educational policy, and

its education system represents a rare alternative to global neoliberalism. The

continuing US economic embargo against Cuba, demands from the USA for ‘regime

change’ in Cuba through the Helms-Burton Act 1996 (Solis, 1997), and plans for

“rehabilitation” of Cuban education including privatisation and religion-based

schools (Cruz-Taura, 2003), demonstrate that paternalistic, colonial attitudes towards

Cuba persist in the USA, as they have done since the late 19th

century (Martí, 1895).

The former World Bank President, Australian-born James Wolfensohn, in 2001

conceded that:

Cuba does an excellent job in health and education… and it does not

embarrass me to admit it. (Wolfensohn, J. (2001): "Learn from Cuba" in

Breidlid, 2007, p.620)

However, the World Bank, the largest global investor in education, continues

to tie educational funding to neoliberal reforms based on the axiomatic belief “that



educational improvement requires free markets and privatisation of the educational

system” (Spring, 2004, p.57) and cost recovery (Malott, 2007, p.12). Cuba, by

contrast, demonstrates centralised control and national curricula, equitable access to

free, high quality healthcare, Education For All (Griffiths & Williams, 2009), and

government controlled schools which are accessible and secular.

“A postcolonial account…should disrupt Eurocentric discourses by including

local knowledge systems, ways of learning and local concerns in its analysis” (Hoff

& Hickling-Hudson, 2011, p.6) and this will be examined further in Chapter 6, in

relation to teaching strategies preferred by the Cuban teacher educators. The

relationship between the Western coloniser and the Other is not a simple dichotomy

between two opposing poles, because “each are hybrid and implicated in each other”

(Andreotti, 2011, p.25). Bhabha (1994) uses the concepts of ambivalence and

hybridity to understand how identities are constructed within this relationship.

Hybridity

Bhabha defines the aim of colonial discourse (the discourse of the coloniser) as

being “to construe the colonized as a population of degenerate types on the basis of

racial origin, in order to justify conquest” (Bhabha, 1994, p.40). An underlying

assumption of this discourse is “the impossible desire for a pure undifferentiated

origin” for the coloniser (Bhabha, 1994, p.81). Colonial discourse intends “to

produce compliant subjects who reproduce its assumptions, habits and values”

(McLaughlin, 2002, p.24); however, the aim is not to produce subjects that are too

similar to the colonisers as that would undermine the colonisers’ sense of superiority.

The desire to mould subjects who are “almost the same, but not quite” (Andreotti,

2011, p.26) ensures that colonial discourse is ambivalent. The concept of

“ambivalence” refers to “a complex mix of attraction and repulsion that characterises



the relationship between coloniser and colonised” (Ashcroft, Griffiths, & Tiffin,

1995, p.12). The concept of ambivalence implies a degree of indecision in the

colonised regarding the coloniser, which does not characterise Cuba’s relationship

with the hegemony of the USA. The cultural mixing between Cuba and the USA is

better characterised as ‘hybridity’.

Bhabha refutes the racist stereotyping that is inherent in the colonial discourse,

and shows that both coloniser and colonised “are caught up in a complex reciprocity”

(Bhabha, 1994, p.81). He regards this mutual construction of the identity of the

coloniser and of the colonised as a “relational, agonistic and antagonistic” process

(Souza, 2004, p.121; translated and quoted in Andreotti, 2011) and understands that

through hybridity, the knowledge and perspectives of the colonial subject can be

assimilated into the dominant discourse and weaken the basis of its authority

(Andreotti, 2011).

Hybridity is evident in the way that Cubans relate to the USA. While Cuba has

taken an independent socialist path and reduced the influence of US hegemony, close

cultural links and affinities persist and are expressed through family relationships and

remittances; sport, with baseball being the national Cuban sport; and mass popular

culture, with Cuban youth following fashions in music and dress of the African-

American rap and hip-hop scene from the USA (Pertierra, 2011). The hybridity of

identities in colonial discourse creates what Bhabha calls the “Third Space of

Enunciation”, a space that opens up opportunities for living and being “otherwise”

(Bhabha, 1994, p.256).

As Pennycook (2007, p. 81) observes, beyond economics, popular culture is “a

crucial site of identity and desire” and popular culture products around the globe are



often in English. Pennycook (2010) argues convincingly that popular culture needs to

be understood as a significant factor in the appeal of English language, particularly to

younger generations. Menard-Warwick’s research into the professional identities of

Chilean English language teachers highlights the potential pedagogical value of

English language popular culture as a tool for promoting students’ interest in the

language (Menard-Warwick, 2010, p.274). Popular culture can be seen as a

significant driver in Latin America including Cuba, in the demand to learn English

language.

Postcolonial theory and the concepts of representation, resistance and

hybridity, provide a basis for understanding the independent path taken by Cuba

since 1959 and the way that it has constructed alternatives to the continuing effects

of colonialism and neocolonialism. In the next section I discuss the context for

English language teacher education in Cuba, and examine changing views of the

ownership of English language and its use in transnational, intercultural

communication.

Context for English language teacher education

I define context to encompass the social and linguistic environment of English

language teacher education in Cuba. Context and language are inextricably linked

because communication depends not just on linguistic competence but on “who is

saying what, to whom, and in what circumstances” (C. Baker, 2006, p.5). The

context for English language use in Cuba is additive, where English use is in addition

to rather than at the expense of Spanish language. It is an unusual context insofar as

Cuban foreign language learners are not “elite or prestigious bilinguals”, as is the

case in many developing nations, but are ordinary Cubans who are encouraged and



helped by their government to learn English as a foreign language (C. Baker, 2006,

p.4).

Ownership of English

English is no longer accepted as the property of Inner Circle ‘native speakers’

but is “an international commodity” used by people around the world for both local

and transnational communication (Richards, 2002, p.2). The expanding use of

English has led to greater diversity within the language and the ownership of English

has changed. This was addressed by Widdowson (1994, p.385) who stated:

It is a matter of some pride and satisfaction for native speakers of English

that their language is an international means of communication. But the

point is that it is only international to the extent that it is not their language.

As most English speakers are located in the Outer and Expanding Circles and

use English language independently of native speakers, Widdowson asserts that

English language no longer belongs to native speakers. Jenkins (2011) supports a

pluralistic approach to ELT pedagogy whereby students are exposed to a range of

‘Englishes’ – focusing less on the norms and standards of Inner Circle ‘native

speakers’, and more on communicative strategies and practices of effective speakers

in intercultural, transnational exchanges. In similar vein, Rubdy (2009) claims that:

it will be necessary to rethink English itself differently – as a pluralised

global language informed by local norms, purposes and pedagogies: in place

of one universally applicable variety (that of the dominant community)

(p. 169)

In Thailand, where English is studied extensively but used domestically little or

not at all, Bruthiaux (2010) asserts that ELT should continue to be based on one of



the dominant models of standard English, depending on the needs and aspirations of

the learners, with localisation of pronunciation inevitably provided by teachers. His

claim resonates with the context of ELT in Cuba, where students learn English as a

foreign language (EFL), that is “within a pedagogical paradigm in which native

speaker competence is the declared goal” (Scheuer, 2010, p. 332). The principal

reference point for ELT in Cuba is Standard American English. Although this may

seem surprising, given the fraught relationship between Cuba and the USA, it can be

understood because Cubans have always distinguished “between the US government

and the language and the people of the United States” (Irizar, 2001, p.26) and many

older Cubans learned English with US course books. While Cubans strive for

communicative competence that is comparable to native speakers, they learn English

from bilingual Cuban teachers and teacher educators. The Cuban situation is in

marked contrast with many other countries of the Expanding Circle, where native

English-speaking teachers (NESTs) are employed to teach alongside non-native

English-speaking teachers (Selvi, 2011; Song & Zhang, 2010).

The native speaker fallacy

The idea that an idealised native speaker is both the arbiter of a grammar and

the ideal reference point for English language learners is called the “native speaker

fallacy” by Phillipson (1992). Kachru (1998, p.104) appropriately describes the

concept of ‘native speaker’ as a linguistic “colonial construct” that divides language

users according to the power relationships of colonial times. Nevertheless, preference

for native English-speaking teachers (NESTs) in the global TESOL industry persists

and results in overt discrimination in employment against non-NESTs in countries of

the Inner Circle as well as the Outer and Expanding Circles (Clark & Paran, 2007;

Moussu & Llurda, 2008).



Rather than striving to achieve “nativeness” in their English language skills,

Kramsch (1997, p.359) encourages non-NESTs instead to value the different

qualities which they bring to the classroom; differences which Ellis (2006) in

Australia recently found to be advantageous. Ellis’ research showed that while “good

teaching” depends on many factors, if all else were equal, the ‘non-native’ bilingual

teacher “possesses far greater resources with which to make informed professional

decisions than does the monolingual” (Ellis, 2006, p.10). This is because they are

able to make creative use of elements of the L2 and L1, which are locally relevant;

and display linguistic multicompetence rather than communicative deficiency (Belz,

2002; V. Cook, 1992). In Cuba, for economic and political reasons, no NESTs are

employed and all foreign language teaching is by Cubans. Cuban bilingual teacher

educators have the advantage of having a range of valuable skills such as code-

switching (borrowing words and phrases from their L1), translation (Spanish-

English) and personal experience of foreign language learning strategies (V. Cook,

2007). A relatively recent trend in foreign language teaching, linked to sociocultural

theory and which challenges a long-held taboo, is the increasing acceptance of

translation as a useful pedagogical tool that can be used effectively in classrooms,

such as those at El Varona, where teacher educators and pre-service teachers share

the same L1, in this case Spanish (G. Cook, 2010).

English is needed in Cuba for international communication because it is used

globally in many domains, such as business, science and technology. Cubans often

need English to communicate with people of the Outer and Expanding Circles, such

as in business negotiations with China. In such situations, issues of intelligibility,

comprehensibility and interpretability are more significant than the ‘colonial

construct’ of native speaker (L. E. Smith & Christopher, 2001).



Culture and language

With the rapid global increase in the numbers of people speaking English and

the diversity of English spoken worldwide, intelligibility in intercultural exchanges

has become more significant.

It is unnecessary for every user of English to be intelligible to every other

user of English. Our speech and writing in English need to be intelligible to

those with whom we wish to communicate in English. (L. E. Smith &

Nelson, 2007, p.429)

This quote emphasises the importance of being understood by the people with

whom we need to communicate, which in turn demands an appreciation of the link

between language and culture (W. Baker, 2009) and being culturally competent in

different speech communities. (Reigle, 2011). Kuo (2006, p.219) claims that what is

needed in teaching English is to “raise consciousness of intercultural awareness, such

as being aware of and sensitive to the fact that people from different cultural

backgrounds tend to express politeness, gratitude and condolences in overtly

different ways”. Ultimately all aspects of culture are relevant when learning another

language, including social structure, status, values and taboos.

Learners of English as a global language are not learning to join a single

language community but are “shuttling between communities” (Canagarajah, 2005a,

p.xxvi), between the local and the global. Rather than focusing on Inner Circle

norms, Canagarajah asserts convincingly that the focus should be on multilingual and

multicultural practices and on negotiation and communication strategies

(Canagarajah, 2005b). A ‘transnational approach’ is needed which looks beyond



national boundaries and recognises language as linguistic practices which extend

around the world, “across different cultural contexts” (Risager, 2010, p.12)

Risager (2006, 2007) argues that a conception of English is needed which

accepts that language is not the property of one culture or community and that

language is never culturally neutral. As a global language, English can take on

different cultural meanings, or “linguacultures”, depending on the user and the

context and “the link between language and culture is created in every new

communicative event” (Risager, 2006, p.185). Culture can be viewed, according to

Kramsch (1998), as a discourse which is dynamic, complex and negotiated, and one

of many possible means of interpreting meaning and understanding in international,

intercultural interactions. The cultural meaning of English language use varies

greatly depending on the users and on the context of use (W. Baker, 2009).

More important than whether or not the English language teacher is a ‘native

speaker’, or the standard of English used, is how the language is taught, the guiding

pedagogy, and whether the learner is able to communicate intelligibly with the target

audience. Understanding English in international contexts can be regarded as

depending on three factors: intelligibility, which involves recognition of the word or

utterance; comprehensibility, which involves understanding the literal meaning of the

word or utterance; and interpretability, which involves understanding the meaning of

the word or utterance in a given socio-cultural context (L. E. Smith & Nelson, 2007).

Perhaps surprisingly, research by Smith and Rafiqzad (1983) into the intelligibility of

Inner Circle and Outer and Expanding Circle speakers found that ‘native speakers’

were always among the least intelligible speakers to educated listeners from the

Outer and Expanding Circles; a result that was replicated later by Smith (1988).



Kachru and Nelson (2001, p.22) claim that “the same may be said for inner circle vis

à vis outer circle speakers at the levels of comprehensibility and interpretability as

well”. In this regard, being labelled a native speaker may be “of no particular a priori

significance” in terms of being able to communicate successfully in international

contexts with L2 users (Kachru & Nelson, 1996, p.79).

Adapting English language teaching to the local context

Recognition that ELT should be adapted to the local context and

communicative needs has been prominent in TESOL discourse for many years

(Holliday & Cooke, 1982; Prabhu, 1990). There is increasing agreement that no

single teaching method will suit every teaching situation, and TESOL has been

described as being in a post-method era (Kumaravadivelu, 1994). In this era, the

focus of TESOL has moved from searching for the perfect method, to exploring the

characteristics of effective teachers, and encouraging teachers to develop their own

eclectic teaching strategies through reflection and action research (Richards, 2002).

‘Principled pragmatism’ (Widdowson, 1990), a feature of the post-method condition,

focuses on how classroom learning can be shaped and managed by teachers as a

result of informed teaching and critical appraisal; and through their own sense of

‘plausibility’ (Prabhu, 1990), which derives from their own experience as learners

and teachers, through professional education, and from peer collaboration

(Kumaravadivelu, 1994, p.31).

An ‘approach’ to second language teaching and learning refers to theories

about the nature of language and language learning and is the source of the principles

which are the basis for a particular teaching ‘method’ (Anthony, 1963). A number of

different methods may be informed by the same approach. Methods may be viewed

as a link between theories and classroom practices, through design of instructional



systems and procedures that encompass techniques and behaviours for teaching a

language (Richards & Rodgers, 2001). One of the strongest criticisms of ‘methods’

was that they were typically “top-down” and “guided by a one-size-fits-all, cookie-

cutter approach that assumes a common clientele with common goals”

(Kumaravadivelu, 2003, p.28). Prabhu (1990) persuasively argued that searching for

a best method is futile and that teachers need to understand how their teaching leads

to learning, and develop confidence in their own pedagogical credibility. Rather than

seeking an alternative method, Kumaravadivelu (2003, p.541) proposes that what is

needed is an alternative to method., a view supported by many, including Allwright

(1991) and Brown (2002) who provocatively declared that method is dead. In the

post-method condition, the onus is on teachers to use a context-sensitive pedagogy

which respects “local linguistic, social, cultural, and political particularities”; and

encourages teachers to theorise from their own practice and “practise what they

theorize” (Kumaravadivelu, 2006, p.69). Greater significance is now given to context

and contextualisation when teaching English as a global language for intercultural

and international communication.

Conxtextualisation

Speakers need to have a context to be able to understand each other and

interpret conversational signs and cues. These “contextualization cues” in a spoken

exchange indicate “what can be understood rather than explicitly conveyed and how

interpersonal relations and social identities are to be managed” (Gumperz, 1996,

p.396). Pragmatic competence requires learners of English as a global language to

understand meanings of utterances in different contexts and to make appropriate

choices of language in different sociocultural situations; and the study of pragmatics



provides insights into sources of misunderstandings in intercultural exchanges

(Roberts, 2005, p.123)

Contextualisation of ELTE in Cuba has benefitted from the recent development

of a Cuban coursebook for preparing English language teachers. “Integrated English

Practice 1: An elementary-lower intermediate course-book for undergraduate

English teacher education in Cuba” (Enriquez O'Farrill, et al., 2010), contextualises

the teaching of different language forms and functions using themes, locations and

contexts familiar to Cuban pre-service teachers. As well as featuring Cuban national

heroes such as Jose Martí and Ché Guevara and local heroes such as Rosa Antich de

Léon, an outstanding Cuban ELT educator, it features international personalities as

diverse as Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Ghandi, Martin Luther King, Oscar Wilde

and John Lennon. Teacher educators also make use of a diverse range of course

books, videos and tapes to bring a transnational, intercultural focus to ELTE, and

enhance pragmatic competence in pre-service teachers.

In the current post-method era, teacher educators are expected to reflect on

their own teaching practices and make principled choices about what they need to do

to meet the needs of their students. The focus in ELTE has moved to finding ways to

adapt pedagogy to local contexts, with greater importance being given to the

relationship between pedagogy and professional identity.

Pedagogy of teacher education

Pedagogy includes both the theory and practice of teaching (Simon, 1983); and

I use it in its broadest sense to encompass the act of teaching, together with “the

theories, beliefs, policies and controversies that inform and shape it” (Alexander,

2008, p.13). Teacher education, which includes both teaching about teaching and



teaching about learning, is increasingly valued as an object of academic research

(Korthagen, Loughran, & Russell, 2006, p.1020). The impetus for such research

comes in part from the perception that “the transfer from theory to practice in schools

is often meagre and teacher education practices are often counterproductive to

teacher learning” (Wideen, Mayer-Smith, & Moon, 1998, p.167); and also that pre-

service teachers need to learn to draw on their understanding of relevant theory when

coping with the unpredictable and challenging demands of everyday teaching

(Korthagen, et al., 2006, p.1021). Teacher education should be an educative

experience, rather than merely a training program where pre-service teachers learn

tips, tricks and activities that work (Appleton, 2002). The goal of teacher education

should not just be to tell pre-service teachers how to teach, but to give them the

knowledge and skills to reason for themselves and “make explicit their own needs

and concerns for teaching” (Nilsson, 2008, p.105)

My understanding of the pedagogy of ELTE in Cuba is framed against the

background of pedagogy in Cuba since 1959. Cuban revolutionaries in the 20th

century were strongly influenced by the writings of José Martí, a 19th century

educator and leader of the Cuban independence movement who fought against the

Spanish colonisers and wrote “To educate is to give man the keys to the world,

which are independence and love, and to give him strength to journey on his own,

light of step, a spontaneous and free being” (Martí, 1953, vol.1, p.1965). Martí

believed that education was a force for liberation and that “it was only with the

opportunities provided by education that people could realise their full human

potential” (Boughton, 2010, p.63). Fidel Castro and Ché Guevara understood that

literacy and education were necessary for personal empowerment and liberation, and

the Cuban example, beginning with the mass adult literacy campaign of 1961,



became an inspiration for many others, including Paulo Freire (2000) in Brazil and

the pedagogy of the oppressed.

The integrated collective approach to education in Cuba, involving family,

school and the broad community as partners in the process of raising committed

young communists, was evident throughout the former communist world, and known

in Russian as ‘vospitanije’ (upbringing) (Godon, Juceviciene, & Kodelja, 2004,

p.562). The aim was, and remains, for Cuban students to become conscious, critical

participants in education with socialist values and attitudes (Griffiths, 2009, p.49).

The Cuban model stresses values such as collectivism, cooperation and moral

motivation, and calls for participation in defending and developing the revolution as

well as international solidarity (Lutjens, 2000; Turner Martí, 2008). The present

structure of Cuban education bears many hallmarks of the Soviet system that existed

in all parts of the Soviet Union and eastern bloc countries such as Poland (Godon, et

al., 2004): specifically, strong, centralised control, national curricula, scientific

research method, and five year professional degrees. However, Cuba, particularly

following the ‘rectification campaign’ of the mid 1980s, took what it admired from

the Soviet model and developed its own distinctive pedagogy aligned with Guevara’s

vision of “The new human being” (“El hombre Nuevo”) and imbued with socialist

values, moral motivation and commitment to the revolutionary cause (Holst, 2009,

p.166; Turner Martí, 2008).

The ‘rectification campaign’ that began in 1986 (Malott, 2007, p.11) involved

criticism of Soviet-influenced authoritarian classrooms and rejection of uncritical

transmission of slogans and values. It encouraged an increased emphasis on

participatory learning and creative teaching methods (Griffiths & Williams, 2009;



Lutjens, 2000). The pedagogy of Cuban higher education and universities in

particular, is oriented to meeting Cuba’s economic and social needs; to be immersed

in the daily life of the nation; to avoid dogmatic thinking and to derive theory from

practice (Turner Martí, 2002, p.153). At the heart of this educational endeavour is

‘the pedagogy of tenderness’.

‘Pedagogy of tenderness’ and teacher education

The ‘pedagogy of tenderness’ (‘la pedagogía de la ternura’), a term used by

Turner Martí and Pita Cespedes (2001), conceives of learners as active partners in

the learning process, acquiring knowledge in a caring culture through trusting,

friendly relationships. Similar to Freire’s ‘pedagogy of the oppressed’ (Freire, 2000),

it opposes the “banking concept of education”, which conceives of learners as

passive empty vessels to be filled with knowledge imparted by the teacher (Freire,

2000, Ch.2). Freire (2008, p.210) believed that:

Our relationship with learners demands that we respect them and demands

equally that we be aware of the concrete conditions of their world, the

conditions that shape them… without this, we have no access to the way

they think, so only with great difficulty can we perceive what and how they

know.

The “pedagogy of tenderness” (Turner Martí & Pita Cespedes, 2001) accords

with Freire’s (2008, p.210) belief that teachers should get to know and treat each of

their students as individuals. Among pedagogical changes to improve educational

quality, made during the ‘rectification campaign’, was a reduction in the student to

teacher ratio with the “hopes that teachers will know each and every student, their

needs, and the material and social conditions of their home lives” (Lutjens, 2007,



p.185). English language class sizes in pedagogical universities were reduced to less

than 15.

Essentially the ‘pedagogy of tenderness’ considers that significant learning

requires significant relationships; and that the affective domain is as important as the

cognitive in the success of education (Turner Martí & Pita Cespedes, 2001). The

‘pedagogy of tenderness’ emphasises the role of the family and community as

partners in each student’s education. It has two main components: educating and

teaching with affection and sensitivity; and focusing on the construction and re-

construction of the learner’s self-esteem as the first step towards consciousness-

raising and transformational action (Fernández Fernández, 2009). The value placed

on caring relationships in teacher education is emphasised by Loughran (2006, p.87)

who states that both the cognitive and affective domains are important in teacher

education but that in Western teacher education the former “too often dominates” at

the expense of the latter. The pedagogy of tenderness is consistent with a

collaborative environment for teacher education, which is described below. The

observations presented here are borne out in my analysis of the collaborative nature;

the research-oriented ethos; and the emphasis on professional development in teacher

education in the case study (Chapters 4 and 5).

Collaboration: teaching together

Collaboration in teacher education encourages openness and reflection and

tends to counter the idea that classroom practice is a covert activity (Berry, 2007).

Loughran (2011) claims that improvements in teaching practices come about when

teacher educators and pre-service teachers collaborate with their peers, because the

shared experience provides different ways of framing and re-framing practice and



hence can provide different insights into practice. Making the tacit become explicit is

vital for “the development of knowledge, skills and expertise in practice” for teacher

educators (Loughran, 2006, p.57). Through reflection and making explicit their

knowledge of their own practices, teacher educators are more likely to be able to

harmonise their teaching intentions and actions; and, by ‘practising what they

preach’, can avoid sending mixed messages to pre-service teachers (Berry, 2007).

Dinkelman (2011) describes the benefits that he gains from participating with

peers in collaborative inquiry into his own teacher education practices as part of a

‘community of practice’ (Wenger, 1998). He comments that initiative and energy are

needed to establish and maintain such collaboration and that in “research-intensive

universities”, in his experience, there was no tradition of collaboration in place to

welcome new teacher educators (Dinkelman, 2011, p.313). When collaboration

among peers does occur, it can contribute to reflection, personal learning and

professional development, as well as making teaching more fun (Pollard, 2005,

p.21).

Teaching is a relationship

The quality of classroom relationships is generally considered important for

excellent teaching. From a position that accords with the ‘pedagogy of tenderness’,

Loughran (1997, p.58-9) states that “The heart and soul of teaching begins with

relationships”, and that if an effective pedagogical relationship is to be maintained,

teachers and learners need to understand and respect the needs and concerns of each

other. Maintenance of such a relationship depends on various factors including

sensitivity, building trust, being honest, engagement and challenge, modelling and

reflection (Loughran, 2006). While exploring the fundamental principles for effective



teacher education programs and practices, Korthagen, Loughran and Russell (2006)

extend the importance of relationships beyond the classroom. They claim that

“Learning about teaching requires meaningful relationships between schools,

universities and student teachers” and that more emphasis should be given in teacher

education programs to cooperation between and among teacher educators at

universities, teachers in schools, and pre-service teachers (Korthagen, et al., 2006,

p.1034).

Pre-service teacher as researcher

For many years, the importance to teacher education of pre-service teachers

conducting research into their own pedagogical problems has been recognised.

Dewey (1929) noted that teachers as researchers were important for improving

knowledge about schooling and for improving teaching. Kincheloe (2003, p.39-40)

agreed that the development of good teaching in teacher education is more likely

through researching practice; however he regretted that, in general, research is not

effectively incorporated into Western teacher education programs. Furthermore,

while teacher research has long been valued in principle (Cochran-Smith & Lytle,

2009), the pressure of teaching and other commitments, has meant that “the degree to

which teacher research has been able to penetrate the life of teachers has been quite

limited” (Loughran, 2011, p.285). Participation of pre-service teachers and teachers

in ‘action research’ and classroom inquiry contributes to reflection on teaching

practices, and such reflection provides a means of becoming critical and can lead to

improvement of practice (Carr & Kemmis, 1986; Pollard, 2005). When pre-service

teachers gather and analyse data from their own teaching experiences, the learning

that results is “qualitatively different in value and meaning from when similar



assertions are passed on to them by a teacher educator” (Korthagen, et al., 2006,

p.1030). Rust suggests that when pre-service teachers develop inquiry skills and

attitudes during their preparation they are more likely to use them as teachers “to

shape practice, as designers of their own professional development” (Rust, 2009,

p.1882).

Mentoring, modelling and ongoing professional development

An important feature of teacher education is a commitment in teacher

educators and pre-service teachers to ongoing professional learning and an

expectation of career-long professional development, and mentoring can make an

important contribution (Loughran, 2006, p.170-1). Mentoring is a way of “providing

support, challenge and extension of the learning of one person through the guidance

of another who is more skilled, knowledgeable and experienced” (Pollard, 2005,

p.29). For new teacher educators and pre-service teachers to be able to confide in a

mentor requires trust that has been developed through a relationship of mutual

acceptance. Mentors can assist in many ways including by example, by coaching,

through practice-focused feedback and by providing emotional support (Loughran,

2006, p.170-1).

Several international surveys have recognised the success of teacher education

in Finland and concluded that it is partly attributable to teacher educators modelling a

range of theories and pedagogical aspects in their own practices (Tryggvason, 2009).

Experienced teacher educators should model to their students appropriate teaching

and learning approaches (Korthagen, et al., 2006, p.1036); nevertheless it is

important that new teacher educators and pre-service teachers do not merely imitate,

but develop their own identities, able to cope with unexpected situations; and adapt



their practices to learners with different learning styles, within the framework of

research-based training (Bullock, 2009; Lunenberg & Korthagen, 2009).

Induction in teacher education

“Scaffolded induction into the profession” has been identified as an important

feature of innovative teacher education programs, helping the transition of pre-

service teachers to teachers (T. Russell, McPherson, & Martin, 2001, p.37).

Similarly, the transition from teacher to teacher educator is facilitated when teacher

education programs include induction into the profession. This transition has become

the focus of an area of educational research (Bullock, 2007; Dinkelman, Margolis, &

Sikkenga, 2006b; Kosnik, 2007) which highlights the importance of institutional

support for the development of professional identity as a teacher educator, in a

collaborative environment and with continuing professional development (Swennen,

et al., 2008). New teacher educators are more likely to adapt readily to the different

expectations of their new roles if they experience appropriate induction which raises:

their awareness of the occupational group they are joining and the available

research on its knowledge, skills and identities, knowledge of how the pre-

service programmes in which they teach relate to the wider university and to

policy contexts, and support in developing scholarship and/or research

activities that have congruence with their work and with the values and

senses of personal mission that underpin it (Murray, Czerniawski, & Barber,

2011, p.275)

Such scaffolding and collaboration within the university helps new teacher

educators develop their professional identity and feel recognised and accepted by

their peers. The pedagogy of teacher education in Cuba will be explored by focusing



initially on the approach used to prepare specialist English language teachers, and

later, on the professional identity of teacher educators involved in English language

teacher education.

Approach to English language teaching in Cuba

Prior to the revolution, under US influence, ELT in Cuba was “swayed by the

ideas of American structuralism and behaviouralism” (Irizar Valdes & Chiappy

Jhones, 1991, p.57). After the revolution, attempts were made to create a national

ELT program built around Cuban revolutionary themes, however the project was

hampered by a lack of suitable language resources (Irizar Valdes & Chiappy Jhones,

1991, p.58). During the sixties, a search for alternative methodologies resulted in

adoption of audio-lingual and audiovisual methods. Audio-lingualism was criticised

for focusing excessively on the linguistic structures of the target language and was

replaced in the 1970s by a range of approaches and methods including, eventually,

Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). CLT, also known as the communicative

approach, has been characterised as focusing on meaningful communication in

realistic or ‘authentic’ situations which have relevance to the participants and where

comprehension is at least as important as linguistic accuracy (Littlewood, 1981;

Spada, 2007).

Before CLT was introduced in Cuban English language teaching, “despite the

considerable investment in foreign language education, university graduates’

knowledge of English was generally more formal than communicative” (Martin,

2007, p. 552). This formal focus emphasised grammatical accuracy more than

creating meaning in interpersonal communicative tasks. The aim of CLT is to

develop language learners’ ‘communicative competence’, which comprises



grammatical (including vocabulary, phonology etc.), sociolinguistic (including

politeness and formality), pragmatic (including appropriateness of language use in

social settings), discourse (including rules of cohesion, rules of conversation etc.)

and strategic (including use of different strategies, such as circumlocution, to achieve

communicative goals) skills (Bagaric & Mihaljevic Djigunovic, 2007, p.97-99;

Canale & Swain, 1980; Reigle, 2011).

The need for a communicative approach to foreign language teaching in Cuba

was identified during the 1980s and early 1990s and it was introduced in English for

Specific Purposes (ESP) courses to facilitate international communication for

researchers in fields such as medicine, engineering, science and technology; to

improve training for overseas aid missions (viz. teachers and doctors); and to train

workers for the rapidly growing tourism industry following the collapse of the Soviet

Union (Irizar, 2001, p.27; Maclean, Betancourt, & Hunter, 2000).

Research has shown that, using CLT, with its focus on meaning-making,

language learners can achieve relatively high standards of comprehension ability and

fluency in speaking, however they may also experience difficulties with accuracy,

particularly in terms of morphology and syntax (Lightbown, Spada, Ranta, & Rand,

2006). As a result, attention has been given to the importance of language learners

‘noticing’ their errors and also drawing their attention to language form through

‘form-focused instruction’ (Corder, 1981; Schmidt, 2001). Studies of the

effectiveness of different forms of proactive and reactive ‘form-focused instruction’

have led to exploration of the effects of different types of corrective feedback (CF),

or error correction. I briefly introduce corrective feedback here because case

members identified it as an important feature of their pedagogy. By way of example,



feedback can be given as ‘recasts’, where the teacher immediately provides the

correct form of utterance, without explicitly stating what the mistake was; or

‘prompts’, whereby the teacher pushes the learner to self-correct. From the large

body of research into CF (for example Lyster, 1998; Lyster & Ranta, 2009; J. Russell

& Spada, 2006), it is concluded that overall, CF is beneficial in second language

acquisition; however the most appropriate form of CF, such as prompting or re-

casting, depends on a number of variables, including the language proficiency of the

learner (Ammar & Spada, 2006).

Implementing Communicative Language Teaching in Cuba

Adrienne Hunter and Neil Naimann from Canada and Marjorie Moore from the

USA, among others, worked with Cuban foreign language academics to introduce

CLT into Cuba from the mid 1980s (Irizar Valdes & Chiappy Jhones, 1991). The

change from earlier ELT pedagogy, including Grammar Translation, the Direct

Method and the Audio-Lingual Method, faced challenges, not the least of which was

the Cuban teachers’ level of oral English language skills. Cubans who were involved

in introducing CLT, Irizar Valdes and Chiappy Jhones (1991), recalled that:

In a country where teachers are not native speakers, who have few

opportunities for systematic contact with natural and authentic language, it

takes time, resources and great effort to improve teachers’ abilities in

English (p.61)

The innovative communicative approach was also criticised on ideological

grounds. Canadian linguist Adrienne Hunter, who worked with Cuban teachers for

decades from the 1970s, recalled that course books imported from the UK and USA

to teach CLT were at odds with Cuban cultural values.



The communicative approach was attacked on the basis of more than its

pedagogical efficacy … some of the packaged English courses imported

from Great Britain and the United States were being strongly criticized

because they depicted social settings, relationships and events that were

considered "bourgeois." (Hunter, 1988, p.304-305)

Hunter (1988) concluded from her experiences that teachers working in

developing countries must ensure that ELT materials do not clash with the social

context and prevailing political environment. These conclusions are of particular

relevance in the 21st century as the need is appreciated for ELT pedagogy to be

appropriate to the local political, cultural and linguistic environment (Canagarajah,

2005b; Rubdy, 2009).

Criticism of Communicative Language Teaching

CLT remains influential and popular in global TESOL; however, changing

notions of the ownership of English have led to extensive criticism of the approach.

Inevitably, any educational program, including ELT, is a political activity which,

whether stated or not, assigns priorities to values and cultural perspectives (Akbari,

2008a, 2008b). Short TESOL courses developed in the USA and UK (e.g. CELTA),

have been critiqued for perpetuating a notion that the same ELT methods can be used

in any location in the world, that “one size fits all” (Gray, 2002). As such TESOL

courses use a communicative approach, CLT has been condemned by association, by

linguists such as Bax (2003, p.284) who considers that the Communicative Approach

should be replaced by a more eclectic Context Approach in which “context will be

the very first thing to be taken into account before any methodological or language

system decisions are taken”.



CLT is frequently associated with ‘learner-centred’ methods that emphasise

small-group discussions and minimise the teacher’s classroom role. A backlash to

CLT has been reported from educators in many different places, including India,

South Africa, Pakistan, South Korea, China, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam

(Kumaravadivelu, 2006; Phan Le Ha, 2008), where such learner-centred methods

have clashed with traditional expectations of the teacher’s role, with the constraints

of high-stakes examinations, and large class sizes. Several researchers claim that,

with its emphasis on pair-work and small group work rather than whole class

teaching, CLT is better suited to the individualism of Western capitalist culture than

to cultures, such as communist Vietnam, that place greater value on community and

collectivism, (Kramsch & Sullivan, 1996). In China, CLT has been critiqued for

being unsuited to situations where passing high-stakes examinations is vitally

important for language learners’ future careers, where teachers are traditionally

respected as a source of knowledge, and where having fun and playing games is not

regarded as an effective use of limited time (Tsui & Tollefson, 2008).

Despite criticism of CLT on many grounds, it can be argued that the fault is not

with the approach but with how it has been implemented and sometimes

misconstrued. Holliday argues that CLT can be culture-sensitive if the language

teacher engages with the local context and community and brings the local culture

into the classroom (Holliday, 1994, p.168). Lopez Corria (1999) showed that in

Cuba, CLT can be adapted to the needs of learners and be contextualised, so that

learners feel reflected in the teaching resources and are engaged in socially relevant

activities which they enjoy. She reported on a Cuban study in which the adoption of

communicative teaching strategies was found to improve dramatically the desire of

student nurses to learn English at the School of Nursing in Holguin. Her results



showed that ELT was more effective when it was communicative and engaging; and

when resources were contextualised and relevant to learner’s needs and learning

styles.

There is now general acceptance that ELT needs to be contextualised to suit the

local socio-cultural environment and that no single teaching method will suit every

situation. Savignon states that in the early 21st century:

It would be inappropriate to speak of CLT as a teaching ‘method’ in any

sense of that term as it was used in the 20th century. Rather, CLT is an

approach that understands language to be inseparable from individual

identity and social behaviour. (Savignon, 2007, p.217)

In order to understand the pedagogy of English language teacher educators, it

is necessary to appreciate the part that identity plays in pedagogy and understand the

complex and changing nature of the professional identity of teacher educators.

Teacher educator identity

Taking account of the “social turn” in the field of language education (Block,

2003) and views of leading sociocultural researchers (Gee, 2001; Norton, 2006), I

regard the identity of a Cuban teacher educator as including what it is to be a teacher

educator, and what it means to be recognised as a teacher educator in Cuba. The

identities of teacher educators “share the same features of any other sort of identity.

They are multiple, fluid, always developing, shaped by a broad range of socio-

cultural power relationships, strongly influenced by any number of relevant contexts,

and relational” (Dinkelman, 2011, p.309). Understanding the identity of the teacher

educators in this case study is relevant because effective teaching depends not just on

methods and techniques that work, but also on the personal beliefs, values and



mission of the individual educator (Korthagen, 2004). A pedagogy of teacher

education therefore depends on the identity of the teacher educator and how it “is

entwined with the how and why of teaching about teaching” (Loughran, 2011,

p.290). Teacher educators may be as important to what pre-service teachers learn

during their university training as the content of the curriculum (Furlong, Barton,

Miles, Whiting, & Whitty, 2000).

Research into teacher educators highlights that their professional identity

develops and changes over time, and is influenced not just by their academic

environment, but also by their earlier experiences as foreign language learners and as

language teachers (Murray, et al., 2011). Increasing attention has been given to the

significance of the professional identity and identity formation of language teachers

(Beijaard, Meijer, & Verloop, 2004). For a long time, language teachers were seen

by many researchers as technicians who needed merely to apply the right

methodology in order for language learners to acquire the target language (Varghese,

Morgan, Johnston, & Johnson, 2005). This view was found to be inadequate as

classroom-based research shows classrooms to be complex sites, and that the identity

of teachers and their personal beliefs, attitudes and values are critical to language

teaching outcomes (Woods, 1996). It is clear that:

… in order to understand language teaching and learning we need to

understand teachers; and in order to understand teachers, we need to have a

clearer sense of who they are: the professional, cultural, political, and

individual identities which they claim or which are assigned to them

(Varghese, et al., 2005, p.100)



As mentioned earlier, teacher educators “remain an under-researched and

poorly understood occupational group” (Murray & Kosnik, 2011, p.243). Dinkelman

(2011) argues that the success of teacher education in the next decade will depend

largely on:

the ‘state of the hearts and minds’ of teacher educators, the webs of

recognition that shape professional identity, and the conditions that nurture

and sustain commitment to powerful teacher education (p.322).

His claim that effective teacher education depends on the beliefs and identity of

teacher educators is supported by recent research which focused attention on the

work and identities of teacher educators from diverse countries including Australia,

the UK, Norway, Pakistan, Canada and the USA (Murray & Kosnik, 2011). I

examine aspects of the identity of teacher educators because of their relevance to the

data collected in Cuba, in particular the development of professional identity;

communities of practice; and imagined communities.

Development of a teacher educator’s identity

The development of a teacher educator’s identity is a gradual process

(Dinkelman, et al., 2006b); and becoming a teacher educator results from continual

“learning about teaching through sustained inquiry into practice” (Ritter, 2009, p.59).

Professional identity is “formed and re-formed constantly over the course of a career

and mediated by a complex interplay of the personal, professional and political

dimensions” (Mockler, 2011, p.518). Mockler (2011) describes the professional

identity of teachers, however I adopt her model to describe the professional identity

of teacher educators and use it to relate the work, pedagogical practices and identity

of teacher educators to three domains: their personal experience, professional context



and external political environment (Figure 2.1). The professional identity of the

teacher educator, what it is to be a teacher educator and be recognised as such, occurs

at the overlap of these three domains.

External political

environment

Professional context

Personal experience

Teacher educatorProfessional identity

Figure 2.1 Influences on the professional identity of teacher educators (adapted from Mockler, 2011,

fig. 1, p.521)

The personal domain of teacher educators includes their interests and beliefs,

family, race and gender as well as their own learning experiences and teachers who

influenced them. The professional domain includes the career histories of teacher

educators, groups with which they work and collaborate, and their professional

development. The external political domain includes attitudes about teacher

education that exist external to their profession, including government policy and the

way that political ideology impacts on their work (Mockler, 2011).

An important contribution to the ongoing formation of a teacher educator’s

identity is made by professional development (Malm, 2009). While such

development commences during teacher training, it is important throughout the

professional career of teacher educators (Huston & Weaver, 2008; K. E. Johnson &



Golombek, 2011). Research has confirmed a shift in approach to professional

development in teacher education from ‘top-down’ models, to models that “allow for

self-directed, collaborative, inquiry-based learning” (K. E. Johnson, 2006, p.243).

Part of the professional domain which influences the development of teacher

educators’ identity as well as their professional development includes their

participation in communities of practice with other teacher educators, and in other

communities of English language speakers.

Communities of practice of teacher educators

Drawing on the work of Gee (2001), I assert that part of the professional

identity of teacher educators depends on being recognised by the people and groups

that count: their institution and colleagues. Induction into a community of practice, a

group of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do, and learn to

do it better as they interact regularly, is essential for new teacher educators (Lave &

Wenger, 1991; Wenger, 2009).

What motivates the learning of a language is the construction of the

identities we desire and the communities we want to join in order to engage

in communication and social life (Canagarajah, 2004, p.116)

Canagarajah suggests that desired communities and the identities to which we

aspire can be significant factors in our commitment to investing in an additional

language. A recent study of an English language teacher educator’s identity in China

demonstrates that joining a community of practice can be a problematic process.

Personal investment in the language and professional competence are not enough.

New teacher educators also need to be recognised as competent by the community of

practice in which they seek to participate (Tsui, 2007; p.678). As teacher educators



take on broader roles in their institutions over time, they may participate in networks

with teacher educators from other institutions and be able to contribute to and

participate in development of a wider community of teacher educators (Swennen, et

al., 2008)

In Cuba, where opportunities to practise speaking English are limited, some

Cubans, including teacher educators, may be attracted by the idea of becoming part

of a global community of English language users, with increased access to a broad

range of information, literature and popular culture. From her research into the

experiences of migrant language learners in Canada, Norton (2001, p.164) concluded

that for many people who invest in learning another language, their community of

practice is one of the imagination; and that it is “a desired community that offers

possibilities for an enhanced range of identity options in the future”.

Imagined communities of teacher educators

Ryan (2006) explored the reasons why so many people worldwide invest in

learning English as a foreign language. He suggests that it is the learner’s sense of

membership of an imagined global community and of themselves as L2 users of the

language that are the bases of their commitment – as opposed to any desire to

integrate with a target community of English speakers. Pavlenko and Norton (2007)

discuss membership of imagined communities in terms of various influences on

identity - postcolonial, global and multilingual - that have relevance to English

language. They assert that “postcolonial nations and subjects are forced to take a

stance with regard to the role that English as a global language will play in their

future” (Pavlenko & Norton, 2007; p. 671).



While some countries and individuals renounce English as the language of

colonialism, others take a neutral stance and yet others choose to appropriate and

indigenise English, constructing national identities through the use of English.

Distinguished Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe argues that, although English was

forced upon his country, it is the language which made it possible for Africans to talk

to each other, and that Africans are free to adapt and indigenise the language to suit

themselves (Pavlenko & Norton, 2007; p.671-2).

Let no one be fooled by the fact that we may write in English for we intend

to do unheard of things with it. (Achebe, 1988, p.50)

In fact, appropriation and indigenisation of English has occurred in many

postcolonial contexts, from India to the Caribbean (Kachru, 1992b; Pavlenko &

Norton, 2007). Critical studies of the literature of the Anglophone Caribbean, which

includes the work of two Nobel prize winners for literature (Derek Walcott from St.

Lucia in 1991 and V.S. Naipaul from Trinidad in 2001), are incorporated into

national English language teacher training courses in Cuba. I explore how national

identity is related to an imagined community and the relevance of national identity to

this study of Cuban teacher educators.

Teacher educators and national identity

The concept of national identity depends on membership of an imagined

community of individuals who share a sense of connectedness and certain cultural

attributes, usually including language (Anderson, 1991). The concept has been

critiqued for implying that people of a specific nationality necessarily share common

ideas, traits, and moral values and for contributing to cultural and racial stereotyping



(Holliday, 2005; Kumaravadivelu, 2008). However, a more nuanced understanding is

that it can be a form of identity which involves no judgement about the personal

characteristics of individuals, but which can give strength and comfort to individuals

under specific circumstances. Phan Le Ha (2008) found in her study of the identity of

Western-trained Vietnamese teachers of English that Western views, which have

dominated the discourse of national identity for 20 years (L. Farrell, 2000; Hall,

1997a, 1997b), have neglected non-Western perspectives. She found that a sense of

belonging, connectedness and continuity with Vietnamese culture was important to

the teachers in her study, who studied English in Australia.

This very sense of national and cultural identity serves as a platform for all

other identities of the Western-trained Vietnamese teachers of English to be

constructed, negotiated and reconstituted. (Phan Le Ha, 2008, p.14)

Phan Le Ha (2008) found that Western discourses of national identity were

insufficient to understand national identity and “it is necessary to draw on multiple

theories to seek a better understanding” (Phan Le Ha, 2008, p.13). Phan Le Ha

claims that although national identity is “something imagined, something invented,

something constructed”, under dire global political, social and economic

circumstances, such as ‘9/11’ in the USA, this identity may come to the fore and

become tangible and significant, Her claim has resonance in Cuba, where the

persistence of external threats to Cuban sovereignty, whether real or perceived, and

their ongoing daily struggle, increases the significance of national identity to Cuban

teacher educators and pre-service teachers.

During times of hostility, when national identity assumes greater significance,

the culture and language of the ‘enemy’ is generally vilified, and in some countries



made illegal. Pavlenko describes how anti-German sentiment in the USA caused the

German language to be “practically legislated out of existence” from 1917 to 1922

(Pavlenko, 2003b, p.318). Given the hostility demonstrated by the USA against Cuba

since 1959, it is all the more remarkable that Cuba, in its national interest, actively

promotes English language teaching.

Summary and Implications

English language is not just tolerated in Cuba, it is promoted actively and

lessons are freely available throughout schools, colleges, universities, adult education

and through national television. Does this demonstrate the global power and

influence of the North, the former colonial powers; or does it signify postcolonial

agency and resistance? This chapter shows how English language has been used in

many countries to resist the hegemony of former colonial powers in a postcolonial

context. However, the dichotomy between coloniser and colonised is not a simple

one. During and following colonisation, the colonised can be both attracted and

repelled by the culture of the coloniser and may adopt some aspects of the culture

and language of the coloniser for their own purposes. This simultaneous attraction

and repulsion to the language and culture of the former colonists and resultant

cultural mixing can be understood as hybridity (Andreotti, 2011).

Postcolonial theory provides a framework for exploring English language

teacher education (ELTE) in Cuba, particularly in relation to the concepts of

representation; resistance; and hybridity. Although Cuba has forged an independent

place in world affairs since 1959, and actively used education to address many of the

problems it faced, including illiteracy, health and housing for the most disadvantaged

groups, the legacies of its colonial and neocolonial past continue to impact on Cuban



society. The continuing US trade embargo against Cuba; and calls from the USA for

‘regime change’ through the Helms-Burton Act 1996 (Solis, 1997) and

“rehabilitation” of Cuban education (Cruz-Taura, 2003), are threats to Cuba’s

sovereignty and indicative of persistent colonial attitudes. The resistance

demonstrated by Cuba for more than 50 years is all the more remarkable, given the

historical and continuing intimacy and close cultural, sporting and social ties that link

Cuba and the USA.

Critique of the literature pertinent to pedagogy of ELTE shows that pedagogy

is not just about the work of teacher educators but also about their professional

identity (Loughran, 2011). Effective teaching, whether in schools or universities,

concerns not just the environment of teaching and the practices and competencies of

teaching, but also the relationships, beliefs, ethics and identity of the educator

(Korthagen, 2004). While teacher educators remain an under-researched professional

group, recent studies have shown that their identity develops over time, as they

undergo a transition from learning English, to teaching English and eventually to

becoming an English language teacher educator in a university environment

(Dinkelman, Margolis, & Sikkenga, 2006a; Mockler, 2011). Development of the

identity of teacher educators is influenced by the external political environment, the

professional context and personal experiences (Figure 2.1). The identity of teachers

and teacher educators can be significantly influenced by the communities of practice

in which they participate; and the imagined communities with which they identify.

Studies of innovative teacher education programs show that they include a

collaborative environment (T. Russell, et al., 2001) that encourages peer

observation, mentoring and supportive relationships, and that pedagogical



improvement is likely to result from feedback and reflection that make the tacit

become explicit, and leads to harmonising of theory and practice. Professional

development is regarded as integral to the development of teacher educator identity

(Malm, 2009).

The search for a perfect method in ELT has given way, in what is termed the

post-method era, to an understanding that there is no single method that will be most

suitable for every context of language learning, and that teachers, and teacher

educators, need to draw on their own experience, knowledge and ‘plausibility’ to

determine how best to teach English in communicative ways that use and respect the

local culture, language needs and socio-political environment (Kumaravadivelu,

2006). As English language is used globally for international communication, it is

understood that a transnational approach is needed in which ELT is contextualised in

the local culture and environment while also acknowledging the diverse

linguacultures associated with the language (Risager, 2010). Given the current global

status of English as an international language, ELT needs to increase awareness of

the plurality of the language around the world, emphasise development of

intercultural intelligibility, and appreciate the importance of context-dependent

pragmatic skills (L. E. Smith & Nelson, 2007).

The analysis utilised in this thesis is based on the concepts which I have drawn

from the literature reviewed in this chapter. I will use postcolonial theory to focus

attention on the ways that Cuban teacher educators resist the colonial representations

of Cuba and its people, and show how they demonstrate hybridity in relation to

dominant Western culture. The international trend in TESOL towards a post-method

concept of teaching English language will be considered when describing and



analysing the pedagogy used in ELTE. In this pedagogical environment, it is

expected that Cuban teacher educators will contextualise language teaching in ways

that resist hegemonic Western culture and discourse, and in so doing, respect and

incorporate Cuban culture, values and themes The strategies preferred by teacher

educators to teach English speaking are expected to incorporate the communicative

approach and engage language learners by using diverse task-based activities that are

relevant and engaging.

An understanding that teacher educator identity is central to the pedagogy of

ELTE will inform an exploration of the identity of six Cuban teacher educators who

prepare specialist English language teachers. Using intrinsic case study research

design, described in the following chapter, answers will be sought for the three

research questions in this study (p. 23). Analysis and discussion of the data collected

in this study will be integrated and presented in relation to research questions 1, 2

and 3 in chapters 4, 5 and 6 respectively.


Chapter 3: Research Design 73

Chapter 3: Research Design

In this chapter I describe the research design adopted to achieve the goals

stated in Chapter 1:

to understand the pedagogical background and experiences of a group of

university English language teacher educators in Cuba; and

to learn what teaching strategies they consider to be effective, practical and

culturally appropriate, for teaching English speaking skills to Cuban pre-

service teachers.

The first section outlines the theoretical framework and methodology that I

have adopted, and the research design. In the second section I describe the methods

used and the stages and phases of the project. The third section provides biographical

notes on the participants who comprise the case in this case study; and the fourth

section describes the instruments that were used for data collection. In the fifth

section I outline the procedures followed and the timeline for each stage and phase of

the research project. Data analysis is described in the sixth section; and in the last

section I discuss the ethical considerations of the research, the potential risks, and the

trustworthiness and reliability of the results.

Methodology and Research Design

Theoretical framework

This research focuses on the particularity of a group of teacher educators at the

largest teacher training university in Cuba and seeks, through their voices, to

understand their experiences, knowledge and skills; and their perspectives on


74 Chapter 3: Research Design

preparing specialist English language teachers in Cuba. Interpretivist ontology is

chosen because the reality of English language teacher education is assumed to be

revealed by the group of six teacher educators who participate in the research (Figure

3.1).

Figure 3.1 Theoretical framework

The interpretive stance which is frequently associated with a case study is that

of social constructivism (Denzin & Lincoln, 1994). This research adopts a

constructivist epistemology because knowledge and truth are assumed to be socially-

constructed rather than independent of the values and beliefs of the participants

(Creswell, 2008). Constructivist epistemology is appropriate here because the

participants’ views, the context in which they express their views and their personal

experiences as language learners, teachers and teacher educators are the essential

concerns of this study. A sociocultural perspective is chosen for analysing the

research data because it is assumed that

“How an individual learns something, what is learned, and how it is used

will depend on the sum of the individual’s prior experiences, the

sociocultural contexts in which the learning takes place, and what the

Epistemology:

constructivism

Paradigm:

postcolonialism

Ontology: interpretivism



individual wants, needs and/or is expected to do with that knowledge” (K. E.

Johnson, 2009, p.1-2)

Postcolonial theory provides the theoretical lens I choose, through which to

interrogate the themes of pedagogy, identity and context in relation to ELTE in Cuba.

The perspectives flowing from this theory are appropriate given Cuba’s long history

of colonial and neocolonial oppression, under the domination firstly of Spain and

later the USA.

Methodology

Qualitative research and case study design are used because my intention is to

gather and analyse information-rich data (Figure 3.2).

Figure 3.2. Methodology and research design

Given my research goals and the postcolonial paradigm adopted, this

methodology is appropriate for exploring and foregrounding the views of the

participants in relation to English language teacher education (ELTE). The

methodology gives primacy to the voices of the participants and uses an intrinsic

case study design (Stake, 1995), bound by place and time. In an intrinsic case study,

a researcher examines the case for its own sake. The study gathered and analysed

Method: naturalistic

inquiry

Research design: intrinsic case

study

Methodology:

qualitative research



information-rich data from the six case members from which to identify themes and

issues in relation to the pedagogy of ELTE in the Cuban context; and to gain an

understanding of their professional identities as teacher educators.

Research Design

The research design adopted is a descriptive, intrinsic case study, which

explores the views and experiences of the six case members. The intrinsic value of

the case will be the focus rather than any specific issue, problem, hypothesis or

theory (Stake, 1995, p.3). Given the constructivist epistemological assumptions, and

the need to obtain thick, rich data, it is appropriate to use qualitative research

methodology and naturalistic enquiry to explore the particularity and complexity of

this case.

Data was gathered in the form of interview records with the six teacher

educators (audio-recording using a digital voice recorder and later digital

transcription), records of one Focus Group (audio-recording and later transcription)

and evaluation feedback forms (written). A researcher diary was maintained to keep

track of the progress of the project.

The research design is constrained by the practicalities and logistics of

undertaking research as an Australian on a two months student visa in Cuba during

2011. The research site chosen was the Faculty of Foreign Languages, University of

Pedagogical Sciences, Marianao, Havana, in Cuba (la Facultad de Lenguas

Extranjeras, Universidad de Ciencias Pedagogicas ‘Enrique Jose Varona’ or FLEX,

UCPEJV) because this is the largest teacher training institution in Cuba and because

of professional links between Dr Alejandro Torres Saavedra, the Vice Dean of the



Faculty, and Associate Professor Anne Hickling-Hudson of the Queensland

University of Technology.

Significant gatekeepers for this study at UCPEJV are Dr Alejandro Torres

Saavedra, Vice Dean and Dr Isora Enriquez O’Farrill, Dean of the Faculty of Foreign

Languages; and Dr Mercedes Mora Carnet, Director of International Relations, at El

Varona. The University and Faculty of Foreign Languages were generous and

helpful in facilitating this research project, access to case members, and participation

in the general life of the University, such as allowing me to participate with staff and

pre-service teachers at a dawn May Day march at the Plaza de la Revolucion in

Havana.

Methods

This study used naturalistic enquiry methods and was conducted in three stages

(Figure 3.3). Stage 1 consisted of planning and preparation at QUT; Stage 2

consisted of fieldwork and data collection and transcription in Cuba; and Stage 3

following return to QUT involved checking of data transcription, analysis and

discussion, thesis preparation, oral presentation to examiners, thesis completion and

publication.

Stage 1 involved a pilot project, to inform the fieldwork in Cuba, in which

open-question interview techniques were trialled in Brisbane with three volunteers

who are experienced TESOL teachers (two from China and one from Australia); and

teaching strategies for English oral skills were discussed with experienced Australian

TESOL teachers. This stage also included preparation of a research proposal and

literature review; a Confirmation of Candidature seminar; and formal ethical research

approval from the Queensland University of Technology.



Figure 3.3. Stages of research

Stage 2, the fieldwork and data collection in Cuba, was undertaken in three

phases (Figure 3.4), illustrated in Appendix A:

1. The first phase involved interviews with six case members:

a. meeting and selecting the six case members;

b. briefing the case members on the research goals and methods, ethics,

confidentiality, and obtaining signed standard QUT informed consent forms;

c. semi-structured interviews with the six participants to explore their personal

narratives, language learning experiences, professional identities, pedagogy

and the influence of the Cuban context; and

Stage 1 (Australia)

literature review, research proposal, Confirmation of Candidature, pilot study

Stage 2 (Cuba)

Data collection – recorded interviews, collaborative sharing workshops, recorded focus group, transcription, written evaluation forms

Stage 3 (Australia)

Data coding, analysis, discussion, conclusions, thesis



d. transcription of audio interview recordings, checking accuracy with case

members, and initial inductive analysis to explore for emergent emic issues,

themes and subthemes.

2. The second phase involved informal, collaborative teaching workshops focusing

on teaching of English speaking skills:

a. The six case members and fourteen other language teacher educators (all but

one from UCPJEV and all but one lecturing to specialist English language

pre-service teachers), were invited to participate in a series of nine

workshops;

b. Current issues and topical themes in international TESOL were introduced

and discussed by guest Cuban speakers and me;

c. Participants demonstrated strategies which they have found to be effective

for teaching English speaking skills, drawing on favourite activities and

personal interests or passions; and

d. Written evaluation about the workshops was provided in the form of

feedback forms after Workshop 3 and Workshop 9 (final).

3. The third phase involved a Focus Group discussion and brief individual

interviews:

a. Case members participated in a de-briefing session in the form of a Focus

Group in which they were asked to reflect on and discuss the stimulus of the

collaborative workshops;



b. transcription of audio recording, checking accuracy with case members;

c. After the Focus Group discussion, final brief individual interviews were

conducted with case members to provide an opportunity for individual

reflection, following the workshops and Focus Group; after which audio

recordings were transcribed and checked with case members.

Figure 3.4 Phases of Stage 2 - research in Cuba

Participants

Qualitative purposeful sampling was used by inviting English language teacher

educators at El Varona to participate (Creswell, 2008). This ‘typical’ sampling

approach was intended to understand a group of teacher educators as a bounded case

that would have some characteristics in common with the broader population of

English language teacher educators at this and at other teacher training institutions in

Cuba.

I met with and discussed the aims of the study with teacher educators at El

Varona and selected six of them to comprise the case. Biographical notes on each of

Phase 1

•Case selection, briefing, ethics

•Interviews of case members

•Data transcription

Phase 2

•Nine collaborative sharing English oral skills workshops

•Written evaluation forms

Phase 3

•Reflective focus group

•Final individual interviews



them are presented below. I chose the six case members because they represent much

of the diversity among staff who prepare English language teachers at El Varona, in

terms of their age, gender, ethnicity, pedagogical training, years of teaching

experience, and type of teaching experience.

They were joined in the workshops by other teacher educators who volunteered

to collaboratively discuss and demonstrate a variety of strategies for teaching English

speaking skills that take advantage of and which they consider appropriate in the

Cuban context. I met several of the teacher educators previously when they

volunteered to participate in a short course on English Language Teaching that I

conducted at the University in 2009. Only one of these, Ofelia, was among the

teacher educators selected as a case member.

The research design does not permit statistically valid generalisations from this

case to the broader population; however it does reveal some themes that provide an

insight into the pedagogy and professional identity of one group of teacher educators

and will provide a potential starting point for future research. It also explores a

method, the collaborative teaching workshop, for organising the group for reflection,

peer observation and feedback on ELTE in the Cuban context (Merriam, 1998;

Stake, 1995).

Pseudonyms are used in this thesis in the interests of confidentiality, and brief

notes on the six case members are presented below.

Case members

There are three women and three men; three aged less than 35 and three who

are older; and with teaching experience which ranges from 2 to 35 years.



Julia

A 26 year old woman, married mother of a young child, has been an English

lecturer at FLEX, El Varona for 2 years, after having been a pre-service teacher in

the same institution. She commenced learning English in Primary School in Havana

in the early 1990s; and now teaches Integrated English Practice (IEP) to 1st Year pre-

service teachers.

Mercedes

A 28 year old woman, married with a young child, has been an English lecturer

at FLEX, El Varona for 5 years. She began lecturing in English at FLEX in the third

year of her undergraduate course, while still a pre-service teacher. She began

learning English in Primary School in Havana in the early 1990s and now teaches

IEP to 2nd

Year pre-service teachers.

Ofelia

A 36 year old woman, who has been teaching English for 18 years since 1993,

firstly in Elementary and High School in Matanzas, and then teaching at FLEX, El

Varona since 2001. She is a married woman with two sons, one a teenager in high

school and the other in primary school. She began learning English in High School in

Matanzas in the late 1980s and completed her five year teaching degree at the

pedagogical university in Matanzas, Matanzas Province. She now teaches academic

communication in English to 3rd

Year pre-service teachers; and is working towards

gaining a Masters degree.



Alfredo

A 31 year old single man, who began learning English in Primary School in

Havana in the late 1980s, has been teaching in English for 10 years. Alfredo began

teaching basic English communicative functions at a Senior High School in Havana

to technical students who were being trained to be waiters and accountants. He

started coming to study one day a week on an in-service course at El Varona to

improve his qualifications, and eventually became a teacher educator there. Alfredo

teaches Grammar of English language to pre-service teachers, and is studying for a

Masters degree in Spanish language.

Juan

A 38 year old married man, who began learning English in the mid 1980s in

Holguín in Junior High School, has been teaching English for 18 years. After

graduating in Holguín, Holguín Province, he taught at a pedagogical university there

and joined El Varona in Havana three years ago. He now teaches IEP to 2nd

Year pre-

service teachers and as Principal Teacher for that Year he coordinates the teaching of

five other teacher educators; as well as studying towards a Masters degree.

Rolando

A 55 year old man, formerly married and with adult children, has been

teaching in English for 35 years, and is responsible for a Didactics course, which

used to be known as “Methodology of English language teaching”. He began

studying English in Havana with a private tutor in the early 1960s and, as a gifted

student, his education was accelerated through secondary school and he graduated in

1975 in Villa Clara province at the age of 20. At a young age, he was appointed to



mentor and train other teachers in Villa Clara, especially in the methodology of

teaching foreign languages, particularly English. In 1982 he returned to Havana to

teach didactics of foreign languages in English at El Varona. He taught in Jamaica

for three years on a Cuban educational mission, and has travelled to Grenada and the

Canary Islands.

Instruments

I used semi-structured interviews with open questions and some follow-up

questioning, informed, but not constrained, by an interview protocol used by Borg

(1998) to understand teachers’ pedagogical systems and the influence they have on

English language grammar teaching in Malta; and by questions used by Barkhuizen

(2008) with South African immigrant teachers in New Zealand (Appendix B).

Data in the form of audio recordings were gathered during the interviews in

Stage 2 (Phase 1 and 3), and the Focus Group (Stage 2, Phase 3). Other data were in

written Evaluation forms, collected during and after the workshops (Appendices D

and E).

Further information to complement this data is taken from the English

language Cuban course book “Integrated English Practice 1” (Enriquez O'Farrill, et

al., 2010) used in Years 1 and 2 at UCPEJV, and in a researcher diary.

Procedure and Timeline

The specific research questions are:

1. What is the pedagogy of English language teacher education of these

Cuban teacher educators?

2. How are the professional identities of these English language teacher

educators influenced by the Cuban context?



3. What teaching strategies do these teacher educators consider to be most

suitable for teaching English speaking in Cuba?

The procedure involved collection of data during Stage 2, directed at answering

the research questions (Figure 3.4). Data was collected in English, to avoid possible

researcher errors in translation; however this introduced the possibility of participant

errors in expressing themselves accurately in English, their second language. The

research methods, data sources and associated risks are indicated below (Table 1).

Essentially the same data sources were used in relation to each research question.

Table 1 Data sources

Research Question Data Sources Analysis/Issues/Risks

RQ1 What is the pedagogy of

ELTE of these Cuban

teacher educators?

Interviews, Focus Group;

evaluation of the


Cuban ELT course-book;

published material on

national plans and policies

and related material

Use of inductive analysis to

identify emergent emic issues

Coding of patterns, themes and

subthemes

Availability of formal documents

relating to the Constitution and

national curriculum.

RQ2 How are the

professional identities

of these English

language teacher

educators influenced by

the Cuban context?

Interviews; Focus Group;

evaluation of the

collaborative workshops

As above

Privacy and confidentiality for

participants must be assured and

maintained

Participants may withdraw during

the project for personal or

professional reasons

RQ3 What teaching strategies

do these teacher

educators consider to be

most suitable for

teaching English

speaking in Cuba?

Interviews; Focus Group;

evaluation of the


researcher diary

As above

Volume of data to transcribe and

analyse in limited time

The six case members consented to participate in individual interviews, each

lasting about 30-35 minutes. I conducted semi-structured interviews at a time of day

that suited the interviewee on a week day at El Varona. They were all undertaken

over a few days from 25 to 27 April 2011, using two digital voice recorders. Each

interview involved open questions to record the stories and language learning and



teaching experiences of the participants and learn their views on pedagogy and the

influence of the Cuban context on ELTE. Emic issues were explored as they arose,

through follow-up questions. Some topical issues in TESOL such as appropriate

pedagogy and standards of English were investigated if raised by the interviewee.

Various themes and subthemes emerged from the data for later analysis (Stake,

1995).

I intended that interview questions and follow-up probes, indicated in

Appendix B, would enable case members to feel safe and respected and able to tell

their own story in their own way. Narrative inquiry involves:

…teachers exploring the numerous aspects of their particular, local contexts

such as the needs and wants of their students, the teaching resources and

facilities available, the school and community culture, existing syllabuses

and language-in-education policies, as well as the wider socio-political

context (even at the level of the state) in which the teaching and learning

take place. (Barkhuizen, 2008)

I sought to learn, through the narratives of the teacher educators, about the

various influences that have shaped their teaching practices, recognising the potential

importance of socio-cultural factors, such as local and national context, professional

identity and culture. The aim of the interviews in this study, like those used by

Barkhuizen (2008) was to emphasise the ‘particularity’ of the teaching of these six

Cuban teacher educators, which is one aspect of what is termed post-method

pedagogy by Kumaravadivelu (2006) who states:

Particularity seeks to facilitate the advancement of a context-sensitive,

location-specific pedagogy that is based on a true understanding of local



linguistic, social, cultural, and political particularities. (Kumaravadivelu,

2006; p.69)

Interpretative analysis of the interview transcriptions revealed valuable

information about the pedagogy and identity of case members as language learners

and teacher educators, their motivation and investment, and the multi-faceted nature

of the context of their learning and teaching.

Nine collaborative workshops were organised and facilitated over four weeks

from 3 to 23 May 2011. Participants and I had the opportunity to present, discuss and

trial a variety of activities, involving different strategies for teaching English

speaking skills. The aim was to explore different and possibly innovative activities

collaboratively. The researcher invited the participants to work in self-selected small

groups to prepare and present two 15 minute activities for teaching English speaking

skills: one based on teaching about a skill or a passion, and the other a classroom

activity which they had used successfully with pre-service teachers or would like to

try. I delivered presentations on a variety of topical TESOL issues; and invited three

guest speakers to give presentations and participate in discussions (Table 2).

Table 2 TESOL presentations in Collaborative Teaching Workshops

Presenter Topic Date Dr Steven Smith Australia: geography, history and culture 3/5/11

Dr Steven Smith Global Spread of English and World Englishes 4/5/11

Dr Alejandro Torres, Vice

Dean, FLEX, UCPEJV

Caribbean Anglophone Literature 9/5/11

Dr Steven Smith History of English in Cuba 11/5/11

Dr Isora Enriquez O’Farrill,

Dean, FLEX, UCPEJV

English Language on Universidad Para Todos (TV) 12/5/11

Dr Steven Smith Intelligibility, Comprehensibility and Interpretability 14/5/11

Dr Juan-Carlos Vega,

teacher educator, FLEX

English pronunciation issues for Cuban students 18/5/11

Dr Steven Smith Saving the Tasmanian Devil 23/5/11



The schedule for the collaborative workshop series is shown in Appendix C.

Participants completed an evaluation pro-forma, giving feedback on their

experiences and the format of the workshops, after workshop 3 and workshop 9

(Appendices D and E).

A one-hour Focus Group, comprising the six case members, conducted on 26

May 2011, gave participants the opportunity to reflect on the stimulus of the

workshops; interrogate their own pedagogy and discuss alternative strategies for

teaching English speaking skills in the Cuban context. The participants also

considered whether they might use any of these strategies to teach differently in the

future. The Focus Group format was used due to time constraints, but also to allow

the opportunity for synergistic, collective reflection on the shared experience of the

workshops. The discussion in the Focus Group proceeded with little structure apart

from an initial question inviting the participants to reflect on their experiences of the

initial interviews and the collaborative workshops, and to consider:

How can we help our Cuban students to speak English with confidence, and

particularly, how can Cuban culture and context be used to do this in

different ways?

A brief final interview with each case member was held from 26 to 30 May, to

provide an opportunity for any further individual reflections on the workshops and

Focus Group. I maintained a researcher diary throughout the fieldwork in Cuba as a

mnemonic aid to assist later data analysis and reflection in Australia.

A general introduction to administration at El Varona, the Cuban higher

education system and the national curriculum for teacher education was presented to

me on 11 April 2011 as part of an initial induction session by the Director of



International Relations at the University and the Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Foreign

Languages, at El Varona. Further information was obtained from published

information (Gomez Castanedo & Giacchino-Baker, 2010) and relevant national

documents including the Cuban Constitution, and National Plans of Study for Higher

Education.

Analysis

Analysis of data from qualitative case studies may adopt either of two

established approaches: one by Stake (1995) and the other by Yin (2009). The

‘naturalistic’ approach of the former has been adopted in this study. The ‘naturalists’

(Lincoln & Guba, 1985; Stake, 1995) contend that qualitative research should be

undertaken in naturalistic surroundings that are not created or manipulated by the

researcher. Understanding a single case, as a unit of analysis, is a primary

consideration. The group of teacher educators in this study comprise a single case,

however, the study also has some characteristics of a multiple case study, as each

case member is unique.

I began my analysis without a previously defined hypothesis because I was

committed to keep an open mind to what constitutes useful information and to pay

attention to all raw data (Stake, 1995). The alternative approach, described by Yin

(2009), is not appropriate given the postcolonial paradigm that I am adopting. It is

scientific and systematic, seeking to identify propositions or experimental hypotheses

and to test them by collecting relevant data, and excluding data that is not relevant to

the propositions being considered.

The aim of analysis in this study is to recognise and preserve the multiple

views within the case. The value that I have given to different views and



interpretations is relative to their credibility, which I have assessed by data

triangulation (Creswell, 2008; Stake, 1995). While qualitative research based on a

single case is not a strong basis for generalisation, Stake (1995) points out that

people can and do “learn much that is general from single cases”.

“naturalistic generalisations are conclusions arrived at through personal

engagement in life’s affairs or by vicarious experiences so well constructed

that the person feels as if it happened to themselves.” (p. 85)

Accordingly, the data analysis of this case locates raw material such as quotes

from reliable sources, and presents rich, thick narrative descriptions from the data

sources. I provide physical descriptions which allow readers to experience the case

vicariously and draw their own conclusions about validity and naturalistic

generalisations.

In this study, all data, including audio transcriptions from the interviews and

Focus Group, were iteratively reviewed and mined for patterns and themes. I read

and re-read all data including transcriptions from audio records, evaluation feedback

forms, workshop lesson plans and my ‘researcher’s diary’, as well as relevant official

documents in relation to the Cuban Constitution, national policies and national

curriculum. My aim is to use a postcolonial paradigm to understand the pedagogy,

professional identities and context of the case members. Emic issues which emerged

from the data and which related to ELTE (such as the role of Cuban values; and

importance of appropriate error correction) were identified and progressively

elucidated. A number of etic issues (that were identified independently of the data)

relating to ELF, (such as World Englishes, Linguistic Imperialism, and Intercultural



Intelligibility) were introduced as brief presentations by the researcher to stimulate

discussion during the workshop series.

The data from the six case members are considered together as a single case for

analysis and discussion of the three research questions in chapters 4, 5 and 6. NVivo

9 (Bazeley, 2007) was used to store the audio recording and transcripts created

during the study in Cuba, and for coding. The conceptual framework for the case

study (Figure 1.4) was considered when undertaking first cycle coding of the data

viz. coding for comments that related directly or indirectly to ELT pedagogy,

context, professional identity and postcolonial concepts and issues of interest or

concern to the case members. I frequently applied more than one code to a block of

text and noted several concepts in the first pass. Moving from codes to themes, the

second cycle of coding used both focused coding (in relation to the conceptual

framework) and pattern coding to explore emic issues (Saldana, 2009).

Ethics, Risks and Trustworthiness

Ethical issues

This research project, categorised as low risk in terms of ethical research

conduct, complies with all relevant policies, procedures and regulatory obligations

and the QUT Code of Conduct for Research. A Human Ethics Approval Certificate

(NHRMC Registered Committee Number EC00171, Approval Number 1000001348)

was issued for this project at Queensland University of Technology on 17 December

2010. This investigation is consistent with the Australian Code for the Responsible

Conduct of Research (refer: http://www.research.qut.edu.au/ethics/); and also

complies with all ethical and other requirements of El Varona i.e. the Universidad de

Ciencias Pedagógicas ‘Enrique José Varona (UCPEJV). Before any fieldwork in

Cuba began, all case members, adult Cuban English teacher educators, were required

http://www.research.qut.edu.au/ethics/



to complete written consent forms, after being fully informed about the research, the

aims and design, data collection and analysis, measures to protect anonymity and

confidentiality, potential benefits and risks and data storage. All participants

understood that they could withdraw from the research project at any time, without

experiencing any negative consequences. As well as meeting the formal ethical

requirements of QUT and UCPEJV, written assurances were given to all participants

that they would have the opportunity to comment on interview transcriptions, and

this occurred before the researcher left Cuba; and they will have access to copies of

the final thesis, to be lodged at the University Library, UCPEJV.

Risks

Risks to the successful completion of this study were those shared with most

educational research – particularly when conducting research in other countries (



Table 3).

In Cuba, an unreliable mail service and limited access to the worldwide web

were additional risks that needed to be managed. Two digital recorders were used for

sound recording and all digital data were backed up on a laptop computer and two

other portable hard-drives which were each kept in different locations for additional

security. Interview data were transcribed within days of the interviews and copies of

transcripts were sent by email to supervisors in Australia for their information and

for additional risk management.



Table 3 Risk Management Plan

Risk Likelihood Seriousness Threat Avoidance Amelioration

Level Level Grade

Withdrawal of

support for

research

L

E

A

Liaise closely and

seek approval for

every stage

Seek UCPEJV

ideas for preferred

research project

Inadequate

communication

between Cuba

and Australia

H

M

B

Extend the time

spent in Cuba;

expect to do most

preparation there

Be prepared for

the M.Ed

(research) to take

longer than hoped

Delays with

formal

authorisation

from Cuban

authorities

H

M

B

Arrive in Cuba

earlier and seek

authorisation and

visa extension at

UCPEJV

Keep QUT

informed re

delays and

strategies to fix

problems

Equipment

failure and data

loss

M H B Backup data in

separate places;

transcribe while in

Cuba, email data to

Australia

Use audio, photos

and written data

Limited English

skills of some

participants

L M C Use plain English

and trial questions

in pilot study

Take account of

participant

English skills in

data analysis

Withdrawal of

some

participants

M L C Negotiate times to

suit participants

Proceed with a

smaller case

group

Illness of

researcher

L M C Care with water and

food intake; regular

exercise and

adequate sleep

Have suitable first

aid travel kit

Key:

Likelihood: H = high probability that it will occur, M = medium probability, L = low probability Seriousness: E = extreme, H = high, M = medium, L = low

Threat grade: A = severe threat, action needed, B = moderate threat, plan and consider action, C = low threat, monitor and

manage the situation

Trustworthiness, reliability and generalisations

The purpose of this research is to produce significant, valid and reliable

knowledge in an ethical manner. Given the methodology and research design and the

constructivist epistemology, the trustworthiness, credibility or ‘internal validity’ of

the research is demonstrated by use of numerous quotes from individual interviews,

and from other sources (including the Focus Group and workshop evaluation



feedback). All interpretations and inferences made from the data are based on the

chain of evidence presented. Construct validity or credibility was increased by use of

a pilot study to test interview questions and explore emic themes, by checking draft

interview transcripts with case members, and by data triangulation – by seeking input

from other researchers and specialists in the field. Methods of enhancing internal

validity in such research are outlined by Creswell (2012) and Stake (1995). My role

as a constructivist qualitative researcher is to provide lots of raw material and thick,

narrative descriptions, to enable readers to draw their own conclusions and generalise

as they see fit (Stake, 1995).

The reliability of the research is the extent to which it could be replicated. I

have described the research design and methods in detail and it would be possible to

replicate this research either with the same case or another group of teacher educators

in Cuba. If another researcher were to replicate this research, there may well be

differences in their interpretation and analysis of the data. A person working in a

different paradigm could be expected to draw different inferences and make different

assertions from the same observations and data. Lincoln and Guba (1985) suggest

that rather than considering reliability in interpretive case study research,

consideration be given to the dependability of the results, that is, given the data

collected, do the research results make sense, and this consideration has guided my

analysis.

External validity is concerned with the extent to which results can be

generalised from this study. In qualitative research, the term transferability is also

used. As previously discussed, Stake (1995), in relation to case study research, states

that naturalistic generalisations can be made by readers drawing on their tacit



knowledge and personal experience. Accordingly, the purpose of this study is to

provide sufficient data and analysis to allow readers to gain an understanding of the

perspectives, experiences and practices of this group of individuals in their particular

Cuban context at this time, and make their own generalisations.

The significance of the study depends particularly on the unique history and the

geo-political context of Cuba in mid 2011. From this study, further questions have

emerged that will be suitable for future research in Cuba (Chapter 7, Further

research). In chapters 4, 5 and 6, I analyse and discuss the data obtained from six

Cuban English language teacher educators in relation to three research questions (see

Chapter 1 Purpose). In the next chapter, I provide data and analysis in relation to the

pedagogy of the case members.


Chapter 4: Pedagogy and the Cuban Context 97

Chapter 4: Pedagogy and the Cuban Context

In this chapter, I address research question 1: “What is the pedagogy of English

language teacher education of these Cuban teacher educators?” As stated previously,

I understand pedagogy to include both the theory and practice of teaching.

Independently of the neoliberal policies of international agencies which facilitate

ELT in many developing nations, such as the World Bank, IMF, British Council and

the US Peace Corps (Breidlid, 2007; Phillipson, 1992), Cuba has developed its own

pedagogy of English language teacher education (ELTE) to suit its own

circumstances and needs.

This chapter is organised into four sections, firstly examining the development

of communicative competence; and secondly the development of pedagogical

competence. In the third section, I bring to the fore characteristic features of the

pedagogy of Cuban teacher educators which emerged as themes during this study. In

particular, collaboration, peer observation, mentoring, scaffolded induction and

experiential learning. This chapter concludes with a summary of the key findings that

emerged from this analysis of pedagogy at El Varona.

Communicative competence

The communicative approach (CA) is the dominant approach to TESOL

globally (Savignon, 2007); and the theoretical basis of ELTE classroom practices at

El Varona. Teacher educators are committed to teaching pre-service teachers not just

to speak in English but to have the skills to communicate in English.


98 Chapter 4: Pedagogy and the Cuban Context

Be very careful at the time we plan the training our students require, because

we are not teaching our students to talk, we are teaching our students to

communicate (Rolando, Focus Group, 260511).

Rolando emphasises the central place of communication in language teacher

training in Cuba and the distinction between speaking and communicating. He

declares “language is communication; learn it by communicating and teach it by

communicating” (Rolando, Interview 2, 270511). Rolando distinguishes between

speaking and communicating, because the latter involves a broad range of

grammatical, sociolinguistic, pragmatic, discourse and strategic skills (Bagaric &

Mihaljevic Djigunovic, 2007, p.97-99; Reigle, 2011). Julia paraphrases this set of

skills as “nothing more than knowing what to say, when to say it, to whom and how”

(Focus Group, 260511).

Juan regards listening and speaking skills as inseparable and mutually

dependent oral skills that need to be developed simultaneously (Juan, Interview 1,

250411). He also emphasises the importance of teaching pre-service teachers basic

conversation skills, such as taking turns to talk, and active listening. As well as

learning to be an active listener, he believes that his students need to learn different

strategies, like circumlocution, to call on when conversing in English: “If you do not

know how to say a word in this way, try to do it another … find a strategy to say

what you want to say” (Juan, Interview 1, 250411).

The teacher educators speak positively about their approach to ELTE, and

Rolando, who studied before the Communicative Approach (CA) was well-

established in Cuba, considers that the present pedagogy of ELTE, with its emphasis

on communication and the context of learning, is superior to structural approaches



used when he learnt English at University forty years ago (Rolando, Interview 1,

270411). It is superior, he believes, because students no longer have to spend a lot of

time being taught grammar and language structures, but focus instead on realistic

communicative situations, useful chunks of language and on socio-cultural factors,

such as register (e.g. the level of formality and appropriate lexis).

You may take as a starting point the same communicative situation, a

realistic or real communicative situation, and make the student discover the

grammatical phenomenon that may appear in it, the lexical elements that can

change their meaning according to the context; or the register or whatever

(Rolando, Interview 1, 270411).

As Rolando indicates, grammatical accuracy, form and pronunciation are still

important however they are studied in a realistic social and cultural context. The

emphasis is first and foremost on communicating effectively and being understood

by the target audience.

Teacher educators are required to use the communicative approach in their

classrooms, and use activities that are typical of CLT classrooms around the world,

which “involve students in real or realistic communication, where the successful

achievement of the communicative task they are performing is at least as important

as the accuracy of their language use” (Harmer, 2007, p.69). Julia describes how she

begins her 1st Year ‘Integrated English Practice’ (IEP) classes with an ‘ice-breaker’

activity to warm up the pre-service teachers, then elicits information from their

knowledge about a particular theme for the lesson which relates to a Unit in the

course book, then ‘pre-teaching’ new vocabulary using photos and other realia. She

then involves students in a range of interactive tasks, including singing, discussing,



role-plays, simulations etc. (Julia, Interview 1, 270411). Mercedes describes a cycle

of teaching and learning, (presentation, practice, production or PPP) that is widely

used in CLT for introducing new language forms, and which she uses with 1st and 2

nd

Year pre-service teachers: “We have presentation lessons; review lessons, which are

semi and controlled practice; and then free practice” (Mercedes, Interview 1,

250411). Juan and other teacher educators describe how pre-service teachers work

together in pairs and small groups, and use a range of creative games, role plays and

dialogues to practice speaking.

That’s the way we practise … questions and answers, games…I am used to

playing games with my students. Lots of them. They like that…and it is

unbelievable how they talk and how they interact. (Juan, Interview 1,

250411).

So an English language classroom at El Varona is a site of activity, fun,

interaction and talking, frequently in small groups. In general, pre-service teachers

use only English, however, the fact that they share the same L1 with the teacher

educator means that Spanish is occasionally used for specific purposes. Translation

and code-switching (using words or phrases from Spanish) are useful tools to deepen

understanding and help explain ambiguities and subtleties in English. This topic was

discussed at a forum in the 2011 national symposium, “Por Una Clase Mejor” (21

May 2011, El Varona), and the consensus of participants indicated that there is a

greater acceptance of the role of translation in ELT than previously. Alfredo recalls a

critical experience when he began teaching and was castigated by a supervisor who

came to monitor the methodology he used in his High School English language class:



I used translation every now and then because it was Elementary level, and

by the end of the class, this visitor told me “you are not doing your job well,

because you are using translation and this is an English class and you are not

supposed to speak in Spanish.” (Alfredo, Interview 1, 260411)

Acceptance that translation can have a place in second language acquisition is

relatively recent. For a long time, probably due to its association with the discredited

Grammar Translation approach, translation has been a taboo in Western ELT

classrooms (Dellar, 2012). However, with the ‘social turn’ in applied linguistics there

is increasing acceptance that translation is an important tool in ELT when seen as a

pedagogical instrument, rather than as an end in itself (G. Cook, 2010).

Notwithstanding some use of the first language in foreign language classes, the

Cuban teacher educators agree that pre-service teachers should be encouraged to

speak and use English as much as possible in their university classes because “it’s

possibly the only place where they use it” (Mercedes, Focus Group, 260511).

Pedagogical competence

Concepts of pedagogical competence and what makes “a good teacher” and

teacher educator are contested and subject to considerable on-going research

(Korthagen, et al., 2006; K. Smith, 2011). There is general agreement that

pedagogical competence depends not just on teaching skills such as subject

knowledge and classroom management, but also personal qualities, such as beliefs

and professional identity (Korthagen, 2004).

At El Varona, the case members prepare pre-service teachers to be English

language teachers, particularly in secondary schools. Two thirds of them (i.e. Julia,

Juan, Mercedes and Ofelia) focus on enhancing English language skills through



teaching ‘Integrated English Practice’ (IEP), while Alfredo takes Grammar classes

and Rolando lectures on Didactics (the methodology of ELT). They strive to ensure

that pre-service teachers develop both communicative and pedagogical competence

during Year 1 because they will be responsible for teaching English to their own

classes from Year 2 onwards; with a gradually increasing teaching load (Figure 1.3).

The students here are not going to be linguists you know; they are going to

be teachers of English, at Primary, Junior High and High Schools or

Polytechnic Schools, here in Cuba. So if they are going to be teachers …

they are not going to be working on any other place but at schools. So they

have to be taught…. how to teach it. (Juan, Interview 1, 250411)

While the emphasis in 1st Year is on building language skills, pre-service

teachers are also learning to teach in preparation for 2nd

year. Juan explained that

when introducing a new lexical item in English, he invites pre-service teachers to

discuss how they might present the new item to their students (Interview 1, 250411).

Through this dialogical learning process, pre-service teachers are encouraged to

develop their knowledge by exploring different methodological ideas and

perspectives.

Didactics is concerned with methods of teaching and specifically methods of

teaching a subject; and Rolando uses English to teach it.

First of all, I teach didactics of foreign languages, but I teach it … or most of

our teachers teach this discipline, in English. Because the intention is to

make them communicatively competent (Rolando, Interview 1, 270411)



Rolando and other lecturers, who teach Didactics of Foreign Languages, do so

in English, to increase the competence of pre-service teachers in English language,

while also developing their pedagogical knowledge to prepare them to teach.

The classroom environment

According to Stake (1995), the art of intrinsic case study design includes

providing sufficient rich data for the reader to be able to share the research

experience vicariously. At El Varona, classrooms are generally spacious, hot and

light, and can be noisy – due to the scraping of metal chair and table legs on polished

concrete floors. As described in a recent ethnography of Cuban education “the

constant screeching of the desks and chairs as students got up or sat down was barely

tolerable” (Blum, 2011; p.131). There are many louvre windows to provide shade

and allow air flow, which may be aided by a large electrical pedestal ventilator.

There are one or more wall-mounted blackboards and boxes of white chalk; plain

wooden-topped tables; and moulded plastic chairs. In the corner is a large television.

The class-sizes are small, usually from 12 to 15. Relationships between teacher

educators and pre-service teachers are friendly and respectful. In keeping with Cuban

social behaviour, students and lecturers are affectionate with each other; embracing

and kissing on cheeks when meeting and farewelling. Nevertheless, there is a degree

of social distance, whereby teacher educators are addressed as “profe” (short for

‘profesor/a’ which means teacher) by the younger pre-service teachers, while 5th

year

students often use their first names. The pre-service teachers are courteous to teacher

educators, whether in the classrooms or corridors, or in the common dining room,

where simple, healthy, subsidised meals are shared daily. Case members believe that

a caring attitude towards pre-service teachers is an essential part of teacher education



and of modelling good teaching. Ofelia states that the teacher educator must establish

a classroom culture in which students feel comfortable, safe and respected and able

to express their feelings confidently in English (Focus Group, 260511), an idea

discussed further in Chapter 6 as part of the ‘pedagogy of tenderness’ (Turner Martí

& Pita Cespedes, 2001).

Teaching resources including books are generally in short supply, however all

pre-service teachers have a copy of ‘Integrated English Practice 1’ (Enriquez

O'Farrill, et al., 2010). The bane of all TESOL teachers’ lives is access to

photocopiers for copying printed material for classes, and at El Varona access to

photocopiers and other technology is limited. Teacher educators deal with the

challenge in various ways, for example, writing by hand sufficient copies of

instructions before classes or writing them on the blackboard.

In order to save time and make it easier for students; I mean it’s good to

divide the class into teams or whatever and to bring handouts … I mean they

don’t have to copy it from the board. And sometimes that is difficult here …

because we have only one printer and it’s a hell of a chaos. (Alfredo,

Interview 1, 260411)

While Alfredo expresses his frustration, he accepts the situation as part of the

teaching experience and Cuban life more generally, which Cubans often describe as a

struggle or “la lucha” (Pertierra, 2011) and he does not allow this obstacle to prevent

effective group work. Televisions are available in all classrooms and teacher

educators and pre-service teachers have limited use of other electronic resources,

including computers (there are two computerised ‘Listening Laboratories’), CD and

DVD players, a laptop portable computer and a digital projector; however the



difficulty of gaining access to digital equipment in working order can be a source of

frustration (Mercedes, Interview 1, 250411).

Cuban context

In what many (Kumaravadivelu, 2006; Richards, 2002) describe as the ‘post-

methods era’, there is general acknowledgement that ELT needs to be adapted to the

local social and linguistic environment. From a postcolonial perspective, this can be

seen as resistance to the former dominance of Western cultures in ELT (Phan Le Ha,

2008). The importance of locating ELTE in the Cuban context, and ensuring its

relevance to Cuban circumstances and culture, was emphasised by case members,

such as Mercedes.

… even though we use foreign methods, like British methods, we always try

to adapt them to a Cuban context, because it is very important for us to use

real life situations. (Mercedes, Interview 1, 250411)

Teacher educators use their professional skills, competence and experience to

draw from all available sources using ‘principled pragmatism’ to develop

communicative strategies for teaching and modelling English language and ELT

(Kumaravadivelu, 2006). They use themes from local issues and interests as well as

international issues viewed from a Cuban perspective from the global South; rather

than depending on examples borrowed from the cultures of former colonial powers.

Like Mercedes, Juan emphasises the primacy of Cuban culture in ELTE “because

mostly we teach English on the basis of Cuban culture and the history of Cuba”

(Juan, Interview 1, 250411). Alfredo explains that in previous years, when US course

books were used, “everything was related to the US environment” and pre-service



teachers were unable to identify readily with texts and themes from such different

cultures to their own (Alfredo, Interview 1, 260411).

For the last 3 years, it’s been a constant issue, that point of working on a

syllabus which includes the Cuban context. I mean to design a method

basing the context on the national environment, so it makes the teaching

more interesting for the students. So the students feel reflected in what

they’re learning (Alfredo, Interview 1, 260411).

Alfredo explains how introduction of a Cuban ELTE course book in the last

few years has allowed pre-service teachers to understand better and “feel reflected

in” the scenarios presented to them (Alfredo, Interview 1, 260411). For example,

overseas travel is not a common experience for many Cubans and most have never

travelled outside the country. Even travelling far from home to other Cuban cities

and other provinces is unaffordable for most people. It is therefore more appropriate,

as Mercedes suggests, to use local examples in English classes that reflect the reality

of life for Cubans.

Instead of using role plays like “you are going abroad” or “you are an

exchange student”, I use other things, like you are going to Villa Clara, OK.

Or you’re a student from Santiago de Cuba and you are visiting a friend in

Havana. (Mercedes, Interview 1, 250411)

Until recently it was difficult to find suitable English language teaching

materials which use the Cuban context. However, with the recent completion of the

Cuban ELT textbook, “Integrated English Practice 1” (Enriquez O'Farrill, et al.,

2010), teacher educators are able to provide a communicative English course based

on Cuban history, historical characters, geography and culture. Teacher educators



also draw from international sources, “we use other materials like Headway (UK),

Enterprise (UK), Spectrum (US) etc.” (Mercedes, Interview 1, 250411), which

represent a rich source of communicative games, exercises and activities that can be

used to vary the classroom experience of pre-service teachers, and introduce different

ideas from the cultures of other countries, particularly the UK and USA.

Themes and issues which are topical and preferably suggested by their students

are found to be most effective for stimulating discussions in English classes (Ofelia,

Interview 1, 260411). As a relatively poor, developing country, ELTE in Cuba is

sensitive to the realities of daily life for Cuban students i.e. the “struggle for

consumption”, recently described by Australian anthropologist Anna Pertierra

(Pertierra, 2011). Mundane but consuming challenges which Cuban pre-service

teachers confront daily are among those topics they want to discuss, such as

negotiating the vagaries of public transport; dealing with over-crowded living

conditions; and coping with intermittent service problems such as interruptions to

water and power.

We have talked about transportation – which was very good for them to

discuss. We also talk about jobs, discussing jobs and what their parents do

and how they do it. How is the employment situation in our country these

days? How is it different in other countries? Also the housing situation – it’s

something they like to talk about. (Julia, Interview 1, 270411)

In this quote, Julia shows how pre-service teachers engage in discussions when

topics are of relevance to their lives. Pre-service teachers are also informed about and

interested in debating broader international issues, such as global warming,

threatened species, international conflicts, and the global financial crisis. Julia



explained how her pre-service teachers’ motivations to learn English vary and may

be unusual. She gave the example of one of her student teachers who is motivated to

learn and use English because he is passionate about Asian cartoons in English (such

as Japanese anime and English-dubbed Chinese cartoons).

I have a student who likes Chinese cartoons. And everything he writes is

about that. He writes about senseis and rare names of Chinese characters.

And then he envelops himself in a world that I at least have only seen in

cartoons. But OK, that’s his motivation. (Julia, Interview 2, 300511)

English language provides this pre-service teacher with access to an imaginary

oriental world, very different from his daily reality. Many Cubans, particularly youth,

are attracted to Western popular culture, including music, videos (and DVDs), dress

and the slang of different, particularly North American, subcultures (Pertierra, 2009a,

2011). Speaking English with a US American accent can be part of their

identification with favourite movie stars, rap singers, sports stars and TV characters.

With reference to his pre-service teachers, Alfredo commented “I think that they are

pretty influenced by the American way of life in general” (Alfredo, Interview 1,

260411).

The Cuban teacher educators and their student teachers demonstrate hybridity

with respect to the English language. On the one hand identifying themselves

proudly as Cuban nationals, and participating enthusiastically in national celebrations

such as the million-strong May Day march in Havana, which I attended with them;

while at the same time being drawn to North American culture, including popular

youth culture, hip-hop and rap, the internet, films and television entertainment. This

hybridity is not surprising given the long and intimate relationship between Cuba and



the USA which extends at least as far as the American War of Independence, when

in 1781 the ladies of Havana raised funds to support the American revolutionaries

(Cluster & Hernandez, 2006). Following the Spanish-American War in 1898, this

relationship resulted in additions to the Cuban vocabulary such as ‘el beisbol’, ‘el

bisnes’, ‘el sanwich’ and ‘el show’. While the Western colonial discourse is based on

a false notion of “a pure undifferentiated origin” for the coloniser (Bhabha, 1994,

p.81), the reality, for both the colonising USA, and the colonised Cuba, is that both

populations have grown from European colonial origins, associated with

displacement and decimation of indigenous peoples, followed by immigration from

all parts of the world, and with considerable gene flow between the two nations.

Although pre-service teachers are engaged in learning English by using

familiar Cuban situations and topics, they want to make cross-cultural comparisons.

Teacher educators appreciate the relationship between language and culture (Risager,

2007) and that being communicatively competent in English demands not only

linguistic fluency, but also the pragmatic skills to communicate effectively in

intercultural and transnational contexts (L. E. Smith & Nelson, 2007).

Language, culture and linguaculture

English is used in diverse cultural and social contexts all over the world,

carrying with it an infinite variety of linguacultures, the meanings and cultures

carried in language; and “language is never culturally neutral, it carries

linguaculture” (Risager, 2010, p.6). The basic curriculum for ELTE at El Varona

provides cross-cultural education by including a course on “History of the Culture of

English-speaking Peoples” and another on “Literature of the Anglophone

Caribbean”. Case members believe that comparative studies help pre-service teachers



to develop pragmatic competence and enhance their understanding of the relationship

between culture and language.

They love that, they love culture and cultural issues are important for them.

Master new information, vocabulary – words used in those countries and

differentiate the way different people speak. It’s important for them. (Ofelia,

Focus Group, 260511)

Pre-service teachers enjoy learning about cultures of Anglophone countries and

making comparisons with their own experiences. Ofelia and Alfredo believe that it is

important for pre-service teachers to understand more about the cultures of

Anglophone countries to develop their social skills as bilingual speakers of English

(viz. sociocultural, pragmatic and strategic competence). Juan commented that while

English is taught at El Varona mainly on the basis of Cuban culture and history, pre-

service teachers are introduced to the cultures and history of Great Britain, the USA,

the Caribbean countries and Canada (Juan, Interview 1, 250411). Language

represents and reflects the values, perspectives and ethics of the associated culture

(Risager, 2006) and Alfredo believes that “every time you teach a language you are

teaching part of the culture of the place of origin of such a language”. (Alfredo,

Interview 1, 260411). The teacher educators are concerned that pre-service teachers

should gain not just linguistic competence but also a sound socio-cultural

understanding of language use.

Ofelia and other case members are concerned that, in general, Cubans tend to

express their feelings and thoughts with less tact or regard for social status than other

English speakers and consider it is important for pre-service teachers to appreciate

these cultural differences and enhance their pragmatic skills (Ofelia, Focus Group,



260511). One way of achieving this if for teacher educators to model culturally

appropriate behaviour; for example, Mercedes wants to be more diplomatic in the

ways that she corrects her students.

So, it’s like social behaviour in the language is very important. It’s like

psychologically-speaking you are going to be a different person because

maybe in Spanish you can say that “You’re wrong. That’s not the way it is.”

But in English you can’t. So you have to be more of a diplomat. OK, you

have to be more polite. (Mercedes, Focus Group, 260511)

In their professional lives, the case members have contact with academics and

pre-service teachers from Canada; in fact groups of pre-service TESOL teachers

from Canada have been visiting El Varona and other Cuban institutions biennially

for 20 years (Martin, 2007). They also meet visiting academics and teachers from the

UK, USA and other countries, including Australia. Ofelia emphasises her perception

that social norms of Cuba are different from Anglophone countries.

We are different in the way of behaving, you know, and when you teach

English you are supposed to teach culture, and the way ‘they’ behave in

different situations. And we are totally different because we behave in

different ways. And when we teach for example, I don’t know, manners,

manners are totally different. (Ofelia, Interview 1, 260411)

In this quote, referring to foreign English speakers as “they”, Ofelia is

concerned about what she perceives as the difference between their behaviour and

Cuban behaviour. Her distinction between the Cuban “we” and foreign “them”, does

not reflect the actual range of variation of cultures of English users in the world or

changing perceptions of the ownership of English (Jenkins, et al., 2011; Risager,



2010). The implication is that Ofelia is referring to Inner Circle native speakers and

assumes that their cultures are relatively homogeneous. However, what is considered

polite and normal in New York may be as different from cultural norms in London

and Sydney, as they are from those in Delhi, Singapore and Havana. As Cubans are

learning English primarily for international communication it is relevant to

understand the cultures and linguistic variation of their target groups of English

speakers, who may not be ‘native speakers’. Risager (2006) conceptualises the global

landscapes of languages and cultures as being increasingly fluid, shifting and flowing

through social networks across the globe and asserts that language teachers should

“transgress the national and monolingual focus of foreign and second language

studies” and develop a transnational approach to understanding how culture is carried

in language (Risager, 2010, p.2).

Among the characteristics of the Cuban pedagogy of English language teacher

education some salient features emerge, including collaboration, peer observation

and mentoring.

Salient features of Cuban pedagogy

Collaboration

Collaboration is seen at El Varona between teacher educators, between pre-

service teachers, and between teacher educators and pre-service teachers. In many

ways, the Collaborative Teaching Workshops organised as part of this study mirror

the way that teacher educators work together normally.

Everybody had the chance to work in teams and to collaborate and work in

cooperation with all the participants, which is really nice. If you know



something and you feel like that something is going to help others, so the

best thing to do is to share that information with other people (Juan,

Interview 2, 260511).

Ché Guevara saw collaboration as being essential for socialist Cuba and

believed that “the process of overcoming individualism was an educational process”

(Holst, 2009; p.162). Juan commented on the importance in ELTE of teaching values

that are integral to Cuban culture, particularly “of solidarity, of friendship, of

cooperation and the like” (Juan, Interview 2, 260511).

The values that we have decided to foster in the students, from different

levels from Primary School, Junior High, so they are institutionalised, and

they are the ones that are belonging to our system. And it has to do with that,

the Cuban culture and the Cuban system (Juan, Interview 1, 250411)

Juan clarifies that while these values are “institutionalised” in Cuban schools

and universities, they are not exclusive to Cuba. Nevertheless, they are integral in

Cuban society and Cuban pedagogy. Collaboration was noted as a feature of Cuban

pedagogy recently by US educators (Schultz, et al., 2011) and also in a comparative

study of secondary students in Melbourne and Havana (Williams, 2006).

Al El Varona, teacher educators meet for one day each week to plan and

prepare collectively for forthcoming classes; and value the opportunity to collaborate

and learn from each other. Julia, who lectures in IEP in 1st Year, describes the

collective spirit among the teacher educators for 1st Year IEP, who feel united and

supported in their work, and prepare lesson plans jointly for each course Unit (Julia,

Interview 1, 270411). The small class sizes and large student numbers at El Varona

are such that there are about six IEP classes for each of the 1st and 2

nd Year cohorts.



Teacher educators for each year collectively develop a plan for each semester,

detailing which Units in the course book they will teach and in what timeframe, and

discuss lesson plans. The collaboration between teacher educators extends to visiting

each other’s classrooms to observe and provide pedagogical feedback.

Peer observation

Collaboration and peer observation assist teacher educators to reflect on their

own practices, and by making the tacit become explicit, they are more likely to be

able to narrow the gap between their teaching intentions and actions, and “practise

what they preach” (Loughran, 2011). Peer observation is the norm for the case

members. Teacher educators are expected to observe peers and more experienced

teacher educators, to discuss (or “debate”) their observations and provide feedback

(Juan, Interview 1, 250411). Feedback is used by case members to critically examine

their own teaching and compare their beliefs about teaching and learning to their

actual classroom practices. Several case members commented on the benefit gained

from observing other teacher educators and of being observed.

We learn from everybody … I think that is the way it works. It is not just

giving a grade, or evaluation, you get 5, you get excellent, then what? If you

know something then you want to share that with your colleagues. And

that’s the way we do it here (Juan, Interview 1, 250411).

Juan, the Principal Teacher for 2nd

Year Integrated English Practice (IEP), who

coordinates the other five 2nd

Year IEP lecturers, states that teacher educators learn

from each other and enjoy sharing knowledge with their peers. Juan enjoys having

younger teacher educators observe his lessons, and finds that both they and he learn

from the discussions which follow: “Because always, after these lessons,



observations, we have a debate, a methodological debate” (Juan, Interview 1,

250411). Loughran (2006) states that improvements in teaching practices can come

about through peer observation and peer coaching, because the shared experience

provides different ways of framing and re-framing practice and hence different

insights into practice. Julia feels that peer observation contributes to a sense of unity

among her colleagues (Julia, Interview 1, 270411).

Teacher educators consider that peer observation helps them to reflect on and

modify their practices and hence contributes to their ongoing professional

development. They reflect on their practices by responding to the perspectives of

peers during collaborative planning and preparation, through peer observation and

from feedback and modelling provided by their mentors.

Mentoring

While peer observation is valued by teacher educators, mentors also contribute

to their reflection and professional development. The pedagogical role of example,

demonstrated by both peer observation and mentoring, are integral to the pedagogy

advocated by Ché Guevara, who believed strongly in the persuasive power of good

example (Holst, 2009, p.165). Mentors can help less experienced teacher educators

and pre-service teachers by modelling appropriate practices, providing a range of

assistance including emotional support, and by encouraging development of

professional identity (Loughran, 2006, p.170-1; Tryggvason, 2009).

At El Varona, the role of mentors includes giving methodological and

linguistic advice.



…we have one day, Tuesdays, to attend meetings, but within the meetings

we have preparations, we prepare lessons, and do many other activities to

prepare to face the week. And guided or led most of the time by experienced

teachers (Ofelia, Interview 1, 260411).

One day per week is allocated for professional development, planning and

coordination, and it provides opportunities for younger, less experienced teacher

educators to be mentored by more experienced teacher educators. All case members

felt well supported in the early years of their careers by experienced mentors and role

models. Alfredo, one of the younger teacher educators values his relationship with a

mentor with whom he has an ongoing relationship.

I think it is a very positive attitude – the one that the institution assumes

towards young professors (teacher educators) or professors in general.

Usually when you teach a subject, you are always close to a professor that

has more experience in such a field. For instance …my professor - the one I

had when I was a student - was the one who took me in and taught me more

and he showed me everything he knew and everything he knows, because he

is still sharing with me, and I am still learning from him (Alfredo, Interview

1, 260411).

In Alfredo’s example, the mentoring role has extended over many years and is

based on a close relationship which he values. Ofelia values the opportunity to learn

from more experienced teacher educators and takes every opportunity to observe

their classes (Ofelia, Interview 1, 260411). Mentoring is not just for teacher

educators while at university but was also part of their experience when they were

pre-service teachers during their school-based ‘Estudio-trabajo’. At that time they

each had an experienced teacher in the school where they taught, who gave them



guidance and support. Methodological advice is also provided to teacher educators

by external ‘visitors’ who observe their classes.

Supervision

Teacher educators at El Varona receive at least two visits per semester from a

supervisor or ‘visitor’, who ‘controls’ them i.e. observes and discusses classroom

methodology. ‘Visitors’ may be the head of the department or the heads of

disciplines. The Dean and Vice Deans may also visit any member of the faculty

including those with Masters degrees. Full professors and those with Ph Ds do not

usually have such visits; however other, less experienced, teacher educators often

observe their classes as part of the mentoring experience. If officials from the

Ministries of Education or Higher Education visit the university, they may visit any

classroom to observe the methodology and to confirm that syllabi are being

implemented in accordance with the national curriculum (Torres Saavedra, pers.

comm., January 2012).

Both the university and the municipality that receives recent teaching graduates

have a responsibility to follow their progress through classroom visits (Gomez

Castanedo & Giacchino-Baker, 2010). When they began teaching in secondary

schools, case members received methodological classroom visits. Such ‘visitors’

discuss methodology with the classroom teacher or teacher educator and provide

advice on how things might have been managed differently (Rolando, Interview 1,

270411). For Alfredo and Ofelia, these ‘visits’ were among the worst experiences

that they could recall in their language teaching careers. In both cases, as beginning

teachers, they were traumatised by having their practices judged by someone they did

not know, based on what they felt was an insufficient sample of their teaching

practice (Alfredo, Interview 1, 260411; Ofelia, Interview 1, 260411). Similar quality



assurance visits by inspectors of English teaching methodology are described as part

of English language teaching in China, where it seems they have a similar effect on

beginning teachers (Tsui, 2007, p.669-670). While no teacher educators recalled

these methodological visits as positive experiences, they are generally regarded as

contributing to maintaining the quality of teaching throughout the educational system

(Torres Saavedra, pers. comm., January 2012).

Scaffolded induction

Case members, particularly younger individuals, consider that they were well-

supported in their induction as teacher educators; and are supported in their ongoing

development by their institution (Alfredo, Interview 1, 260411). The support is

shown particularly by the collaborative environment in which peer observation is the

norm; the mentoring within disciplines; and the expectation of on-going professional

development, with weekly professional development days being provided for review,

planning and training. This contrasts with a recent account of two teacher educators

in Holland, who reported that their institution neither supported their induction to

teacher education nor their professional development (Swennen, et al., 2008); and is

more in line with innovative teacher education programs described in North America

and Europe (Kosnik et al., 2011; T. Russell, et al., 2001)

Experiential learning: practicum and research

The ‘Estudio-trabajo’ model of field experience for pre-service teachers

reflects the commitment in the Cuban Constitution, that “education is … based on

the close relationship between study and life, work and production” (Political

Constitution of the Republic of Cuba, 1976, Chapter V, Education and Culture,

Article 39). It also reflects the importance that Ché Guevara placed on learning and



training in action and his belief that there was no better educator than practice (Holst,

2009; p.157-8).

Before becoming university teacher educators, case members shared similar

experiences as pre-service teachers, despite training at different pedagogical

universities in Cuba. While practicum or field experience is an important and integral

component of teacher education in Western systems, and “English language teaching

(ELT) practicum has come to be recognized as one of the most important aspects of a

learner teacher’s education during their language teacher training program” (T.

Farrell, 2008a, p.226), the practical experience gained by pre-service teachers in

Cuban schools is significantly different, both quantitatively and qualitatively. During

their university training, case members began teaching their own English language

class in schools in the second year of their studies, with an increasing teaching load

until they were teaching four days per week in their fifth and final year (Figure 1.3).

As pre-service teachers, the case members were not relieving a regular teacher but

became class teachers, responsible for their own classes, with an experienced teacher

in the school being a mentor, available for advice and support. Pre-service teachers

are staff members at the school and are paid a salary which is less than that paid to

graduate teachers. The priority given in Cuba to experiential learning within ELTE,

including practicum and research, is indicated by the allocation (fifty two percent) of

student teachers’ time over their five-year degree to ‘Estudio-trabajo’ (Figure 1.2).

Experiential learning: research

A companion pedagogical principle to Ché Guevara’s commitment to learning

and training in action is the idea of developing theory from practice (Holst, 2009,

p.158). Research into teacher education strongly supports the benefits for pre-service



teachers of learning research skills, and the contribution that such skills can make to

their teaching practices through reflection and professional development (Rust,

2009). The case members each completed two research projects during their

university training, and they serve as mentors to pre-service teachers while they

undertake pedagogical research in the schools where they teach. The undergraduate

research projects have much in common with action research, being a self-reflective,

systematic and critical approach to enquiry by participants who are at the same time

members of the research community (Burns, 2009; Dinkelman, 2003).The projects

chosen by each pre-service teacher focus on pedagogical issues that they have

identified while undertaking ‘Estudio-trabajo’, expressed as a scientific problem or

hypothesis and addressed using systematic scientific inquiry, otherwise known as

‘scientific method’.

Teacher educators prepare pre-service teachers to undertake their research

projects by providing lectures and discussions on educational research methods. If

their progress is satisfactory, in the first years of the course, pre-service teachers are

permitted to submit a formal research paper, a ‘diploma paper’, in Year 5.

If a student during their whole course, is unable to get over 4 points as a

grade, he has to sit for a government exam or test. But if you get 4 or more,

you have the possibility to present your diploma paper. (Rolando, Interview

1, 270411).

The opportunity to submit a formal ‘diploma paper’ on their final major

educational research project is given to the better performing pre-service teachers

and is valued by them. The research training prepares language teachers to be able to

use research methods to critically reflect on their own teaching in the expectation that



it will contribute to continuous pedagogical improvement. By way of example, some

recent research topics are: “A set of activities to contribute to a more efficient

development of the speaking skills in first year learners of the Military School

Camilo Cienfuegos in Guanabacoa, Havana”; “A set of activities to promote

motivation towards English in Eleventh Grade”; “A set of evaluation activities to

assess the students’ speaking skills”; and “A set of tasks to develop oral

communication skills in Integrated English Practice 2”.

Summary

The pedagogy of Cuban English language teacher education can be understood

in postcolonial terms as demonstrating resistance to paternalistic representations of

Cuba in Western discourse; and hybridity is shown in the way that English language

is promoted to meet Cuban needs, despite its past neocolonial associations and its

present association with US hegemony. Cuba has made a deliberate choice to use

English language as a tool for achieving its own objectives. Cuba demonstrates

through its own agency that English can be taught in a way that respects Cuban

independence and makes use of the Cuban context.

Communicative language teaching (CLT) has been critiqued in many countries

for not being sensitive to local cultures and contexts (Bax, 2003; Tsui & Tollefson,

2008); however it has been adapted over the past thirty years in Cuba to respect the

Cuban socio-political system and culture, and incorporate institutionalised Cuban

values. These observations support the view of Holliday (1994) that the problem of

cultural insensitivity is not with CLT but with how it has been implemented in some

places.



The context of Cuba, its social and linguistic environment, has a profound

effect on how university teacher educators are trained and how they prepare language

teachers. The political system is evident in the institutionalised values of solidarity,

collectivism and collaboration; how universities are integrated with and serve

community needs; and how English language is taught for international

communication that is needed to achieve national objectives of economic

independence (with international tourism being the most valuable Cuban industry),

solidarity and internationalism. These values are also manifested in the collaborative

relationships of teacher educators with each other and with pre-service teachers.

English language teacher education draws from various resources and particularly a

recent Cuban ELTE coursebook, which uses CLT and draws on the local

environment and cultural context. Teacher educators contextualise themes and

activities, with reference to local landmarks and topical issues, and Cuban heroes.

This enables pre-service teachers to feel reflected in the teaching material and

increases their levels of engagement and participation in classroom discussion and

creative activities.

ELTE at El Varona aims to develop all aspects of communicative competence;

in particular, to give students an appreciation of the relationship between culture and

language, and an understanding of the linguistic and sociocultural variation in

English use. Teacher educators present English as a global language with “an

infinitely variable linguaculture, used in different cultural contexts all over the

world” (Risager, 2010)

Teacher educators at El Varona aim to develop pedagogical competence in pre-

service teachers to prepare them to teach effectively, particularly in primary and



secondary schools. The role of the teacher educator as mentor, ethical role model and

emotional support is a core part of the pedagogy and contributes to the ‘pedagogy of

tenderness’ that characterises Cuban education (Turner Martí & Pita Cespedes,

2001). A supportive environment is established in the classroom, and teacher

educators maintain mutually caring and respectful relationships with pre-service

teachers. Teacher educators work in partnership with pre-service educators to support

their investment in learning the language, and facilitate their progress to develop

their own identity as specialist language teachers.

Some of the distinctive features of the pedagogy of ELTE in Cuba are

collaborative support, peer observation and mentoring. Colleagues who teach the

same subject and the same cohort of pre-service teachers work collaboratively to

plan and prepare lessons; and are coordinated and facilitated by a colleague with

extensive teaching experience, who assists with queries or issues relating to

pedagogy, methodology and general classroom management. The collaboration seen

in all aspects of the pedagogy of Cuban ELTE, has been described as characteristic

of innovative Western teacher education systems which have addressed the

weaknesses of traditional systems (T. Russell, et al., 2001). A policy of continuous

pedagogical improvement is emphasised at El Varona and teacher educators are

expected to reflect on their own pedagogy and praxis with the support of peer

observers, mentors and supervisors of methodology; and to learn from reflection on

and research into their own practices. These expectations are also in line with recent

studies on effective teacher education in Western contexts (Loughran, 2011).

A singular aspect of Cuban ELTE is the allocation of fifty two percent of the

five-year degree course to “Estudio-trabajo”, the field experience of pre-service



teachers, which involves them having responsibility for their own class of students

for the last four years of their teacher training; and conducting school-based

educational research projects. These components reflect a commitment, as expressed

in the constitution, that universities not be ivory towers of academia, but rather be

partners with and serve their community. Use of research skills to understand and

reflect on teaching practice (T. Farrell, 2008b; Rust, 2009), and well-scaffolded

practicum (T. Farrell, 2008a), have been found to contribute significantly to effective

teacher education and development of a teacher’s identity. The development of

professional identity is a core element of the pedagogy of teacher education and good

teaching (Korthagen, 2004); and is explored in the next chapter.


Chapter 5: Professional identity and the Cuban context 125

Chapter 5: Professional identity and the Cuban context

In this chapter I address the second research question: “How are the

professional identities of these English language teacher educators influenced by the

Cuban context?” In particular, I bring to the fore themes which arise from the data

and are pertinent to the research question, including the commitment of teacher

educators to their profession as a vocation; and their identification as bilingual Cuban

English language teacher educators.

This chapter is organised into four sections. The first section explores the

identity of case members as language teachers and teacher educators. In the second

section I examine the significance of communities of practice for the case members.

The next section explores the significance of imagined communities to their identity.

The chapter concludes with a summary of the key points that have emerged from this

analysis of the professional identity of these Cuban English language teacher

educators.

Development of the professional identity of teacher educators

The importance of teacher educators in the preparation of language teachers

has recently led to an increased focus on their work and identity (Dinkelman, 2011;

Murray & Kosnik, 2011). The professional identity of the case members in this study

owes much to their positive early experiences of learning English language and the

people associated with those experiences; and shows how language teachers may

influence their students’ attitudes to learning and identification with a foreign

language. Some case members invested in learning English at an early age through

the influence of family members (e.g. Julia and Rolando), and in one case due to an


126 Chapter 5: Professional identity and the Cuban context

inspirational teacher (Ofelia). By contrast, Alfredo had no early interest in the

language but was inspired to learn it and become an English language teacher

educator due to his positive experiences with teacher educators while studying at El

Varona. As with Ofelia, his investment in the language was due to the example of

excellent teachers and teaching, although in his case it happened at university rather

than at school. These examples demonstrate that reasons for investing in learning

English as a foreign language are idiosyncratic and that family members and teachers

can be influential.

In the years after the ‘triumph of the revolution’, at least in some business

sectors, English language was still associated with social prestige. An uncle who

worked in the Cuban horse-racing industry of the 1960s was the stimulus for

Rolando to learn English.

And since I was about maybe 9 or 10 years, I used to go out with one of my

uncles, and he was involved in the horse-racing business, so most of his

friends spoke English. As I was a kid, it was impossible for me to understand

a single word at the time… my uncle tried to explain to me in a few words

what a foreign language was, and how important it was for a person to be

important (Rolando, Interview 1, 260411).

Rolando recalled that, even in post-revolutionary, Cold War times, when

Russian was rivalling English as the most important foreign language (Irizar, 2001),

through an uncle’s influence, he became determined to learn English. Geopolitical

events, particularly tensions between the USA and USSR and hostility from the USA

towards Cuba, resulted in changed attitudes to English in Cuba, however, for

Rolando, his English language skills brought qualifications, professional recognition,



a successful university career in Cuba and the experience of overseas travel to study

and teach in Grenada and Jamaica.

Julia’s interest in the language stemmed from her relationship with her father,

and his interest in English. She also had a cousin who liked US music and popular

culture and who lent her an English dictionary.

I studied here (El Varona), but I always liked English because I had a close

relationship with it, because my father likes English and we have a very

close relationship, me and my father. He doesn’t speak English very well,

but he learnt English in order to read, because he loves reading (Julia,


The fact that her father could read English but not speak it well can be

understood in the Cuban context where many people study English but opportunities

to practice speaking are limited. Also, with the exodus from Cuba after the revolution

of a large proportion of the English-speaking professional tier in society, there was a

dearth of educators with English speaking skills, which resulted, in the early 1970s,

with Cuban universities limiting their definition of English language competence to

reading skills (Corona & Garcia, 1996, p.96).

The case members have positive attitudes to English language and various

reasons for learning it; before pursuing careers firstly as language teachers and later

teacher educators. In independent Cuba, their choice of professional careers is an

example of hybridity (Bhabha, 1994) and resistance to hegemonic Western

discourse. Their positive relationship with the language contrasts with attitudes to the

language in a nearby country that also used to be a Spanish colony. Puerto Rico is a

neighbouring Caribbean nation which also came under US control in 1898 and where



“American authorities tried to force Puerto Ricans to use English as the language of

instruction” (Muniz-Arguelles, 1989, p.460) . Despite being part of a

‘commonwealth’ with the USA, a century later, Spanish is still preferred by the

majority of Puerto Ricans and teaching of English continues to meet resistance.

While Puerto Ricans recognise the usefulness of English language, many see it as a

manifestation of US imperialism and a threat to Puerto Rican national identity

(Pousada, 2000). Language imposition often causes an ethnic group to develop an

unconscious and universalised imperative against learning that language (Giroux,

1983; Medina, 1994). By contrast, in Cuba, where people are encouraged to learn

English in support of Cuban independence and socialist objectives, attitudes to the

language are positive. For example, Juan talking about his student teachers said:

I think, most of them study it because they like it, they like English. …They

do, they like it, they love it (Juan, Interview 1, 250411)

Recent studies of the identity of teacher educators in England found that many

considered that their mission is to produce ‘good teachers’. They regard themselves

as ‘gatekeepers’ to the profession (Murray, et al., 2011), a view that resonates with

advice that Ofelia gives to her student teachers.

I always advise my students that everything you do you should do with love.

If you don’t love teaching, you are destroying people. Because you are

showing the wrong part of what a teacher is. So, I always say: Teach if you

are motivated and if you love what you are doing, otherwise change. (Ofelia,


Ofelia tells her students to find a different career, unless, like her, they love

teaching and are committed to teaching as a vocation. Ofelia considers that good



teaching depends not just on pedagogical competence but on the inspiration, beliefs

and identity of the teacher as an individual, a view supported by Korthagen (2004).

A good teacher

All case members mentioned teachers and teacher educators who they admired,

who significantly influenced the development of their identity as teacher educators,

and who showed the importance of ‘pedagogical modelling’ in the development of

their professional identity (John, 1996). The characteristics of these role models

indicate the traits that are valued by the case members in ‘a good teacher’. They

include excellent English skills, ability to motivate and inspire students, being well-

organised and developing good lesson plans, managing classroom dynamics

effectively, teaching students as individuals with different learning needs, and being

creative (Focus Group, 260511). Teacher educators in Cuba must also satisfy

community expectations as ethical role models and mentors for their pre-service

teachers. Case members emphasise the need to create a friendly, supportive

classroom culture where pre-service teachers feel confident about expressing their

opinions.

The attitude the teacher assumes in the classroom, it’s really important…It

determines how his or her students will react … The teacher should not be

prescriptive. He’s supposed to keep an open mind and lead the building of

knowledge. …It is important. It’s supposed to be with tenderness, with

intelligence. (Alfredo, Focus Group, 260511)

Alfredo believes that teacher educators should encourage students to say what

they think, regardless of whether that view is the dominant one; and they should

encourage critical debate and analysis, “with tenderness”. Juan described one of his



role models who taught him methodology of teaching a foreign language, who spoke

excellent English and from whom he learned a great deal.

She was really a motivating person – an encouraging person, and very

demanding too, and she taught me how to work a classroom out, how to deal

with different learning difficulties and how to prepare my lessons. (Juan,


In similar vein, Ofelia was inspired to pursue her career as an English language

teacher by someone who taught her as an adolescent. When she was thirteen years

old, she had a teacher who made English classes fun for young teenagers, and he

inspired in her a determination that “I want to teach teenagers and make them love

English as if it were Spanish.” (Ofelia, Interview 1, 260411).

In the Cuban context, where all professional salaries are comparable and low,

the rewards from teaching are not financial but come from other sources such as

positive feedback and respect from student teachers, peers and the community. For

example, Ofelia describes how she felt about a letter that she received from a group

of her senior students, praising a lesson she had given.

The most important moment in my life when teaching was the fact that my

students wrote a letter for me, I still have it, and they told me they had seen

the most amazing lesson in their lives, and so I cried (Ofelia, Interview 1,

260411).

The fact that Ofelia describes this event as “the most important moment in my

life when teaching” indicates the significance of her professional role in her life. For

Ofelia, being a teacher educator is not just something that she does during work



hours, when not at home with her children and husband. She puts a lot of herself into

her teaching, including love and intelligence, and feels rewarded by a letter of

appreciation from her students. A similar emotion was described by Julia who has a

young child and likened the satisfaction that she feels when seeing pre-service

teachers learning English to the pleasure she gains from her own child’s development

“Well it’s really good to see, when you see a student that is using English, like a

child during its first steps” (Julia, Interview 1, 270411). She went on to say “It’s

really good to see how a student is able to speak and to develop communicatively

speaking, with something you taught him. That’s really rewarding for me.” So, for

these Cuban teacher educators, their investment in being a good teacher is

considerable. It is not just a job, but is an important part of their identity: who they

are and how they are regarded in society. They are not satisfied with doing things in

the same ways, but value opportunities to improve through continuing reflection,

feedback, and in-service professional development.

Professional development

At El Varona there is a commitment to provide teacher educators with

opportunities for professional learning and an expectation of career-long professional

development. Professional development is a core part of teacher education and

contributes significantly to the development of teacher educator identity through

their careers (Huston & Weaver, 2008; Malm, 2009). Cuban teacher educators are

encouraged to reflect on their practices, individually through action research, and

collectively through peer observation, mentoring and collaboration, with the

understanding that reflection will contribute to their continuing professional

development (Geyer, 2008; Loughran, 2011).



The Board of the Faculty of Foreign Languages at El Varona provides on-

going professional development and training opportunities for teacher educators and

encourages them to undertake postgraduate courses, particularly for Master and

Doctorate degrees. Alfredo, Juan and Ofelia are studying for Master degrees while

working as teacher educators. Teacher educators with pedagogical doctorates play a

leading role in providing focused professional postgraduate training courses for other

teacher educators, particularly to address methodological weaknesses that have been

identified by teacher educators themselves, such as correction techniques and

teaching pronunciation; or where the Board wants to raise awareness about a specific

topic and improve teaching skills, such as on “Philosophy and methodology of

research methods” and “How to write a scientific article” (Mercedes, Interview 1,

250411).

Case members value the opportunity to learn from and share pedagogical

experiences with academics and teaching practitioners.

Well my institution, especially my faculty, provides a lot of time for practice

with natives (native speakers), to prepare with outstanding personalities;

teachers from other universities, who come from England or US, or Canada

most of the time, and they give us the possibility to interact in postgraduate

courses. (Ofelia, interview 1, 260411)

The Faculty, FLEX at El Varona, facilitates collaboration with educators from

other Cuban universities as well as visiting academics, particularly from the UK and

Canada, but also from the USA and other countries, including Australia. In Cuba,

unlike many other Outer and Expanding Circle countries, there is no discrimination

in employment against non-native speakers (Moussu & Llurda, 2008). Case members



are all bilingual Cubans, who learnt English in Cuba from bilingual Cubans, and who

are respected professionally for their personal experience of language learning and

learning strategies and their linguistic multicompetence (V. Cook, 2007).

Nevertheless, they value the opportunity to share perspectives on pedagogy with

educators from other countries, and the opportunity to use their communicative skills

in intercultural situations, including with ‘native speakers’.

An example of professional development for teacher educators is a biennial

national symposium, hosted by El Varona, entitled “Encuentro de Profesores de

Lenguas por una Clase Mejor” (Meeting of Language Teachers for a Better

Classroom). From 19-21 May 2011, I attended the symposium with the participants

in the Collaborative Teaching Workshops and more than 100 other teachers and

teacher educators from many Cuban higher institutions. Over a three day period,

participants conducted and joined in concurrent pedagogical workshops and critically

discussed presentations on ELT pedagogy by Cuban and international English

language academics from the UK and Canada. Two keynote presentations were

given by guest academics from the UK, the first by a lecturer from the University of

Essex on best practice in teaching EFL, with a focus on ‘Content and Language

Integrated Learning’ (CLIL); and the second by a teacher educator from the

University of Westminster who co-authors international TESOL course books, and

who spoke about a ‘Lexical Approach’ to English as an International Language.

Cuba’s economic and socio-political environment is never static, and like other

nations, it responds to changing global circumstances. The professional identities of

teacher educators and language teachers are influenced by many factors including the

external political environment, their personal experiences and the communities in



which they participate (Figure 2.1). The present environment of economic reform in

Cuba could be expected to have some impacts on teacher education and professional

identity (Cameron, 2010).

Changing social context and professional identity

In the present environment of economic reform in Cuban society, where more

Cubans are managing small businesses, and foreign investment and tourism continue

to expand, a concern has been expressed that talented students may be attracted to

higher salaries away from education which may reduce the quality of pre-service

teachers recruited into the education system (Breidlid, 2007; Krieger, 2008). Case

members commented that, with an increasing range of employment options

becoming available to them, many student teachers are not committed to a long-term

career as an English language teacher.

After graduating, language teachers are required to teach for three years and

after that period, they can decide whether or not they wish to continue teaching. Case

members noted that a significant percentage of their students have both integrative

and instrumental motivations for studying English which do not include a desire to

be an English language teacher.

They just say “I like the language and I like English to communicate with

people from other countries”. They rarely mention that they want English to

teach other people – although they start falling in love with the career as the

time passes by. (Julia, Interview 1, 270411)

In this quote, Julia explains that although pre-service teachers voluntarily

choose to enter university to study English, many have not decided to have a career



as an English teacher. Mercedes (Mercedes, Interview 1, 250411) says that most of

her pre-service students enter the University course “because they like English, not

because they want to become teachers… they see English as a tool.” Alfredo

(Alfredo, Interview 1, 260411) agrees and states that “In first year when they first get

here, most of the students are pretty much after English, after the language” for its

own sake. By their 3rd

Year, Ofelia estimates that at least half of the pre-service

teachers are enthusiastically committed to becoming language teachers.

Well, in the case of the students I have right now, my 3rd Year students, 50

percent of them are very motivated towards teaching. The other percent is

planning to change to more… some other opportunities, tourism, you know

tourist guides, or to work on translating (Ofelia, Interview 1, 260411)

As many as half of the pre-service teachers who are more than half way

through their teaching degree course, may leave teaching, after completing their

three-year teaching commitment, hoping to use their English language skills in jobs

that are more financially rewarding or less demanding. There are also some pre-

service teachers who want to emigrate from Cuba who regard English language

competence as a useful skill, “some of them maybe they want to leave the country

and they need English before they leave.” (Mercedes, Interview 1, 250411). Whether

or not pre-service teachers decide to develop a long-term career as a specialist

English language teacher or as teacher educator, they gain skills from their studies at

El Varona that contribute to personal pleasure and satisfaction and which may help

them to pursue other careers, and participate in various communities of practice, both

real and imagined.



Communities of Practice

Canagarajah (2004, p.116) claims that what drives us to learn a language is

“the construction of the identities we desire and the communities we want to join in

order to engage in communication and social life”. A significant facet of the

professional identity of teacher educators at El Varona is membership in the

discourse community of their peers – their community of practice. This group

engages in a process of collective learning, shares a passion for what they do and, as

with any community of practice, they learn how to improve their practices together

(Wenger, 2009). The case members participate in various communities of practice,

such as those who teach the same year cohort of pre-service teachers; those who

participate in working groups with teacher educators from other institutions; and

those who participated in the Collaborative Teaching Workshops (Chapter 6,

Collaborative teaching workshops).

A collaborative culture is a feature of the professional environment of El

Varona. Julia, who lectures to 1st Year students, feels united with her community of

practice of 1st Year “Integrated English Practice” (IEP) teacher educators and she

missed her community when participating in the Collaborative Teaching Workshops

as part of this study, when she worked with other teacher educators of different

subjects and different year cohorts (Julia, Interview 1, 270411).

It would have been like peer observing. I would have liked someone from

First Year to be there (in the workshops) and say how he or she presents or

how he or she does this or that. …I was the only one working in First Year

(Julia, Interview 2, 300511).



Julia would have preferred having one or more of her 1st Year colleagues with

her to share the workshop experience and learn together. This quote indicates how

much Julia values and perhaps depends on working closely with the community of

practice of her peers. In contrast to Julia’s feelings, two more experienced teacher

educators (Rolando and Juan) enjoyed the opportunity in the workshops to work

alongside and share ideas with diverse colleagues with whom they do not normally

work closely; and to discuss with them the wide range of TESOL topics that

emerged. For Rolando, the workshops were a “wonderful opportunity” to discuss

stimulating topics and learn more about the professional views of others, particularly

younger teacher educators (Rolando, Interview 2, 270511). Rolando was excited by

collaborating with teacher educators from different disciplines, with different

teaching experience and different ages. Juan also appreciated the opportunity to work

collectively with the mixed group: “Everybody had the chance to work in teams and

to collaborate and work in cooperation with all the participants, which is really nice”

(Juan, Interview 2, 260511). A collaborative environment has been identified as a

key element of successful teacher education, both because of the benefits it brings to

teacher educators; and because of the value of providing a collaborative model to

pre-service teachers to adopt in their own teaching (T. Russell, et al., 2001).

Another community of practice comprises the teacher educators at university

with pre-service teachers as they undertake their practicum. Being treated as a

professional colleague by a teacher educator, after she had started her practicum in

2nd

year, was a memorable experience for Julia.

What I enjoyed the most was when I was in second year we had this

excellent teacher who still teaches here nowadays. And all our lessons, he



took us into account as teachers. He always took our opinions into account

very seriously and that was important for us (Julia, Interview 1, 250411).

Having their professional competence recognised by the community of practice

of teacher educators and English language teachers is important in the development

of the professional identity of pre-service teachers (Tsui, 2007). From their second to

fifth years of university study, pre-service teachers are supported by teacher

educators while they work in schools for increasing amounts of time; and in schools

they have the support of a school-based mentor. They are accepted as peers and

colleagues by other school teachers. Case members recalled that when they were

teaching as undergraduate pre-service teachers in schools, during their own ‘Estudio-

trabajo’, they were still studying at university to improve their own English language

communicative and pedagogical competence. Ofelia observes that during ‘Estudio-

trabajo’, pre-service teachers must negotiate multiple identities as both learners and

teachers of English language: “So they study but they teach. It’s difficult” (Ofelia,


While membership of communities of practice can be significant aspects of

professional identity, many people also appear to be drawn to and benefit from

membership of imagined communities of practice that offer an increased “range of

identity options” (Norton & Gao, 2008). The relevance of imagined communities to

the identity of case members is explored in the next section.



Imagined communities

A different person

Relatively few Cubans have the chance to travel overseas but case members

agree that learning another language opens the mind and imagination to other

cultures and perspectives. When they and pre-service teachers learn English, or any

foreign language, they believe that in many ways they become a different person.

When a person decides to study a foreign language, he’s not just going to

have a feeling that he’s different, but really he is, or he becomes a different

person; …So I don’t think that it’s only a feeling but a reality - you become

another person. (Rolando, Focus Group, 260511)

Rolando speaks about the impact of learning a foreign language on identity and

the transformative power of language learning. While opportunities to use English in

Cuba are limited, knowledge of another language enables teacher educators to

identify as members of imagined communities; in this case being part of a global

community of English speakers. Cubans are familiar with a Latin American,

Caribbean perspective on the world, and being communicatively competent in

English provides them with one or more different lenses through which to view the

world, because of the association between culture, language and identity (Norton &

Toohey, 2011).

National and cultural identities

Although the concept of national identity can be contentious (Holliday, 2010),

it can also become significant in people’s lives when national sovereignty and

survival are perceived to be threatened, as is the situation in Cuba (Phan Le Ha,



2008). Anderson (1991) explains that national identity depends on membership of an

imagined community of individuals, who do not all know each other, but who share

various characteristics usually including language. While Cuban culture and society

are diverse, a distinctive ‘Cubanness’ or Cubanidad is apparent to foreign outsiders

(Schultz, et al., 2011), and important to Cubans, who identify as part of an extended

Cuban family, united under their national flag, a popular symbol of independence

and national identity, among all ages and cultural groups. A group of visiting US

educationalists recently observed that Cuban pedagogy, particularly the ‘pedagogy of

tenderness’, contributes to development of “a strong national identity that is based in

community – being in the community, being a part of community, contributing to

community” (Schultz, et al., 2011, p.56). The case members identify strongly with a

common set of values which are “institutionalised” in Cuban pedagogy (Juan,

Interview 1, 250411) including friendship, collaboration, collectivism and solidarity

with their peers, their students and their community (Focus Group, 260511).

English language has been used to exclude people from power and to

discriminate against social groups in many places, such as in India (Ramanathan,

1999), in Africa (Phillipson, 1992) and for Aboriginal peoples in Canada

(Pennycook, 2001b) and Australia (Stephens, 2010). In Vietnam, while English does

not have social influence, it does serve as a ‘gatekeeping tool’ for educational and

employment opportunities (Nunan, 2003; Phan Le Ha, 2008). In Cuba, however,

access to English language classes is free, equitable and accessible throughout the

country. Case members, who come from different parts of Cuba, all identify

professionally as bilingual, English language teacher educators and demonstrate

through their pedagogical practices their commitment to their national identity and

Cuban values.



Summary

Case members identify strongly with their vocation as English language

teacher educators. Their professional identity (Figure 2.1), formed through the

interaction of their personal experience, professional context and external political

environment, is central to their pedagogy of English language teacher education

(Mockler, 2011). Most case members invested in learning English from relatively

early ages, influenced by a desire to understand the language, and in some cases,

influenced by family members and teachers.

As well as identifying as bilingual users of English, case members assumed the

professional identity, firstly of English language teacher and later of English

language teacher educator. The transition from one to the other does not seem to

have been problematic, as has been described in some Western contexts (Loughran,

2011; Murray, et al., 2011), but was scaffolded through the support of the university,

and facilitated by entering into a collaborative professional environment, where they

benefited from peer observation, mentoring and professional development.

The concept of ‘native speaker’ has little or no relevance for English language

teacher educators in the Cuban context where case members are professionally

recognised as bilingual, multicompetent L2 users of English (V. Cook, 2007). The

case members belong to various communities of practice which contribute to their

professional identity, by recognising them as competent teacher educators. They

collaborate with the broader community of English language teacher educators in

higher institutions throughout Cuba, meeting at least biennially at El Varona, and

participating in national working groups to prepare textbooks and other teaching

resources, and to review curricula and syllabuses. Within the Faculty of Foreign



Languages at El Varona, they contribute to the community of practice of English

language teacher educators with weekly meetings and joint in-service training

courses; and individually they are part of communities of practice with their peers

who lecture the same subject for the same Year cohort of pre-service teachers,

supporting each other through peer observation and mentoring. In each community,

their contribution is valued and respected and members benefit personally and

professionally from the collaboration they experience.

Each case member, as well as sharing Spanish as their first language, shares a

common national history, common struggle for survival, and common values of

collaboration, collectivism and solidarity; and while acknowledging their personal

differences they share a common national identity. While notions of national identity

can be problematic due to the risk of discrimination based on national stereotypes

and essentialism (Holliday, 2010), when national sovereignty is perceived as being

under threat, as in Cuba, such an identity can take on greater significance for

individuals (Phan Le Ha, 2008).

Teachers are held in high esteem in Cuban society and are expected to show

moral and ethical leadership as educators as well as being mentors and moral guides

to their students. The cultural capital gained by case members from their personal

interest and career in English language, includes a respected vocation and

professional employment that is valued by Cuban society; and for some the

opportunity of international travel to study and work abroad. Other less tangible

benefits are their relationships with peers and pre-service teachers; the satisfaction

they gain from seeing pre-service teachers becoming successful English language

teachers; and collectively contributing to Cuban society and national objectives.



Through their identification with their vocation as teacher educators of English

language teachers, the case members resist patronising representations of Cubans in

Western colonial discourse (Speck, 2005). By learning and teaching English for their

own purposes and in support of national aims and internationalism, these six people

manifest their identity as intelligent, professional, independent, Cuban teacher

educators. Their teaching strategies, which are examined in the next chapter, are

informed by global research and trends in English language teaching; however they

use their personal experience, language skills and pedagogical competence to adapt

their pedagogy to the Cuban teaching environment and the needs of their student

teachers.


Chapter 6: Teaching strategies in the Cuban context 145

Chapter 6: Teaching strategies in the Cuban context

In this chapter I address the third research question: “What teaching strategies

do these teacher educators consider to be most suitable for teaching English speaking

in Cuba?” The purpose of this exploration is to understand what general techniques

are used in classroom activities; as well as specific teaching strategies. The

perspectives and practices of case members and other teacher educators were

revealed through the stimulus of a series of collaborative workshops. The activities

they demonstrated in the workshops were based on their preferred classroom

practices, innovative ideas, and personal interests.

This chapter is organised into four sections, with the first providing an

overview of the general techniques used to teach English speaking skills. In the

second, I present three teaching strategies demonstrated by case members. In the

third section, the organisation of a series of collaborative teaching workshops is

described (see Appendix C) together with reflections on the workshops by case

members (see Appendices D and E). The chapter concludes with a summary of the

salient findings regarding the teaching strategies used by teacher educators to teach

English speaking skills.

General techniques

Pedagogy of tenderness

The classroom culture at El Varona reflects the “pedagogy of tenderness”

(Turner Martí & Pita Cespedes, 2001), a characteristic of Cuban education generally,

which emphasises the individuality of students and the importance of caring

relationships for learning. Cuban teacher educators value supportive relationships


146 Chapter 6: Teaching strategies in the Cuban context

with pre-service teachers; and understand and respect them as individuals with

different needs, living conditions and family circumstances. Case members

emphasise the need to build confidence and self-esteem in pre-service teachers by

providing a learning environment where their views and perspectives are

acknowledged and valued, and where they can overcome shyness and fear of making

errors.

Ofelia (Focus Group, 260511) believes that teacher educators should “Make

them (pre-service teachers) know that we respect all they decide to do in the

classroom and that we are just facilitators to help them speak.” She explains that her

role is to facilitate speaking by pre-service teachers, by establishing a culture of trust;

and that “creating the right atmosphere is important… between students and teachers,

and students and students: to be partners in the classroom” (Ofelia, Focus Group,

260511). In terms that are similar to Freire’s ‘liberatory pedagogy’ (Freire, 2000)

Ofelia affirms that the teacher educator and pre-service teachers improve their

English language speaking skills together, by working collaboratively in a

partnership. ‘Liberatory education’, which builds on Freire’s educational philosophy,

is “characterized by an educator acting as a partner with the student and by the

educator trusting and empowering the student as well as stimulating his/her creativity

and ability for critical thinking and action” (Gomez Castanedo & Giacchino-Baker,

2010, p.74).

Learners as individuals

Pre-service teachers arrive at El Varona with different English language skills;

different motivation and investment in the language; and diverse life experiences,

and teacher educators recognise and provide for their needs.



Not all the students (pre-service teachers) in the same class have the same

motivation, have the same difficulties, and they don’t have the same level of

communicative competence. So, it is not fair to guide all of them in the same

way to reach the same goal. (Rolando, Focus Group, 260511)

Rolando (Rolando, Focus Group, 260511) emphasises the importance of

understanding the differences between students, such as their willingness to

communicate; and the need to make pre-service teachers aware of the range of

learning strategies that may suit individual learners and their particular learning

styles. He reveals an aspect of the ‘pedagogy of tenderness’ which is the expectation

that teacher educators will get to know and understand their students as individuals.

Ofelia talks about how useful this knowledge can be in ELT.

If they are shy or not, what are the reasons? Family members: people who

they live with and the way they react in front of others. So, it helps because

when talking about oral skills it is important to know the way they react in

any situation in which they are exposed to language interaction. If they are

inhibited or not… If they feel comfortable in talking in front of others or not.

(Ofelia, Focus Group, 260511)

Ofelia emphasises that the behaviour of pre-service teachers in the classroom

may be influenced by their personality and what is happening in their lives more

generally (Focus Group, 260511). She comments “Human beings are difficult. And,

feelings are really difficult. And we have to manage with problems, social issues,

temper…everything is related.” Julia considers that shyness and the fear of making

errors in front of others are significant factors that inhibit some of her 1st Year class

from improving their English speaking abilities; and are obstacles to identifying



weaknesses and helping them to improve (Julia, Interview 2, 300511). These

obstacles make the use of appropriate corrective feedback all the more critical.

Correcting errors

A theme that emerged strongly from the data is the importance of overcoming

the fear in pre-service teachers of making errors (Corder, 1981); and the importance

of giving appropriate corrective feedback. From the extensive body of research into

second language acquisition (SLA), it is clear that in a communicative classroom

corrective feedback can help SLA and be used to draw learners’ attention to errors in

ways that are appropriate for the student and the context (Ammar & Spada, 2006;

Schmidt, 2001). Teacher educators agree about the need to encourage pre-service

teachers to talk without being overly concerned about making ‘mistakes’, whether

they result from slips or inattention; or are errors due to misunderstanding or lack of

knowledge.

Having the students talk, feel free to talk no matter if you make mistakes. Of

course if those mistakes do not interfere with communication it’s OK. . At

the end of the day, they can profit from that. (Juan, Interview 1, 250411)

Juan regards mistakes as learning opportunities. By encouraging pre-service

teachers not to be embarrassed about making errors, the teacher educator can identify

how they may be helped. He also stresses the need to give corrective feedback in

ways that do not inhibit communication or oral skill development (Juan, Interview 1,

250411). Case members agree that the lack of opportunities to speak English is an

impediment to developing speaking skills, so they give pre-service teachers every

opportunity to speak in class. For some student teachers, however, shyness or fear of

feeling foolish in front of peers remains a significant psychological hurdle (Ofelia,



Focus Group, 260511). Learning from some painful experiences she had as a student,

Ofelia avoids embarrassing individuals in her class in front of others when they make

errors (Ofelia, Focus Group, 260511). Juan describes how teacher educators should

allow mistakes to occur in a group discussion without interruption, provided that the

speaker is intelligible, and provide general corrective feedback later without drawing

attention to the individual.

Never forget that principle, mistakes are not always mistakes. So, if it

doesn’t interfere with communication and understanding let it go. That’s the

way it works, and they feel comfortable when talking. (Juan, Focus Group,

260511)

Case members agreed that errors should only be corrected in ways that do not

inhibit communication and fluency, and that in the Cuban context, speaking as much

as possible in English should be the main priority.

Cuban context

As described in relation to pedagogy (Chapter 4, Pedagogical competence) and

reported by Lopez Corria (1999), teacher educators motivate pre-service teachers by

eliciting and introducing topics and issues that are relevant and engaging, using texts

written by Cubans that pre-service teachers feel reflected in, and by contextualising

ELT, using local examples and references. In a sense, this can be seen as resistance

to the dominant Western cultures that traditionally dominated the teaching of English

as a foreign language (W. Baker, 2012). Case members are also conscious of the

need to prepare pre-service teachers to communicate with speakers of English from

around the world, and increase their intercultural awareness. From their studies of

ELT in Vietnam, Kramsch and Sullivan (1996) concluded that ‘appropriate



pedagogy’ should meet local needs and respect local cultural sensitivities, while also

ensuring that learners have the skills to communicate in the global ‘market place’.

They assert, in relation to ELT, that “the notion of appropriate pedagogy should be a

pedagogy of both global appropriacy and local appropriation” (Kramsch & Sullivan,

1996, p.199). In the Cuban context, relatively isolated from many of the variations of

English language in the world, the socio-cultural elements of second language

acquisition are of special interest and importance, because of the relationship

between language, culture and identity (Norton, 2010; Risager, 2007); and the need

for pragmatic competence in intercultural communication (L. E. Smith & Nelson,

2007).

Intercultural awareness

ELTE is significant in Cuba partly because of the need for people to participate

in and support aid missions to many countries; and also to support international

relationships, tourism and academic research. Teacher educators focus on linguistic

and socio-cultural variation in English language use around the world, particularly in

the USA, UK, Canada and the Caribbean. Ofelia talks of the need for her students to

be aware of cultural differences.

You need to know about the culture of the country if you are learning the

language. If you don’t know anything about Australian people, how are you

going to behave in front of those people, when you have certain

communication with them? It is important to be appropriate everywhere, so

you need culture. Culture is the most important thing when teaching, because

you teach English through culture. (Ofelia, Interview 1, 260411)



Ofelia expresses her belief in the importance of becoming not just multilingual,

but multicultural, because she understands that the meaning of language often

depends on the social context and cultural norms in which it is used. She says

“That’s why teaching about culture at the same time as using the language is very

important.” (Ofelia, Focus Group, 260511). The case members draw on the various

ELT course books and audio and video recordings which are available to them, as

well as referring to television shows and documentaries to demonstrate socio-

linguistic and cultural differences in English use. Alfredo, referring to the embedded

cultural messages within spoken or written English texts from other countries,

alludes to the importance of teaching students to be critical when viewing, listening

or reading material, particularly from different cultures and political contexts.

There are some students (pre-service teachers) who receive very well

whatever moral they get from every situation we present in English. And

there are some others that don’t pay that much attention to the, I mean the

influence between the lines. Because whatever we present as language – are

pieces of language with a message in between. (Alfredo, Interview 1,

260411)

Alfredo refers, albeit indirectly, to the importance of being critical consumers

of mass media. He encourages pre-service teachers to be aware of unspoken cultural

assumptions ‘between the lines’ in all texts that they encounter. Although access to

external sources of information in Cuba is controlled, including internet access,

television and radio, teacher educators and pre-service teachers are able to watch

many popular foreign television entertainment programs, particularly dramas and

comedies from the USA, which are shown on national Cuban television channels and



these can be a useful resource for teaching about English language (Alfredo,


They pay attention to these TV series, basically looking for the drama, I

mean the plot, what is going on, and sometimes they miss the details. I mean

obviously it is something that helps us sometimes because we have

something to point out in class “Yeah, this happened and this girl left the

boyfriend and went to the other one and whatever”, and “what happens if

something like that happens?”, and then we have some tools in our hands to

work with. (Alfredo, Interview 1, 260411).

Alfredo is able to use popular English language television programs as a

stimulus for discussion with pre-service teachers, and takes the opportunity to

unpack and critique the assumptions, values and cultural norms presented “between

the lines” in material produced in countries with different political systems and

cultures.

Many, particularly younger, Cubans enjoy African-American genres of music

such as hip-hop and rap, which challenge social norms and modify and play with

English language as an expression of resistance to and alienation from mainstream

Western culture. Pennycook (2010, p.77) notes that “the performative nature of hip

hop lyrics, may not only reflect local language conditions, but may both actively

resist current ways of thinking and produce new ways of thinking about languages

and their meanings.”. Other Cubans want to learn English simply because they enjoy

North American pop culture, television sit-coms and drama shows, and want to be

able to understand the English lyrics and scripts; and get information from the

internet (Juan, Interview 1, 250411). Juan observed that his student teachers seem to



enjoy the English language, more than the French language, which they are also

required to learn and teach.

I think, most of them they study because they like it, they like English. It’s

not the same -I can’t say the same with French. Some like French and some

don’t. Most of my students like English… They do, they like it, they love it.

They feel motivated every time they can understand what they are saying in

a film or you know on these television shows (Juan, Interview 1, 250411)

This quote indicates how significant English language is in Cuba due to its

links with popular music, television programs, films, computer games, global mass

consumerism and youth culture generally. Television has long been a central focus of

domestic life in Cuba; and is an important tool for maintaining a national

revolutionary consciousness, appreciation of Cuban culture, and mass entertainment

(Pertierra, 2009b). As early as the 1970s, Cuban households were watching imported

soap operas, situation comedies, films and children’s programs from the UK, USA,

Eastern Europe, Russia, and even “Skippy, the Bush Kangaroo” from Australia

(Pertierra, 2011, p.204); and English-language television programs, many of which

are made in the USA, continue to be popular and a reason for learning English. For

teacher educators, their professional task is facilitated when their students enjoy

learning and want to learn English.

In Cuba, where the language is not commonly heard outside the classroom,

exposure to linguistic variation in the English language is limited. In 2011, the

national television English course on Universidad Para Todos produced a series of

programs about the different cultures, geography and linguistic peculiarities of Inner

Circle English-speaking countries, including Australia. I was invited to participate in



the latter program and was interviewed about Australian geography and climate,

Aboriginal culture and Australian popular culture, as well as linguistic differences

with English spoken in Australia and New Zealand, the UK and USA.

Case members use the internet, DVDs, CDs, MP3 players and audio tapes to

expose pre-service teachers to some of the linguistic and cultural differences in

English language globally.

Even though the teacher is a model – the model they should imitate, it is

important for them to listen to the other accents, like the American accent,

we have introduced also the British accent. So, it’s important for them to

listen to that. (Mercedes, Interview 1, 250411)

This quote shows that teacher educators model for pre-service teachers English

speaking skills, such as pronunciation, rhythm and intonation; and also believe that

pre-service teachers need to be familiar with some of the global variation in the

language. Juan models his speech on recordings of ‘native’ English speakers that are

available at El Varona as well as on popular music, TV and films, not because he

wants to sound North American, but to improve his intelligibility when speaking

English with people from around the world.

I will never speak like Americans do or like British people do, so my accent

will never be the same, because it is a Cuban accent…but I have always tried

to imitate, to repeat and repeat let’s say utterances from recordings and it has

really worked with me. (Juan, Interview 1, 250411)

Most lecturers, particularly the older teacher educators are satisfied with their

Cuban accents and one senior faculty member told me “I don’t sound American or



British. I have a Cuban accent and am proud of it” (Collaborative Teaching

Workshop, 120511). However others, particularly younger pre-service teachers,

more influenced by mass consumerism and Western popular culture, want to perfect

a North American accent.

Ofelia believes that her students would benefit from having more practice in

speaking English, particularly with native speakers (Ofelia, Interview 1, 260411).

Her view, shared by other case members, does not reflect a lack of confidence in

Cuban ELTE; rather, the lack of opportunities to speak English outside the

classroom. Pre-service teachers and teacher educators welcome the chance to put

their English skills into practice with speakers from different countries, including

‘native speakers’. The benefit is perceived as increasing their familiarity with

regional linguistic variations - lexically and phonologically - and to assess their

intelligibility in intercultural interactions.

Intelligibility, comprehensibility and interpretability

In the context of a discussion of World Englishes and standards for English

during a workshop on Day 7 (appendix C), I described three components of

understanding English in international contexts: intelligibility, comprehensibility and

interpretability. They are defined respectively by Smith and Christopher (2001) as

recognising words; understanding the literal meaning of words; and understanding

the meaning of words in a given socio-cultural context. I used the example provided

by them of a misunderstanding between a Muslim, Turkish taxi driver and an

Australian woman passenger, which came about not due to a lack of intelligibility or

comprehensibility, as the taxi driver heard the words spoken by his passenger, and

understood their literal meaning, but due to problems of interpretability – due to

different cultures, traditions, religions and laws (L. E. Smith & Christopher, 2001,



p.92-93). The example resonated with the Cuban workshop participants and

stimulated lively discussion.

The example you gave us, I mean the Turkish taxi driver, is a good example

that demonstrates that understanding is not always comprehension. And in

this area, I would like to continue researching and talking about it. (Rolando,


Rolando would like to explore and discuss the importance of socio-cultural

factors in communicative competence with his fellow teacher educators, particularly

the relevance of interpretability in Cuba where English is used for international

communication and target speakers could be from the Inner, Outer or Expanding

Circles.

Teaching strategies

The strategies used by teacher educators to teach English speaking were

demonstrated by them in the Collaborative Teaching Workshops. Teaching strategies

are understood here to refer to the techniques, procedures and activities that are used

during instruction (Jeffrey, 2006). The communicative strategies observed at El

Varona aim to encourage pre-service teachers to undertake a challenge or engage in a

task while expressing their ideas and beliefs by speaking English. This ‘task-based

approach’ has the benefit of being enjoyable, involving lots of communication, using

a context that is personalised and relevant to participants, and the language explored

arises from their needs . In this way, language learners encounter useful ‘chunks’ of

language, lexical phrases, routine utterances and collocations that may otherwise not

have been introduced to them (Richards & Rodgers, 2001).



The workshop activities, which were predominantly task-based, could be

classified in various ways. For convenience, I group them in terms of three strategies:

namely Learner-centred Teaching; Active Teaching; and Collaborative Learning. I

also analyse a lesson plan used by Juan in the Collaborative Teaching Workshops, to

exemplify a range of communicative activities that he used in one structured lesson

to teach English speaking skills.

Learner-centred teaching

This strategy places the pre-service teacher at the centre of learning. The

student teacher assumes responsibility for learning and the teacher educator is the

facilitator. Learner-centred practices emphasise the importance of positive personal

relationships between teacher educators and students, respecting students’ ideas and

facilitating higher order thinking, with the expectation that students take

responsibility for their learning (Pierce & Kalkman, 2003).

Case members consider that pre-service teachers are more likely to engage in

debates and discussions if they have had a part in choosing topics which have social

relevance and appropriateness for them. Such topics tend to be issues that have come

to the fore in Cuban society as matters of concern and which may become the focus

of collective, community action. For example, private vehicle ownership in Cuba is

very low and dependence on public transportation is high. Although the situation has

improved in Havana in recent years with importation of modern Chinese buses,

unreliability and crowding on buses is still a matter of public interest. Environmental

issues are also of general concern.



During the workshops, one group presented a song, “La Zanja” (the ditch) by

popular group Buena Fé, in Spanish, as a stimulus for small group discussion in

English of urban environmental issues. The song is about an open drain in an urban

environment in Santiago de Cuba, where children had played for years. When the

song became a ‘hit’, local authorities were embarrassed into action to fix the

drainage problem for the community. Another teacher educator described a series of

classroom activities to explore, in English, social responsibility, an issue suggested

by pre-service teachers. The activities included discussing and defining the topic,

self-revelation in small groups which included discussion of unplanned pregnancy,

and narrative writing; leading to presentation of personal monologues to the whole

group.

The importance of exploring themes and topics, suggested by pre-service

teachers which relate to the socio-political Cuban context and have social relevance

was reiterated by Ofelia.

My students are always interested in talking about … health problems,

because they are always interested in learning terms, because medical terms

are always difficult for them. Because it’s a fact that you need to read

warnings for medications, and they need to know specific terms. (Ofelia,


This quote illustrates that as well as being motivated to speak English by topics

of social relevance, pre-service teachers may also have instrumental reasons, such as

learning about medical warnings on imported products and instruction manuals. Case

members stressed the importance of ensuring that pre-service teachers have sufficient

prior knowledge of the topic for discussion to participate in the classroom and



practise their English oral skills. Pre-service teachers are required to show

responsibility for their own learning by using research skills to broaden their

knowledge of topics prior to class discussions, and come to class prepared to

participate actively (Ofelia, Interview 1, 260411).

Active teaching

This strategy requires pre-service teachers to be active in the learning process,

and a priority is given to ensuring that activities are engaging, challenging and

creative. Based on the idea that many individuals learn best by practising skills rather

than listening to someone talk about the skill (Buehl, 2001), active teaching

encourages students to be active participants in their own learning (Hermin & Toth,

2006) and involves students in doing things and thinking about what they are doing

(Bonwell & Eison, 1991).

Case members emphasise the importance of ensuring a playful and creative

atmosphere in the classroom, using imaginative games and role play to challenge and

engage pre-service teachers and make learning fun. Juan, and other case members,

uses humour and games and small group activities, which stimulate pre-service

teachers to engage enthusiastically, and interact with each other in English (Juan,

Interview 1, 250411). Various case members describe how pre-service teachers enjoy

taking on different roles and personalities when learning English oral skills, and how

useful drama can be to overcome inhibitions about speaking. In role plays and other

dramatic situations students enjoy pretending to be whoever they want to be (Ofelia,

Focus Group, 260511). Julia also finds that different kinds of role play and

information gap activities work well, where students are able to develop dramatic

scenes and dialogue ad lib. Sometimes these dramatic scenarios are made more



realistic by contextualising them in locations and situations well known to the

students, for example “You are sitting in a park in 23rd and L” (Julia, Interview 1,

300511). Case members find that imagination and role play engage the pre-service

teachers and help to build their confidence with English language and their self-

esteem, “it simply makes them feel that they are better persons” (Mercedes, Focus

Group, 260511).

Another activity uses English to describe preparation of typical Cuban dishes.

This includes ‘pre-teaching’ a range of relevant vocabulary related to specific food

items, utensils and cooking actions; after which small groups are given a recipe and

the task of discussing ingredients and methods with family members, preparing the

dish together, and reporting back to the class in English – and sharing their dish.

An example of using drama to stimulate active, creative learning is

demonstrated by an inter-school English language festival; hosted biennially at El

Varona; in which secondary schools from the Havana region compete through

dramatic performances, including speeches, music, and song and dance. The

secondary school students present aspects of the cultures of different English

speaking countries (such as the UK, Canada, Jamaica, Trinidad and South Africa).

The festival is presented by Young Pioneers (Festival Pioneril de la Lengua Ingles),

concurrently with the biennial symposium “Encuentro de Profesores de Lenguas Por

Una Clase Mejor” (Meeting of Language Teachers for a Better Classroom).

Collaborative learning

In these activities, teacher educators guide collaborative learning in ways that

facilitate interaction between pre-service teachers. Pre-service teachers work



collaboratively in small groups to accomplish a common learning objective. Students

at various performance levels can work together toward a common objective and be

responsible for one another's learning as well as their own (Gokhale, 1995).

Collaborative group work makes it easier to gain a sense of achievement, and largely

removes the need for one person’s achievement to be at the expense of another,

which could happen in more competitive situations (Crookes, 2003; Ruys, Van Keer,

& Aelterman, 2010).

Many of the teaching activities in the Collaborative Teaching Workshop

involved participants being organised into small groups, working collaboratively and

interacting with other group members. By way of example, in one session, at the

request of participants, I provided background information about a fatal cancer that

threatens the survival of the Tasmanian devil, an iconic Australian animal, well-

known in Cuba because of a popular US American cartoon character. Given the

current state of knowledge of the disease and the prognosis that the Tasmanian devil

will be extinct within 15 years unless action is taken, small groups of participants

were asked to discuss the situation and propose five strategies to save the species,

assuming that adequate funding were available. Following animated discussion, each

group reported their strategies to the whole class, and after discussion, priority

ratings were given by the whole group to the range of strategies proposed.

Participants were engaged and stimulated, and rewarded to know that their

suggestions closely matched the actual response to the disease in Tasmania. In his

final interview, Juan commented:

We learnt about all these campaigns to save the Tasmanian devil. And we

provided some ideas on how we can do that. So doing that we also learnt

how to have our students interchange, you know, ideas and things, and to



feel confident to speak, and to make them feel aware that everything they

say is accepted and not anything is wrong. (Juan, Interview 2, 260511)

Juan enjoyed the experience of guided collaborative learning and reflected that

an important element in the activity was the understanding that participants views are

respected and that, in this case, there are no absolute rights and wrongs. Juan

presented a well-paced, structured lesson sequence on the topic of “A good teacher”,

which resulted in animated interaction within and between small groups. I present it

here as a case within a case, to exemplify a Cuban lesson plan for collaborative

learning (Figure 6.1).

The whole group is guided through an initial warm-up activity to activate prior

knowledge and perspectives on the topic “A good teacher” Participants are engaged

by using a memory game, which inevitably involves some playfully competitive

interactions. The following stage involves physically separating participants into

self-selected groups of 4 or 5, who share personal reflections on teachers’ who have

made an impact on them, and recount the qualities which they remember as being

significant to them. This allows participants to interact, actively listen, and creatively

use English language to describe their own experiences. The whole class is then

given a scenario to imagine, in which they are a school principal who needs to

interview a potential new teacher, and each individual writes a list of the

characteristics they would be looking for. This involves a change from group to

individual work and reflection.

The class is then divided into two groups, one of which discusses and agrees on

the qualities of a good teacher, while the other does the same for a good student.

Once again, group work enables participants to interact and discuss and test their



ideas with peers. The next stage is led by the teacher who compares the two lists of

qualities on the blackboard.

“A good teacher”

To explore “what makes a good teacher”, a warm-up activity is to get one

student to say an adjective describing a good teacher, and then each student in turn,

going clockwise, must remember what has been said, and add another adjective, until

someone cannot remember a word; whereupon another student can commence again,

using different adjectives. Students then discuss in small groups any teacher who

made a significant impression on them, and discuss the teacher’s attributes. They

then imagine they are the Principal of a school and before interviewing a prospective

new teacher, must write down a list of characteristics to describe what sort of person

they seek.

Divide the class into two groups and each group lists the characteristics of a

good student and a good teacher; after which the teacher compares the lists in the

blackboard. Working in pairs, students role-play a job interview, taking it in turns to

play the Principal and the teacher applicant. For further extension, students

individually prepare and deliver a 5 minute monologue on “what makes a good

teacher”.

Figure 6.1 Structured lesson sequence: A good teacher

Next, the participants pair up to role play a job interview, and take it in turns to

play the Principal and the teacher applicant. Role play enables each person to

identify with the teacher applicant and the Principal, and to use English creatively to

develop a realistic dialogue. If there is sufficient time, or for homework, participants



prepare a 5 minute monologue on “what makes a good teacher”, and deliver the

monologue to the groups that they had worked with earlier. Juan maintained interest

and engagement by monitoring interactions and ensuring that common learning

objectives were achieved, in a well-paced, well-structured lesson.

Collaborative teaching workshops

Organisation

Nine workshops were conducted over four weeks, from 3 to 23 May 2011.

Each 90 minute workshop took place in a large classroom at El Varona after teaching

had finished for the day. The number of participants varied from 12 to 20 (potentially

six case members and fourteen other teacher educators, teachers or senior pre-service

English teachers) depending on other demands on their time. The workshops were

intended to be a stimulus for the case members and provide a safe environment in

which to discuss issues relevant to global TESOL; to prepare and present short

activities aimed at developing English language speaking skills; and to interact

collaboratively and facilitate peer observation and feedback. On most days, there was

the added stimulus of a presentation by a guest speaker or me, on a topic relevant to

TESOL internationally (Error! Reference source not found.).

By chance, during the nine workshops, a three day biennial symposium,

“Encuentro de Profesores de Lenguas Por Una Clase Mejor” (Meeting of Language

Teachers For A Better Classroom), took place at El Varona, attended by all of the

workshop participants and me, exposing them to international guest speakers from

UK and Canada, as well as discussions with English language teacher educators from

other pedagogical universities and higher learning institutions in Cuba. After the



symposium, case members jointly reflected on their experiences in a Focus Group

discussion.

Workshop participants were asked to provide written feedback in a brief

evaluation after Workshop 3, to enable changes to be made to the conduct of

workshops 4 to 9, and again after the final workshop 9 which followed shortly after

the three day symposium. Responses were overwhelmingly positive regarding the

organisation of the workshops and the collaborative culture established (Appendices

D and E). The main change effected after Workshop 3 was that, to be a “less

passive” participant, I presented more information about Australia, Australian culture

and TESOL in Australia. Case members reflected on the workshops in the Focus

Group and second round of interviews.

Reflections

Case members were forthright in discussing the collaborative workshops and

this type of professional community of practice. Several participants would have

liked more workshops, and case members indicated what they would like to include

in any future workshops (Appendix E). Cuban teacher educators are accustomed to

working collaboratively with peers, and undertaking collective tasks and projects.

First of all I have to say that all the workshops, nine workshops - were really

interesting – more than interesting – they were really fruitful because

everybody profited from them. And I think that this is a great opportunity for

sharing things, experiences. (Juan, Interview 2, 260511)

Juan reflected on the value that he and teacher educators generally give to

collaboration, cooperation and teamwork. This is a recurring theme in this study

which appears to be characteristic of ELTE pedagogy at El Varona. Teacher



educators value working collectively with colleagues, their ‘community of practice’,

to learn from each other and to support each other. Other teacher educators also

considered that the workshops were informative and enjoyable, and while many

aspects were similar to what they experience in their weekly planning and

development meetings with peers, they valued the opportunity to actively participate

and share their ideas. Ofelia appreciated that in the workshops there was no

hierarchy, everybody’s input was valued and respected, and participants were

actively engaged as “co-workers”.

I really appreciate these kinds of workshops. Why is it so? Because in some

other workshops, it is not compulsory for us to show what we do. We just

learn passively from others. But in this way we have the responsibility to

show what we do. (Ofelia, Interview 2, 260511)

Ofelia makes the point that postgraduate courses and workshops are generally

presented by Cuban lecturers with Master or Doctorate degrees and participants tend

to be relatively passive listeners. For Rolando, the workshops were an opportunity to

discuss stimulating ELT topics and learn more about the views of others, particularly

younger teacher educators with whom he does not usually work closely (Rolando,

Interview 2, 270511). Reflections of the three younger teacher educators differed

only slightly. They each enjoyed the interaction with colleagues and Mercedes found

that the value of consulting with colleagues, exchanging ideas and getting critical

feedback on professional practices had been reinforced (Mercedes, Interview 2,

300511). Alfredo appreciated the way that all views were accepted and differences of

opinion were respected (Alfredo, Focus Group, 260511). All case members valued

collaboration among peers and collective professional teamwork and Julia suggested



that future workshops might include groups of peers, who teach the same subject and

year group, to facilitate team building and learning (Julia, Interview 2, 300511).

The Cuban teacher educators and language teachers showed that they prefer to

work cooperatively and collaboratively, and gain strength and motivation from their

peers and professional colleagues. Juan summed up many of these ideas in his final

interview.

But above all, it is a good way, when we are interacting and working in

groups. It is a good way of fostering these values of solidarity, of friendship,

of cooperation and the like. … And all these workshops and the activities

presented by you and by members of… I mean the participants, were really

focused on that, and developing students’ speaking skills – and also the

interests of the participants which I think can be also the interests of the

students. (Juan, Interview 2, 260511)

Juan considers that the workshops were successful in developing English

speaking skills by engaging with the interests of the participants. He also commented

that the workshops demonstrated to the teacher educators, how in their own

classrooms, they can facilitate pre-service teachers to interact and feel confident to

speak and “to make them feel that everything they say is accepted and not anything is

wrong” (Juan, Interview 2, 260511).

Summary

The strategies used to teach English speaking skills reflect the ‘pedagogy of

tenderness’, and build on the caring relationships and collaborative partnerships that

exist between pre-service teachers and teacher educators. They focus on establishing



a classroom culture of trust in which student teachers feel confident about expressing

in English their own opinions about any subject. Teacher educators model English

speaking and pronunciation and actively involve pre-service teachers in a respectful

environment in which they feel able to speak without fear of making errors and able

to speak about and creatively act out scenarios drawn from their daily lives. The

teacher educators model to pre-service teachers a range of appropriate ways of

providing corrective feedback which encourage fluency and intelligibility and build

confidence (Ammar & Spada, 2006). Case members demonstrate hybridity by using

American English as the standard for Cuban vocabulary, orthography and

pronunciation, and by selectively enjoying and adopting different aspects of North

American culture. Teacher educators also benefit from their students’ motivation to

learn English due to the appeal of popular Western culture, particularly music that

uses English creatively, with code-switching and resistance to mainstream culture,

such as in US African-American, Puerto Rican and Caribbean rap and hip-hop.

In many ways the stimulus of the Collaborative Teaching Workshops reflects

and extends the collaboration that is a feature of English language teacher education

(ELTE) at El Varona. Nevertheless, the workshops also provided an opportunity for

teacher educators from different subject areas and different Year groups to work

together, discuss a broad range of topics of relevance to global TESOL, and share

and critique each other’s teaching practices in a safe and respectful environment. The

eclectic range of activities and presentations from the workshops demonstrated how

seemingly mundane daily events and activities can be used to engage learners and

encourage English speaking, particularly when everybody has an opinion and wants

to share it. Activities like cooking black beans and rice, a Cuban national dish, can



result in animated discussion, when everyone’s mother or grandmother recommends

their own variation.

Finally, the Collaborative Teaching Workshops provided me with an

opportunity to work alongside Cuban teacher educators, to prepare and present

TESOL topics and activities as peers, and to share the supportive and collaborative

camaraderie that is a feature of Cuban pedagogy. Teaching strategies demonstrated

by the teacher educators are creative and innovative, building on common values,

diverse Cuban culture and everyday scenarios in which participants feel their own

experiences reflected. The strategies make use of communicative, logically

sequenced, well-paced activities, often involving small groups and with lots of

activity, noise and fun. Cuban ELTE facilitates pre-service teachers to develop sound

communicative skills, and become intelligible bilingual speakers of English.


Chapter 7: Conclusions 171

Chapter 7: Conclusions

Findings and Implications

The purpose of this research project is to examine, through a postcolonial

‘lens’ and intrinsic case study research design, the context, pedagogy and identity of

a group of university teacher educators who prepare specialist English language

teachers in Cuba; and to learn what strategies they consider most suitable for

teaching English speaking skills. In this concluding chapter I summarise my findings

regarding the influence of the Cuban context on the pedagogy and professional

identity of these teacher educators, and the teaching strategies they use; and

tentatively suggest some implications and opportunities for further research.

Despite some notable international recognition of Cuba’s educational

achievements (e.g. Breidlid, 2007; Carnoy, et al., 2007; Gasperini, 2000), the

‘hostility to difference’ in Western discourse (Andreotti, 2011), neoliberal policies of

the World Bank and IMF, and the exclusion of Cuba from some international forums

by the USA, has meant that teacher education, and specifically English language

teacher education (ELTE), in Cuba have been largely ignored in Western educational

discourse.

This study contributes much-needed insights into Cuban ELTE noting that key

features include a ‘pedagogy of tenderness’, collaborative environment, peer

observation, mentoring, modelling of good practice and career-long professional

development for teacher educators. Teacher educators gain pedagogical feedback

within a supportive community of practice, and are encouraged to make explicit their

teaching practices while striving for continual improvement. All of these features


172 Chapter 7: Conclusions

have been identified in contemporary Western educational discourse as contributing

to good practice (Korthagen, et al., 2006; Loughran, 2011; T. Russell, et al., 2001).

Cuban pre-service teachers have significant field experience during their five-year

degree course, with extensive scaffolded practicum and pedagogical research

projects. Recent research has shown that such pre-service teaching practice and

development of inquiry skills make important contributions to effective, innovative

teacher education (Rust, 2009; K. Smith, 2011; Swennen, et al., 2008).

Many aspects of Cuban ELTE are regarded as ‘good practice’ in Western

teacher education. The distinctly Cuban features are the way these aspects are

combined in a five year course, of which over half the time is allocated to

experiential learning (practicum and research) in schools; the ‘pedagogy of

tenderness’; and the Freirean nature of the collaborative partnership between teacher

educators and student teachers. In common with key aspects of Freire’s pedagogy of

the oppressed (Freire, 2000), Cuban pedagogy values people working and learning

together in a relationship of mutual respect, enhancing community and building

social capital through dialogue, and locating educational activity in the lived

experience of participants.

Postcolonial theory provides a perspective for exploring the cultural and

educational significance of ELTE pedagogy in Cuba in the context of the country’s

remarkable transformation and independence since the ‘triumph of the revolution’ in

1959. The concepts of representation, resistance and hybridity have been chosen for

this exploration. Through their pedagogy and professional identity, case members

show resistance to neo-colonial representations of Cuba, racist stereotypes and

paternalistic attitudes (J. Johnson, 2003; Perez, 1995). They contextualise their



practices using the Cuban context, and demonstrate respect for local values, socio-

political institutions and Cuban history, heroes and cultural diversity. The case

members demonstrate a degree of hybridity in their identity by being simultaneously

attracted to and repelled by aspects of US culture and society. While they have

adopted and embraced some aspects, they reject many others. Despite the perceived

threat to the sovereignty of their nation, for example as manifested in the US trade

embargo and the 1996 Helms-Burton Act, there has been and remains a close

relationship between Cubans and US citizens at a personal level, with many Cubans

having relatives in the USA, and with many shared sporting and cultural interests.

Teacher educators teach and enjoy the English language, that was once associated in

Cuba with wealth, privilege and ‘linguistic imperialism’ (Corona & Garcia, 1996),

but which is now freely available to all Cubans from an early age. English language

is promoted and made accessible in Cuba, to benefit Cubans personally, such as

through access to US popular mass culture, as well as to support Cuba’s international

relations, growing tourism industry and solidarity with other developing nations.

One way that Cuba resists the aftermath of colonisation is through its

commitment to internationalism and international solidarity. The teaching of foreign

languages including English is essential to Cuba’s unique international, justice-

based, aid program. This remarkable program, unwavering in the face of economic

privations, has seen the Cuban people participate in internationalist missions in many

postcolonial nations of the global ‘South’ (see Hickling-Hudson, 2009), including a

recent Aboriginal adult literacy project in Australia (Boughton, 2009; Schultz-Byard,

2012).



The results of this research support the view of many educators around the

world that the professional identity of teacher educators is a core part of the

pedagogy of English language teacher education (Dinkelman, 2011; Korthagen,

2004; Loughran, 2011); and the development of the identity of teacher educators is

influenced by the external political environment, the professional context and their

personal experiences (Mockler, 2011). Teacher educators in this study initially

identified as English language teachers and later developed an identity as a

university-based teacher educator. In the absence of prejudice favouring ‘native’

English-speaking teachers, their professional identity is not shaped by Western

discourses of ‘non-native’ speakers (Pavlenko, 2003a), a contrast with many other

TESOL environments (Holliday & Aboshiha, 2009; Selvi, 2011). The case members

are confident, bilingual users of English who studied English as a foreign language in

Cuba, and who are recognised by their institution, society and peers as multi-

competent, professional, bilingual English language teacher educators. Case

members recognise the advantages of being bilingual speakers of Spanish and

English, able to draw on their personal language learning experiences and knowledge

of their L1, Spanish, as appropriate and necessary, to contribute to their teaching

practices. As found in studies of teacher educators and language teachers in other

countries (Swennen, et al., 2008; Tsui, 2007), an important aspect of the identity of

case members is their participation in communities of practice in their profession.

They participate mainly with peers in their discipline, and then more broadly with

other teacher educators in the university; and may also collaborate and communicate

with English language teacher educators nationally and internationally. Case

members also identify to some degree as Cuban participants in a global community

of English speakers.



In Cuba, perhaps as a reflection of the ‘pedagogy of tenderness’ or perhaps

because this pedagogy is a reflection of Cuban values of collectivism, collaboration

and solidarity, teacher educators work collaboratively with each other and value

caring relationships with their peers and students. In the so-called post-method era,

teaching of English to Cuban pre-service teachers is guided by the principles of the

communicative approach however, as suggested by Kumaravadivelu (2006) and

others, teacher educators use ‘principled pragmatism’ to determine how best to teach

English in communicative ways. They use and respect the local culture, language

needs and socio-political environment of the pre-service teachers, getting to know

each student individually and recognising their differing needs as language learners.

As English language is used globally for international communication, the case

members understand the plurality of the language around the world and emphasise

the importance of intercultural intelligibility and context-dependent pragmatic skills

(L. E. Smith & Nelson, 2007). The Cuban English language teacher educators adopt

a transnational stance and contextualise their teaching practices in the local culture

and environment while acknowledging the diverse linguacultures associated with the

language globally (Risager, 2010).

Communicative teaching strategies are used by the teacher educators to teach

speaking skills, and include ‘learner-centred teaching’ (Pierce & Kalkman, 2003),

‘active teaching’ (Hermin & Toth, 2006) and ‘collaborative learning’ (Ruys, et al.,

2010). Strategies for teaching English language speaking skills build on a caring

classroom culture in which pre-service teachers are encouraged to develop self-

confidence and overcome their fear of producing ‘incorrect’ English, whether due to

slips or errors. Through drama, games and creative play, pre-service teachers are

encouraged to use their imagination to explore different roles and take on different



identities, while practising and enhancing their English speaking skills. Teacher

educators engage pre-service teachers by eliciting from them topics of social

relevance and appropriateness, to explore in a supportive environment. While pre-

service teachers make use of their knowledge of and interest in Cuban life, both they

and teacher educators also explore, compare and contrast the differences in English

language (viz. phonology, pragmatics, registers etc.) in different locations and socio-

cultural contexts worldwide.

English language teacher education (ELTE) in Cuba is centrally coordinated

and integrated from the national to the local level; and follows a national curriculum.

A five year course to prepare specialist English language teachers for the school

system, from primary school to pre-university colleges, covers a wide range of

pedagogical subjects in addition to specialist English language modules. A feature of

ELTE in Cuba is the priority given to experiential learning, ‘Estudio-trabajo’. This

has two components: practicum and educational research. The importance of field

experience for pre-service teachers has long been appreciated in the preparation of

teachers generally (Crookes, 2003; T. Farrell, 2008a), and in Cuba ‘Estudio-trabajo’

comprises over half of the five-year teaching degree and involves pre-service

teachers being responsible for a language class as the class teacher from the second

to the fifth year of their studies.

The school-based educational research which pre-service teachers undertake

during their final three years of study involves them in identifying research questions

and conducting systematic studies with the aim of improving pedagogical aspects of

English language teaching in their school environment. The commitment to training

pre-service teachers to learn and use research skills reflects the expectation that they



will use these skills during their teaching careers. Application of teacher research to

classroom practices has been identified as making an important contribution to

reflection and pedagogical improvement (T. Farrell, 2007; Rust, 2009).

This case study focuses on the particularities of a group of six teacher

educators at one university. El Varona is Cuba’s largest teacher training institution

and is influential in the pedagogy of ELTE in Cuba and these conclusions apply only

to that institution. However, having discussed Cuban ELTE at a symposium with

over one hundred educators from other Cuban institutions during the course of this

study; having seen how the national curriculum is implemented at El Varona; and

having heard from case members who trained in other universities of pedagogical

sciences (particularly Holguin, Matanzas and Villa Clara), I tentatively suggest that

these findings may be indicative of ELTE practices at other Cuban pedagogical

universities. Further research is required to be more definitive.

This study has focused on the context, pedagogy, identity, and teaching

strategies of one group of six, university-based, English language teacher educators.

This is only part of the story of English language teaching (ELT) in Cuba. Future

research in Cuba might explore how English language television classes are made

accessible at negligible cost (e.g. only a few cents per workbook for the Universidad

Para Todos television course) and explore their impact and effectiveness. It would

also be valuable to investigate the development of professional identity of pre-service

English language teachers as they become qualified teachers; and to compare ELTE

in Cuba with other postcolonial Caribbean nations, particularly Puerto Rico, a former

Spanish colony which is now part of a US ‘commonwealth’. Assessment of the

effectiveness of ELTE at El Varona was beyond the scope of this study. However, it



would be valuable to include in future studies some measures of effectiveness in

terms of learning outcomes such as communicative competence (grammatical,

discourse, sociolinguistic, strategic and pragmatic competence), particularly in

intercultural communication given Cuba’s need to communicate in English with

people from many different cultures.

Educators in North America and Europe have called for more research into

Cuba’s teacher training system to better understand the reasons for its success

(Breidlid, 2007; Gomez Castanedo & Giacchino-Baker, 2010). The significance of

this study derives from the postcolonial concept of resistance to negative, Western

representations of Cuba’s independent path, and hearing the voice of the non-

Western Other, the bilingual, professional Cuban English language teacher educator.

This study has brought to the fore the key elements of the pedagogy of English

language teacher education in Cuba, not through observations by a Western

academic researcher, but through the voices of dedicated Cuban teacher educators,

who have spoken for themselves.

Limitations of the study

Time

The limitations on time available to complete the degree of Master of

Education by research, meant that time for fieldwork in Cuba could not extend for

more than 8 weeks. However, by using the time efficiently, I was able to gather

sufficient information-rich data to answer the research questions. I was conscious

that the study placed an increased burden on the six case members who are full-time

lecturers at El Varona; and several of whom have family and child-caring



responsibilities; yet they were generous in the time they gave to participate in

interviews, a focus group, and collaborative workshops.

Opportunities to observe classroom teaching

Given the difficulties of international communication and formal approval

processes before I travelled to Cuba, the research project was planned so that it was

unnecessary to observe teacher educators or school teachers in classrooms, but rather

aimed to learn from working collectively with teacher educators in collaborative

teaching workshops. Nevertheless, I was invited to join different case members and

workshop participants in their classes, offices and homes, and was able to observe

classes informally and interact freely with pre-service teachers in classrooms and

around the campus. No limits were placed on my access to people or places

throughout my stay at the Faculty of Foreign Languages at El Varona.

Implications

For teacher educators

The case members were interested and expressed some surprise to learn how

rapidly English language has been spreading and being taken up around the world,

and the implications for teaching English as a global language and the ownership of

English more generally. Continued discussion among teacher educators both within

and outside Cuba about current debates around the global use of English language

and the range of contexts and cultures in which it is used outside the Inner Circle

would enable a multi-directional exchange of perspectives on English as a global

language (Jenkins, et al., 2011; Seidlhofer, 2011). Teacher educators expressed

interest in further debate about the implications for standard forms of English in

global TESOL; and the sociocultural implications of communication between L2



English language users (L. E. Smith & Nelson, 2007). In particular, exploration of

the relevance of intelligibility, comprehensibility and interpretability in intercultural,

communication in English would be valuable.

For the Faculty

Collaborative practical teaching workshops

Participants were enthusiastic about the collaborative culture and format of the

practical teaching workshops that were associated with this study. They enjoyed the

opportunity in the workshops to actively participate and work with colleagues in

small groups to prepare and demonstrate activities based on personal interests, and

Cuban themes and topics, and to share ideas and thoughts in a safe, non-judgmental

environment.

For the University

Facilitating international ELT volunteers

Some teacher educators mentioned that they and student teachers would benefit

from more experience working with and conversing with volunteers from

Anglophone countries, to increase their familiarity with English language diversity.

In turn, volunteers would gain valuable professional insights from working with

Cuban colleagues and experiencing the particularities of the Cuban ELTE

environment. There may be many international English language teacher educators

and teachers who would welcome such professional engagement and wish to

volunteer their services. They could also exchange practical teaching ideas with

Cuban teacher educators for mutual benefit, as currently occurs with Canadian

teachers and teacher educators. Engagement of volunteers would be facilitated if a

point of contact was established within the university administration at El Varona,

and advice provided about the required administrative process, such as a letter of



invitation from the university, visa application, accommodation options, transport

and period of volunteer work.

Further research

Study of the identity of English language pre-service teachers

The present study focused on the pedagogy and professional identity of a group

of English language teacher educators. A complementary case study of the

motivation, experiences and professional identity of a group of English language pre-

service teachers could include both 2nd

and 5th

year undergraduates to explore the

changes they experience during their field experience in schools (‘Estudio-trabajo’).

Study of the national television English course, Universidad Para Todos

The present version of the nationally televised English course, Universidad

Para Todos, began in 2000 at the direction of former President Fidel Castro, and has

proven popular. A mixed study of the uptake, impact and effectiveness of the course,

involving surveys and interviews of participants and presenters would be valuable.

Comparative postcolonial study of English Language Teacher Education

A comparison of ELTE in Cuba with another postcolonial nation in the

Caribbean, the former Spanish colony Puerto Rico, would provide a sound basis for

critiquing the Cuban system of ELTE and evaluating its relative strengths and

weaknesses. Such a study could include measurement of the effectiveness of ELTE

in terms of developing communicative competence, particularly in contexts of

international communication involving both L1 and L2 users of English; and

pedagogical competence.



This case study is the first to use postcolonial theory as a paradigm for

examining an aspect of Cuban teacher education. It presents a tentative

understanding of the context, pedagogy and professional identity of Cuban English

language teacher educators, and the ways that ELTE in Cuba demonstrates hybridity

and resistance to hegemonic western discourse. This research can be a basis for more

extensive exploration of the Cuban model of teacher education and specifically

English language teacher education, which in turn may lead to more comparative

research exploring Cuban ELTE in relation to other developing nations.


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Appendix A 199

Appendices

Appendix A

Procedure for fieldwork in Cuba (Stage 2)

Stage 2: research plan in Cuba

T1T2Interviews

De-briefing session

Sharing workshops

Community of practice

Focus group

PHASE 1

PHASE 2

PHASE 3Interviews

Key

T1 = initial ‘theory’ or understanding of ELTE in Cuba, after first interviews

T2 = modified ‘theory’ following workshop, focus group and final interviews


Appendix B 201

Appendix B

Interview Questions and Topics

(adapted from Borg, 1998 and Barkhuizen, 2008)

The interview will use few (about 3-5), open questions, to elicit the views and

opinions of the lecturers. It will avoid leading questions, however, follow-up

questions will be asked to tease out the meaning of initial responses and probe emic

issues. Four principal questions will be asked:

1: Describe your personal story of teaching English RQ1 & RQ2

Introduce yourself and tell the story of your interest in English teaching.

Why and how did you become an English language teacher?

2: Describe your English language learning experiences RQ1 & RQ2

Describe 3 moments that you remember from your experience of learning

English.

What kind of pedagogy was used by your English teachers and what or who

has/have been the greatest influence(s) on your teaching?

3: Describe how you learnt to teach English and your pedagogy RQ1 & RQ3

What have been your best and worst experiences in teaching English?

What methods and strategies do you use and prefer, particularly for oral skills?

What concerns do you have about your students’ oral English skills?

4: In what ways does the Cuban context influence ELT in Cuba RQ2

How does your institution help you to teach English language?

What role do you think English language has in the lives of your students?

Why do you think your students want to learn English?

What role, if any, does Cuban culture, history, politics have in your classroom?


Appendix C 203

Appendix C

Schedule of Collaborative Workshops

(3 – 23 May 2011)

Grp Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Day 7 Day 8 Day 9

Tu

3/5

We

4/5

Th

5/5

Mo

9/5

We

11/5

Th

12/5

Mo

16/5

We

18/5

Mon

23/5

1 CM5, PO8 A: A Good

Teacher

I: Holguin

Arts Festival

2 CM1, CM3,

CM4

I:Spanish

Pop Song,

La Zanja

A: IPA

Minimal pairs

game

3 CM6, PO7,

P12

A: Listening

strategies

I: Cooking

lexis, Cuban

recipes

I: Normandy

and French in

English

4 PO9, P13,

P14

A: Analysis of

a speaking

unit

5 P10, P11,

P15

A: Personal

likes and

dislikes

I: Cuban Art

Academy

6 CM2, P16 I: Discuss

T/F

statements

A: Find

someone

who..?

Guest

talk

Alejandro

Torres:

Caribbean

writers

Isora

Enriquez: ELT

on TV

(Universidad

para todos)

Juan-Carlos

Vega: Spanish

speakers;

minimal pairs

fly swat game

Hugh Dellar: casual

discussion, lexis

and grammar

Topic Introdn to case

study; Austn

geography and

culture; plan

of workshops

Historical

spread of

English;

World

Englishes

Linguistic

imperialism;

Global

language;

Evaln pt 1

Evaluation

feedback;

dictogloss;

Caribbean

short stories

Whistle

dictation 1;

History of ELT

in Cuba; French

in Australia

Whistle

dictation 2,

using the

Cuban context

Turkish taxi

driver;

solving

mysteries

Pronunciation;

body language;

rhythm and

nursery rhymes

Feedback on

Caribbean short

stories; Tas Devil;

awards, Evaln pt 2.

Key:

Activity (A) = Included a participant-led (solo, in pairs or threes) 15 min speaking exercise with the whole group (one or more each afternoon).

Interest (I) = Participants working individually in pairs or threes, gave a 15 min. presentation on one day - on a subject that they are passionate about or a lesson on a particular skill e.g. cooking

black beans, Afro-Cuban dance or singing etc.


Appendix D 205

Appendix D

Interim written evaluation

Feedback after Workshops 1, 2 and 3

5 May 2011

CODE What have you

liked?

What would

you like to

change?

What could

be done

better?

Other comments

CM1

Julia

I really liked the

presentations on English

spreading in the world,

and about interesting facts

I didn’t know.

Having less

interaction with the

Cuban experience and

adding more about

how this is done in the

rest of the world.

A less passive

attitude from the

host [Steven]

Everything has been

really good; the

experience and the

interaction. I’d like this

to be a postgraduate

course.

CM2

Mercedes

The atmosphere. I feel

comfortable working with

my colleagues.

Nothing Dynamics of the

activities

The lecturer [Steven]

makes us feel that all

our opinions are

valuable. There’s no

right or wrong.

CM3

Alfredo

I really liked the exchange

in English about English

and teaching.

The timing. I work

better in the

mornings.

I think it is very

accurate the time

duration of our meeting.

One hour and a half

neither satisfies you nor

makes you bored. You

keep up interested.

CM4

Ofelia

I’ve liked the way we

learn from other people’s

experiences, having fun

We don’t have

enough time, so I’d

change schedule to

make it last.

I think everything’s

perfect.

I’d like to know more

about the way English

is taught in your

university.

CM5

Juan

Everything. It was

awesome. I have enjoyed

and learnt a lot.

It was a pity that we

only had nine

workshops and for only

one and a half hours.

CM6

Rolando

I’ve been very pleased

with all the activities

we’ve been involved in.

The way the teacher

[Steven] has organised

each daily activity.

To have a longer time

(maybe two more

weeks) developing

this type of activity.

Just at the moment I

don’t have an idea,

but I’m sure every

day we meet is

better than the

previous one.

P07 It has been very

interesting for me to learn

more about Australia and

the way English has

spread so fast throughout

the world. Also the

presentations of my

colleagues have been very

useful for my work as a

teacher.

Nothing Everything is OK

for me.

We could have some

courses like this one

every year, or more

often.

P08 It’s good to prepare

activities and share them

with the group because

we can learn from others.

We have the chance to

interact and speak.

- - We have faced the

experience of others.

The members of the

group speak freely

without fear. Even

though we do not

belong to the same

schools we can teach


206 Appendix D

and learn.

P09 That we have socialised

and so learned from one

another

So far – nothing. Dialectically

speaking everything

can be done better,

even when it is the

same activity.

Thank you for

achieving in a very soft

way what we sometimes

feel unable.

P10 Everything given with my

classmates because, I

think, that every day in

the workshop we are

learning a lot.

Nothing would be

changed. It’s very

interesting for me.

Everything is fine. I consider that this type

of activity could be

prepared most of the

time between us.

P11 I have liked the

information given about

Australia and the way

different groups have

developed the activities

Nothing Everything is OK

P12 I liked the presentations,

especially Julia and

Ofelia’s and your speech

about Australia

For you to talk more

about Australia.

P13 Everything goes on in a

very nice atmosphere,

there’s the priceless value

of “collective”

intelligence in our

meetings. Everything is

properly conducted.

- - So far it has been great.

I guess everybody feels

at ease, and most

important everyday we

can learn something

new, from the professor

[Steven] and from our

comrades.

P14 You respect everybody’s

opinion. It is very

relaxing and we learn

from one another.

Nothing.

P15 The interchange of

experiences in applying

communicative activities.

I would like to know

activities apply in

Australia at language

schools.

To interact with

authentic materials.

Teacher [Steven] must

focus on our

corrections.

P16 I liked the presentations

given by colleagues. I’ve

learned too much about

these topics.

Everything is OK - No comment.

(*Note: Codes CM 1 to CM 6 are the six case members; and code numbers P07 to 16 are other UCPEJV lecturers who

participated in the workshops. The same codes are used in Appendix C, to indicate groupings)


Appendix E 207

Appendix E

Final written evaluation

Feedback after all nine Workshops

23 May 2011

CODE What did you

like best?

What did

you like

least?

What was

new or

different

for you?

Will you be

able to use

anything

from the

workshops

in your

teaching in

future? If

‘yes’, what?

Would you like to

attend other

workshops on ELT

strategies? What

topics would be

most interesting?

CM1

Julia

Presentations about

fluency and word

and sentence stress.

Using nursery

rhymes and other

things.

Nothing.

Everything

has been

great.

Ways of

dictating

things to

students

(dictation

exercises are

not too much

used in our

classrooms)

I already have.

Yes. Exercises on

word and sentence

stress, dictation

exercises.

Information about

World Englishes.

Absolutely. Interesting

topics: getting fluency in

English; teaching

pronunciation patterns;

common phrasal verbs and

meanings in colloquial

language.

CM2

Mercedes

The lecture about

globalisation; and

the lecture about

interpretability,

intelligibility and

comprehensibility

Also, phonetics and

all the interest

activities my

colleagues did.

Some

interruptions

from people in

the audience.

The heat!

Everything

was either

new or

different for

me.

Yes. The

activities about

homophones

(phonetics); the

mystery solving

activities.

Yes. Anything related to

improving English lessons.

CM3

Alfredo

(absent for this

final evaluation )

CM4

Ofelia

I liked oral

presentations about

the Tasmanian

devil. I’m a nature

lover

It wasn’t

enough for

me. I wanted

more time.

The way to

organise the

schedule

divided into

interests and

activities.

Yes. All the

activities, ideas

and vocabulary I

learnt during this

time.

Of course. Socio-cultural

competence

CM5

Juan

The presentations

the teacher

[Steven] made

about Australia,

English present and

future, and the

Tasmanian devil

- The things I

learnt about

the

Aborigines in

Australia

Of course. The

history of

Australia as well

as the campaign

for saving the

Tasmanian devil.

Absolutely. I guess topics

that have to do with

learning strategies, styles

and methods for teaching.

CM6

Rolando

The possibility we

had to interact

about the most

diverse topics in

English. The

presence of ‘our’

teachers in the most

important event of

our faculty [Por

una clase mejor],

The duration

of this

‘amazing

language

party’

I learnt a lot

of things, so I

would like to

continue this

fantastic

experience.

Yes. Especially

data associated to

‘intelligibility,

comprehensibility

and

interpretability’;

about Australia;

identity and

language learning;

and a Lexical

Yes. Any associated with

ELT methodology.


208 Appendix E

and… to have the

opportunity to meet

you Steven and

Hugh (Dellar)

Approach [Hugh

Dellar]

7 All the activities

were great to put

into practice in

class.

- Many things

were new,

mainly those

about

Australia, the

Tasmanian

devil and

others. But I

enjoyed them

a lot.

The song in

Spanish; use of

drawings to

practice

narratives;

dictation

exercises.

Of course. Developing oral

skills in class.

8 Oral presentations,

not only by the

teacher [Steven]

but by the Cuban

teachers too

- My old

memory can’t

remember. It

was really

good.

Some of the

techniques

presented: the

songs in Spanish,

minimal pairs,

dictation;

activities to

develop oral

skills.

9 I wouldn’t like to

choose, but the

class

demonstrations

won this time.

The

coincidence

there was with

other school

tasks.

This was my

second season

[with Steven]

and it was

totally

different, even

the topics we

had had.

In fact, I have

been using

everything.

Sure thing.

10 Everything you

gave us.

- This was the

first time I

received a

course like

this so I’m

learning a lot

and thanks for

everything.

Yes, the way of

teaching English,

the games we use

here, and all what

I learned in the

workshop

Yes of course. Whatever

you want. You are the best

11 The way you

organised the

workshops. Your

dedication.

- Inviting some

other teachers

to share with

us.

I’m not sure

because I don’t

teach English (at

present). Anyway

activities were

very interesting.

Of course. Australian

culture.

12 Our dear teacher

[Steven] and the

atmosphere of the

work.

Only three

weeks

Yes. The story

of the French

explorers in

Tasmania.

Yes. Teaching a

foreign language

using Cuban

songs.

Yes. Workshops on ELT

strategies by the dance and

the theatre.

13 I really like

everything. It was

really

collaborative; it

was very

professionally

conducted and

filled out any

expectations.

- Not really

new, but very

useful, from

professional

guidance and

input from the

teacher

[Steven] - a

whole group

work job.

Yes. Mainly it has

made me more

reflective and at

the same time

some new and

interesting

techniques such as

whistle dictation.

Yes. Mainly related to

teaching practice,

particularly different kinds

of interaction patterns at

different stages in the

teaching-learning process of

any content.

14 We learn many

new ways to work

with our students in

the classroom. The

atmosphere that

you were able to

create.

I liked

everything.

The aspects

related to the

Tasmanian

devil. It was

the first time I

heard about it.

Yes. Aspects

related to listening

activities and the

activity related to

vocabulary (food)

Writing (writing strategies)


Appendix E 209

15 The interaction of a

native English

speaker and

Spanish speakers.

The short time

for the

workshops

It was

different for

me because

we made

ourselves

presentations

in the

workshop

Yes. The

activities

proposed for

people interaction

in the classroom.

Yes I would. I like general

topics.

16 - - - - -

(*Note: Codes CM 1 to CM 6 are the six case members; and code numbers 7 to 16 are other UCPEJV

lecturers who participated in the Collaborative Teaching Workshops)

Documents

ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION IN CUBA …eprints.qut.edu.au/59959/1/Steven_Smith_Thesis.pdf · ii English Language Teacher Education in Cuba: Context, Pedagogy and Identity Abstract