Understanding agency and constraints in the conception of creativity in the language classroom

Author:

Coffey Simon1,Leung Constant1

Affiliation:

1. King’s College London , London , UK

Abstract

Abstract In this paper we investigate the ways in which creativity is understood and enacted by language teachers. Although the term ‘creativity’ has gained enormous traction in language pedagogy, and in education more generally, we suggest that the concept remains a floating signifier carrying different personal connotations that are shaped by wider institutional and professional constraints. We report on interview data with practising language teachers who discuss their interpretation of creativity and how it manifests in their classrooms. Our analysis considered how teachers positioned themselves and their students in relation to each other and how the agency of the different actors was shaped by discursive constructions (of creativity) which were, in turn, underpinned by broader socio-historical and disciplinary frames. In particular, we focus on distinctions between creative language and creative language teaching and how these are construed differently across professional contexts. While teachers are keen to adopt creative approaches, findings show that there are significant differences in their interpretations of the concept that point to deeply rooted epistemological dissonances in the perception of language and personhood in the pedagogical encounter. In the final section we develop the implications of these findings for professional cultures and identities, in particular some of the critical but under-explored issues surrounding the idea of creativity in language teaching, including the ever-present ‘teacher-ledness’, the curricularised nature of taught languages and the absence of personal development.

Publisher

Walter de Gruyter GmbH

Subject

Linguistics and Language,Language and Linguistics

Reference21 articles.

1. Canagarajah, A. S. 2006. Changing communicative needs, revised assessment objectives: Testing English as an international language. Language Assessment Quarterly 3(3). 229–242.

2. Canagarajah, A.S. 2011. Translanguaging in the classrom: Emerging issues for research and pedagogy. Applied Linguistics Review 2. 1–27.

3. Carter, R. 1996. Look both ways before crossing: Developments in the language and literature classroom. In R. Carter & J. McRae (eds.), Language, literature and the learner, 1–15. London & NY: Longman.

4. Charmaz, Kathy. 2006. Constructing grounded theory: A practical guide. London and Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

5. Cook, G. 2000. Language play, language learning. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

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