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Abstract:

The authors report on the results of an impact study of the PNIEB conducted in Aguascalientes. This was a large-scale qualitative study commissioned by the state Ministry of Education to look at the effects of the English program on primary school students, grades K-6. Whereas the results of a foreign language program are often assessed by testing children to measure their gains in linguistic terms: vocabulary, L2 skills, and so forth, the researchers in this project were interested in examining other types of potential benefits that early foreign language learning can proffer. Therefore, they approached the evaluation using the “5 Cs” as an analytic framework (ACTFL, 1996): communication, cultures, connections, comparisons, and communities. The research team conducted over 30 classroom observations and 100 interviews with various stakeholders: teachers, students, parents, principals, and coordinators. The research findings illustrate the benefits of an early foreign language program, including the ways that early foreign language exposure creates inter-curricular connections, promotes engagement with multilingualism in the community, and changes children’s worldview. Beyond just linguistic gains, primary foreign language instruction reinforces learning across other subject areas, connects Mexican students to migrant family members, serves multiple communicative functions in everyday life, and fosters intercultural awareness.



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Abstract:

This research study reports the results of national data collected by one of three researchers on Mexico’s Programa Nacional de Inglés en Educación Básica (PNIEB, or the National Program for English in Basic Education), and complements a larger quantitative study sponsored by the Mexican Ministry of Education. During the 2011-12 school year, data was collected from school site visits, classroom observations, and interviews with school principals, PNIEB EFL teachers, teacher supervisors, university faculty, and federal and state government officials. Data collection was conducted in four states geographically distributed across Mexico. This researcher documented the progress and impact of the PNIEB in Mexican schools based on participants personal and professional self-reflection accounts of their experience in the program. Qualitative data on the status of each state’s context ascertained the impact of the PNIEB on the development of PNIEB EFL teachers’ skills of teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL). Results of the data are reported in four themes that emerged: (1) genuine instructional practices, (2) level of English proficiency and confidence, (3) classroom and teacher character that supports teaching, (4) the training of EFL teachers-support and collaboration. The results provide an opportunity for discussion when considering implementing EFL training programs with practicing teachers or in teacher education programs.



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Abstract:

Implementing educational reform requires decisions and actions, which usually become a challenge for the people involved. Teaching English as a compulsory subject in the curricula of elementary public education in Mexico was the ‘implementation of an innovation’, which created a number of challenges worth documenting (Markee, 1997). This paper presents the results of a longitudinal study where the voices of a group of teachers involved in this implementation was heard and recorded using narrative inquiry (Johnson & Golombek, 2002). These teachers, living this innovational project in public elementary schools in Puebla, were going through a path nobody had walked before. Importantly in this study the teachers themselves through narratives and focus groups raised the issues and made their voices heard. Overall, this is a reconstruction of those voices from the PNIEB implementing stage in Puebla.



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Supplementary file: Appendix 1
Supplementary file: Appendix 2

Abstract:

The implementation of the PNIEB presents a tremendous demand for new classroom teachers, which is exceeding the available pool of qualified candidates. Therefore, there is an urgent need to focus on teacher training, and to organize teacher training efficiently in order to maximize the effects and make wise use of limited resources. The authors report on a needs analysis study undertaken to identify key areas to focus training efforts for PNIEB teachers. The study consisted of a national survey of 370 teachers representing 24 different states. The analysis of the surveys identified three different profiles of PNIEB teachers. Each type of teacher identified has different strengths and professional development needs. Given this diversity, a “one size fits all” approach to teacher training does not seem adequate. The findings suggest that training programs for PNIEB teachers should take a differentiated approach, and be tailored to respond to their specific linguistic, pedagogical and educational needs. The authors conclude by encouraging long term capacity building, in particular by creating specializations within licenciaturas and diplomados that focus on working with specific needs and characteristics of children in public schools.



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Supplementary file: Appendix

Abstract:

Recognizing the fundamental role of the school principals as key players for the implementation of the Programa Nacional de Inglés en Educacion Básica (PNIEB), an analysis was conducted of the perceptions and expectations with the program. The analysis used a sociocultural focus that frames educational processes as a co-construction amongst actors, their practices, and institutional structures.

The corpus studied consisted of two datasets: first, 596 questionnaires given to principals from preschool, elementary and middle schools from across the country, with the purpose of incorporating the PNIEB to their schools; second, 13 interviews with elementary school principals working with PNIEB in the state of Aguascalientes. Although the instruments and scales of measure are different, the results coincide in (a) the identification of institutional frameworks that generate tensions, and (b) some of the positive aspects of the program. The analyzed conversations offer evidence of different leadership styles and creative management strategies used in resolving some institutional difficulties for the implementation of PNIEB. We concluded that it is pertinent that the role played by directors and teachers in the implementation of the PNIEB be followed up. Linked to this is the need to inform, reform and involve the principals and actors of every sector that participates in the PNIEB, in order to channel their agency as key players in the educational process.





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Abstract:

This narrative inquiry seeks to illustrate the challenges faced by the administrator of a state English in Primary school program when they must assume and carry out similar responsibilities in a program under the auspices of the Programa Nacional de Inglés en Educación Básica (PNIEB). This study gives voice to the program coordinator’s experiences in negotiating a change from a state to a federal program, their views on the relationship between pedagogic and content area knowledge as seen through Richards’ Domains of second language teaching and their work within the state political system of policy discourse. Situated within a narrative inquiry lens, the researchers gathered data through the use of an electronic journal located in the cloud. The data and administrator’s story was complied and put forth in this article. The findings in this article focus on the socio-historical development of the program, development in the area of pedagogy, content area and curricular knowledge, and program policy through political discourse in a local context as the most salient challenges in the administration of this English in Primary School program. However, this narrative serves to provide insight into other important aspects of program development and research such as the need for training in the area of education administration and contextualized teacher education in English language teaching. The program administrator interviewed concludes their story by exhorting political authorities to work within the realities of the Mexican public school system.



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Abstract:

With the recent educational reforms in Mexico (i.e. Plan Nacional de Desarrollo 2001-2006, Reforma Integral de la Educación Básica, 2009 and, Plan de Estudios para la Educación Básica, 2011) an emphasis has been made on promoting the learning of the English Language. This is due to the fact that English has been positioned as the language for international trades and communication as a result of diverse factors related to historical conditions (Fennell, 2001). In 2009, actions were taken in order to include English as a school subject in elementary education by officially incorporating the National English Program in Basic Education (NEPBE) into basic public education. Despite of the fact that the NEPBE is solidly grounded in theoretical aspects related to English Language Teaching (ELT), there are other non-academic aspects that seem to have been neglected for the successful implementation of the program. In light of this context, the present study explores, from a qualitative approach, those non-academic aspects that might hinder the implementation of this program. In order to have a broader understanding of the phenomenon being researched, the participants of this project included the insights of five NEPBE teachers, two head teachers, a school principal and, the coordinator of a NEPBE training program. The data collection was carried out through informal conversations, semi-structured interviews and focus groups. The information gathered was transcribed, coded and, categorized in order to identify the most salient non-academic issues that negatively affect the implementation of the NEPBE. The results show that some of those non-academic factors are concerned with administrative issues, misconceptions around the nature of the NEPBE and a perceived reluctance to integrate the NEPBE. These findings suggest that the non-academic aspects play a crucial role in the implementation of the NEPBE and further research to find alternatives to solve these constraints is needed.



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Abstract:

This article outlines the methodological design of a research project that investigates the teaching of English in regular public elementary schools in the Republic of Mexico and the preliminary findings in one of the areas of focus: the problems encountered or related to the subjects who participated (professors, directors, parents and students). The project included researchers from various states who were given the task of collecting and analyzing data gathered from their own facilities. A qualitative approach was used and date was collected through interviews with students, faculty, staff, directors and parents and classroom observations. Data analysis was conducted in two stages: first the information generated from each state was analyzed, then based on the findings of the first stage and on other things that emerged from the data, the information was analyzed on a national level. Within the main findings included the subjects working conditions and the training of English teachers; poor degree of communication and coordination between officials of English programs and school principals, and the use of teaching methodologies which are not dynamic or aligned with the curricular approach.



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Abstract:

The Mexican Secretary of Public Education (SEP by its initials in Spanish) put into operation the National English Program for Basic Education (NEPBE) as part of the Integral Basic Education reform. The program is centered around the adoption of an educational model based on competencies, with a socio cultural approach founded in Vygotsky (1995). The NEPBE divides three levels of English into 4 cycles with basic contents, which are defined by two main models: social practices of language and specific competencies. The concern of the present study is to detect the implementation problems of the activities proposed by NEPBE in cycle II. Two data collection instruments were used; an open questionnaire applied to 21% of the total of English teachers in cycle II in Nayarit and a closed questionnaire applied to 74% of the teachers in cycle II in Nayarit. The results show that the practices that students like the best are the “children’s songs” and the “crossword puzzles” while the practices students did not like at all were the “guide of curious questions” and “the diagrams”.



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Abstract:

In this article we present findings from a qualitative study on the implementation of the Programa Nacional de Inglés en Educación Básica (PNIEB), specifically in relation to the teaching methodology used in schools in Sonora from 2010 to 2012. Data for the study was collected through open interviews with program coordinators, school principals, English teachers, parents, and 6th grade students. The state of Sonora, as other states in the country, had an English program in its public primary schools prior to the PNIEB. The teaching methodology in the state program was based on communicative language teaching and was characterized by different practices and issues. In 2010, a transition began to the national program which is based on a sociocultural perspective where social practices of the language and specific competencies have been defined as a basis for teacher’s planning, teaching and evaluation. Results from the study indicate that the coexistence and transition between programs brought about new teaching scenarios and challenges. In this article we describe some of the methodological practices identified during this time and some issues surrounding the application of the PNIEB’s framework and methodology in this context.



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Abstract:

This article reports the results of a small-scale qualitative study concerning the teachers’ perspectives of didactic material used in the NEPBE/PNIEB program, in central Mexico. Twenty-four teachers working in different contexts and levels of elementary schools at PNIEB were interviewed. The data revealed that didactic material is an area that needs to be addressed because the books used should be more in align-ment with the content and the objectives of the program. Furthermore, administrative problems threaten the stability of the program and create conflicts for teachers and students. Nevertheless, the teachers solve these problems with creativity and enthusiasm due to their professionalism and dedication.



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Supplementary file: Appendix

Abstract:

The main objective of this investigation was to evaluate the pedagogical value of two textbooks used in the National English Program in Basic Education in Mexico (NEPBE). The evaluation was addressed in two main perspectives. The first one consisted of the analysis of the textbooks’ physical characteristics, language content, text-types, tasks and activities, approach used, competencies development and cultural content. All these elements were analyzed according to teaching English to children’s theoretical foundations. The second perspective consisted of the evaluation of how the textbooks fulfilled the national syllabus. In general terms, it was found that both textbooks had some elements that can be considered appropriate for children. Nevertheless, it was concluded that the negative attributes far out-weighed the positive characteristics. An example of a negative attribute was an overwhelming quantity of linguistic knowledge that was not aligned with the NEPBE. Also, the majority of the tasks and activities can be categorized as grammar-oriented. The development of communicative competencies established in the PNIEB was not observed.



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