| The problem. The purpose of this study is to investigate the ways in which EFL elementary school teachers conceptualize their classroom practices with specific reference to grammar teaching.;Method. Conceived within an exploratory-interpretive qualitative research paradigm, this multiple-case study examined the cognitive bases of 6 Taiwanese EFL elementary school teachers' instructional decisions and actions in grammar teaching. Data for each participant involved a preliminary survey, an additional survey, two classroom observations, three in-depth semi-structured interviews, stimulated recall, a final reflective written narrative, and several relevant documents.;Results. A key finding is that despite their diverse backgrounds in professional training and learning and teaching experiences, overall, the six Taiwanese EFL elementary school teachers have arrived at a similar pedagogical belief system about grammar teaching. However, quite a bit of variation still exists across individual participants, especially when carrying out their cognition in actual practice. Although these teachers conceived that grammar can or should be taught in EFL elementary school, they all strongly opposed the traditional Grammar Translation Method. In teaching grammar, these teachers adhered to four common principles: Less grammar, simple explanation, more examples, and more practice.;It is found that these participants' cognition about grammar teaching was largely congruent with their classroom practice under the core principles, with only a few cases of discrepancy occurring mostly due to contextual constraints. This finding also suggests an on-going process of change in cognition and practice across participants during the study.;It is also found that the cognitive bases for these teachers' classroom practice were little influenced by their previous teacher training, but rather mainly shaped by an interaction of multiple sources from their personal practical knowledge, previous experiences as EFL learners and teachers, and the social-educational context unique to the EFL setting.;Finally, the results also suggest that participation in this research project helped these in-service teachers reflect on their own teaching, and hence, facilitated their professional development. These teachers also perceived a need to upgrade their own knowledge about grammar and wished to be informed of innovative techniques of teaching grammar to children in future in-service teacher training programs. |
