Page 15 - Beyond Methods

Introduction 3
• the macrostrategy section provides theoretical, empirical, and ex-
periential rationale underpinning a particular macrostrategy;
• the microstrategies section provides sample microstrategies that illustrate how to realize the goals of the particular macrostrategy in a classroom situation; and
• the exploratory projects section provides detailed guidelines for teachers to conduct their own situated teacher research aimed at generating new ideas for realizing the goals of a particular macro- strategy in their specific learning and teaching context.
All the chapters have built-in reflective tasks that encourage read- ers to pause at crucial points along the text and think critically about the issues in light of their own personal as well as professional ex- perience. In addition to these reflective tasks, several chapters con- tain authentic classroom interactional data that illustrate the issues raised and the suggestions made.
How to Use the Book
The chapters in the book need not be read and used sequentially. Each is written as a self-contained unit and, therefore, can be used separately. It would, however, be beneficial to start with the first two chapters to understand the rationale behind the macrostrategic framework. The next ten chapters on specific macrostrategies can be read in any order although, as will become clear, certain macro- strategies closely relate to each other to form a meaningful cluster. The last chapter shows how the framework can be used for moni- toring classroom aims and activities. Similarly, the reflective tasks and the exploratory projects can be carried out selectively depend- ing on teachers’ experience and their perceived needs.
Regardless of the sequence in which the book is read and used, it is worthwhile to keep its primary purpose in mind: to facilitate the growth and development of teachers’ own theory of practice. This is not a recipe book with ready-made solutions for recurring problems. Rather, it is designed to give teachers broad guiding prin- ciples to assist them in the construction of their own context-specific postmethod pedagogy. Readers will quickly recognize that neither the suggested microstrategies nor the proposed projects can be used without suitably modifying them to meet the linguistic, con- ceptual, and communicative capacities of a given group of learners.