Mentoring Capstone Experiences
The following courses represent the two capstone experiences in the MAFLT Program.
FLT 885 Experiential Modules
MAFLT graduates have completed over 100 of these extensive master’s projects. I have mentored over 50 of them myself since 2014, though I am very grateful that the core faculty of the MAFLT Program now take turns as the course instructor and EM Mentor. The projects benefit from our varying, but aligned and complementary, expertise and approaches.
Course Description from Syllabus
Experiential Modules in the MAFLT Program function as a capstone assignment that should bring together learning experiences from throughout the MAFLT and advance the teacher-learner’s development toward becoming a master FL teacher. It may be helpful to think of your EM as a kind of practical thesis.
Through these projects, teacher-learners should seek out experiences that apply and enhance their their skills and reflect thoroughly on the impact of these experiences. These projects should also lead to the creation of materials, reports, presentations, designs, assessment tools, etc. that can be added to the MAFLT Portfolio as evidence of the teacher-learner’s accomplishments and expertise. Ideally, outcomes of these projects should also be informative and useful to fellow teachers both in and beyond the MAFLT community.
Experiential Module Showcase Site
EM Project Descriptions and Deliverables
Typically the EM should be completed at the end of the MAFLT Program, after taking at least 6, if not all 8, courses. See comments in the descriptions below regarding courses that you should take prior to starting certain project types. To fulfill the experiential module requirement, teacher-learners may choose to complete one larger EM project for 5 credits or two smaller projects for 2 and 3 credits each. You may also complete one 5-credit project over two semesters. For example, students have completed Action Research projects by enrolling in 3 credits one summer and 2 credits the following summer. Others have combined a 2-credit conference participation project with a 3-credit materials design project. The descriptions below designate whether a given EM type can be considered for 2, 3, or 5 credits.
This is the full list of projects that I developed in 2013 and have updated several times since then. The first two sets of project parameters are provided as examples. Descriptions of the other types are available on the EM Showcase site:
mafltshowcase.commons.msu.edu/project-types
- Action Research Project
- Ethnographic Research Project
- Community Outreach or Service Learning
- Language or Area Studies Immersion
- Practicum in Foreign Language Teaching
- Language Program Administration or Evaluation
- Proficiency-Based Assessment Design or Critique
- Materials or Curriculum Design
- Professional Seminars for Language Teachers
- Conference Participation
- Self-Designed Module
Action Research (5 credits)
An action research (AR) project for the EM will involve “systematic observation and analysis” in your own context “and typically involves developments and interventions… to bring about improvement and change” (Burns, 2009, p. 290). Because AR requires planning and implementation that may need to take place over a number of months, it may be advisable to continue a project that began in FLT 860 or to complete this 5-credit module over two semesters. For example, in the first semester you would work on your literature review, design the methods, and begin collecting data, and in the second semester you would complete your data collection, analyze your data, and write your research paper. FLT 860 Foreign/Second Language Acquisition is considered a prerequisite for this project type.
Description: AR projects involve classroom-based practitioner research. In other words, you will investigate your own teaching practices and students. Noffke and Somekh (2009) state that “action research is a methodology exceptionally well suited to exploring, developing and sustaining change processes both in classrooms and whole organizations such as schools, colleges and university departments of education” (p. 2). You will design and implement an action research project for the target language classroom. After collecting and analyzing your data, you will prepare a research report that follows the established structure and content for research in applied linguistics and education. In order to encourage students to share their results, the project also includes writing (though not necessarily submitting) a proposal to present at a conference of their choice.
Keep in mind that in order to share results beyond the MAFLT students and faculty, you must apply for approval from the MSU Institutional Review Board, which oversees research in order to protect any and all human subjects.
Documentation: Action research proposal including research questions or hypothesis, literature review, context, participants, data collection methods, data analysis, and expected outcomes; research paper including revised sections from the proposal as well as findings, discussion, and action plan; video presentation (narrated slides) suitable for posting online and sharing with peers; conference proposal based on the results; reflective essay.
Recommended Reading:
- Burns, A. (2009). Action research in second language teacher education. In Burns, A. and Richards, J. (Eds.), The Cambridge Guide to Second Language Teacher Education (p. 289-297). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Craig, D. V. (2009). Action research essentials. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
- Noffke, S. E., & Somekh, B. (Eds.). (2009). The SAGE handbook of educational action research. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
Ethnographic Research Project (5 credits)
Whereas the action research project is intended to involve classroom-based research and focus on the effectiveness of instruction, the ethnographic research project is intended to take a more exploratory approach and inform the teaching of intercultural competence. It may take place in a range of contexts, from your local community to a location in another country where you intend to live, travel extensively, or study abroad during the MAFLT Program. FLT 815 Culture in Foreign Language Teaching is considered a prerequisite for this project type.
Description: This project type provides opportunities to investigate aspects of culture and identity relevant to learners of your target language; to develop intercultural awareness and skills in you as a teacher; to engage more deeply with the concepts of culture and intercultural competence; and to develop materials for teaching interculturality that draw upon these aspects, skills, and concepts. Construct a project that involves direct interaction with users of the target language and use ethnographic methods (particularly observation, interviews, and relevant artifacts or materials) to investigate a specific aspect of culture related to those users. Write a paper that reports on this study and its results. Then, create materials based on your findings that will support your (and others’) teaching of culture and intercultural competence. This module is particularly appropriate for those who would like to work on the module while in residence in a country where the target language is spoken, but it can also be completed without leaving the U.S.
Documentation: Ethnographic research proposal, discussed with and approved by the EM mentor; ethnographic research paper; researcher journal (or blog); materials created using insights gained from the study; reflective essay.
Recommended Reading:
Roberts, C., Byram, M., Barro, A., Jordan, S., and Street, B. (2001). Language learners as ethnographers [electronic resource]. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. (Available through MSU Ebrary site.)
Heath, S. B., Street, B. V, & Mills, M. (2008). On ethnography: approaches to language and literacy research. New York: Teachers College Press.
