This colloquium raises important questions regarding how knowledge is conceptualized in teacher education. The heart of the session focuses on a series of three dialogues between teachers and the researchers whose work has inspired a rethinking of their pedagogy. Critical sociocultural approaches to language are a common theme throughout the dialogues. The presenter discusses a whole-language concept tracing the phonograph record's rise and fall of popularity along with the history of the recording industry. He shows that all skill areas benefit by examining U.S. pop music culturally and historically.
Students stay motivated through realia, music, and engaging language activities.
Speakers discuss what is known, what is controversial, and what the future may hold. This presentation compares Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai to Hollywood's Western remake, The Magnificent Seven, to explore cross-cultural differences. The presentation also compares the different characterizations in the original version and remake of Cape Fear. Ways of overcoming linguistic and cultural barriers are discussed. Presenters note how persistently and compellingly culture envelops us and forms our thinking patterns and learning practices.