"Chilean Teachers’ Beliefs about Materials use in the English classroom: An explorative Case Study"

Abstract

This piece of research aimed at exploring the beliefs of Chilean English teachers about materials in their classrooms, alongside the factors that have shaped these beliefs. Previous research on materials has neglected teachers’ beliefs about materials, in favour of studying materials themselves, e.g. textbook evaluation. This case study considered four teachers, two from public schools and two from private schools, to see whether there were any differences among their beliefs; this, based on the contrasting background and challenges they face, as exposed by previous research. Through semi-structured interviews and participants’ journals, the beliefs of teachers were elicited concerning the materials they use in class. Results show that teachers’ beliefs are almost similar regardless of their context. Overall, the four teachers believe that materials should be context-oriented and students-centred, by catering directly to their motivation and with the purpose of fostering language learning. Most of their beliefs are shaped by their experience as language learners and language teachers, but also their methodological views about teaching and learning, which hints to a possible mutual relationship between beliefs about materials and beliefs about these processes. These results highlight the complex relationships that each teacher establishes with themselves, the material and their students.