Practical curriculum inquiry: Students' Voices of their EFL Curriculum and Instruction

Abstract

This mixed-methods study borrowed Schwabian notions of practical curriculum inquiry (1969, 1971, 1973, 1983) to investigate students' perceptions of their English as a foreign language (EFL) curriculum and instruction in light of their interactions with the four commonplaces; i.e., teachers, learners, subject matter, and milieu. Data were gathered through a questionnaire, interviews, and focus group interviews. Altogether 70 Thai university students volunteered to participate in the study. When woven together, these data demonstrated how this particular group of students perceived their EFL curriculum and instruction in terms of the four commonplaces encompassing curriculum development and instruction. In particular, they discussed how teachers' personalities, pedagogical knowledge, and subject matter affected their language learning; how they were bullied by their colleagues when using English; how significant English was, and; how their environment determined their learning. The information elicited in this process highlighted how important student voices are in evaluating educational programs.