An exploration of the perceptions of undergraduate trainee teachers regarding the factors that impacted upon their use of incidental Welsh in the primary classroom.

The aim of this research is to investigate the perceptions of undergraduate trainee teachers with regard to the factors that impact upon their use of incidental Welsh in the primary classroom. The concept of ‘incidental Welsh’ is defined as “interactions between adults and children that arise naturally in an unstructured situation…” (Estyn, 2013b). It is a compulsory requirement of every teacher’s practice. This research sought to gather the experiences and perceptions of a cohort of 44 trainee teachers following a three year, English-medium BA degree in Primary Education with Qualified Teacher Status (BA(Ed)) at a Welsh university, in terms of the requirement to use incidental Welsh in different classrooms. This longitudinal study followed the trainees through their course, gathering information at five points via paper-based questionnaires. In addition, the study involved eight detailed case studies using several research methods including classroom observation, questionnaires, interviews and document scrutiny. Together, these data created a picture of the experience of the trainees over three years in relation to their use of incidental Welsh in the classroom and allowed the researcher to consider the impact of a wide range of factors on the trainees’ use of incidental Welsh. The results of this study make clear that the most significant factor when determining the incidental Welsh used by the trainee is the modelling demonstrated by the teacher with whom they are placed. Additionally, the results suggest that trainee teachers perceive there to be significant differences in expectation in different schools in terms of their use of incidental Welsh and that they perceive these differences in expectation to be largely due to the importance placed upon it by individual teachers and headteachers. In a context of significant change in Wales in terms of policy and curriculum concerning the Welsh language, the researcher makes recommendations concerning the role of universities and Welsh Government in the training of future teachers and in the development of the Welsh language across the primary sector.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

phd

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

University of Wales Trinity Saint David

Year dc:date.issued

2021

Author dc:creator

• Morgan, Catherine

• L Addysg (Cyffredinol)
• LB1501 Addysg Gynradd
• LB2300 Addysg Uwch

Dc Identifier Grantnumber

UWTSD

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.uwtsd.ac.uk:1821