Page 157 - LA ENSEÑANZA APRENDIZAJE DE LENGUAS

Sección III
TEMAS ACTUALES DE ENSEÑANZA
DE LENGUAS Y LA FORMACIÓN DOCENTE 157

Data analysis was an ongoing process conducted utilizing narrative content and critical
discourse analysis (Block, 2008). Teaching practice portfolios were collected through the use

of EDMODO, which is a virtual social network, often referred to as a Facebook for schools.

Semi-structured face to face interviews and a focus group session were conducted to obtain

insight into PSTs’ perceptions of self as they conceptualized their personal theories, attitudes,

and beliefs (Beijaard et al., 2004). Semi-structured interviews and the focus group session

were conducted post-practicum, audio recorded (with PSTs’ written consent) and transcribed.

The data was visited and revisited to identify significant portions for data analysis.

Ethics

All PSTs provided written consent for their participation. Identifiers have been eliminated from
the data collection and pseudonyms were employed to protect participants’ privacy. All quo-

tations are given verbatim and have not been corrected.

Findings and Discussion

Before initiating the practicum, all PSTs had enthusiastic expectations regarding teaching. All
PSTs commented that they felt that they had gained valuable learning experiences from their

service learning experience and felt that, despite occasional setbacks, the experience had been

rewarding. The two PSTs placed in the foster home (casa hogar) identify the challenge of

working with learners who lack resources such as textbooks as challenging and attribute these

problems to the resource poor environment. They obtained a better understanding of dealing

with a lack of resources and developed their creativity.

Universidad Autónoma de Chiapas