Investigating Dialogic Teaching Competence in ELT Pre-Service Teacher Education

Fatma Sezgin; Paşa Tevfik Cephe

doi:10.35207/later.1829959

Investigating Dialogic Teaching Competence in ELT Pre-Service Teacher Education

Abstract

This study investigates the presence and implementation of Dialogic Teaching Competence (DTC) within English Language Teacher Education (ELTE) programs in Türkiye, with a specific focus on pre-service teacher experiences. Grounded in Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory and informed by the works of Alexander (2008), Bakhtin (1981), and Mercer and Littleton (2007), the research explores how dialogic teaching manifests cognitively, pedagogically, and institutionally in ELT settings. Drawing on a qualitative case study design, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 13 student teachers enrolled in an ELT program at a state university. Thematic analysis revealed three overarching dimensions of DTC: (1) student teachers’ understanding and perceptions of dialogic teaching, (2) the enactment of dialogic interaction during coursework and practicum, and (3) the influence of curricular structures and instructor modelling. While participants valued dialogic principles and employed related techniques such as elicitation and open-ended questioning, their unfamiliarity with the term “dialogic teaching” signalled a lack of explicit integration in the curriculum. Techniques were often applied procedurally rather than strategically, and instructor modelling, though impactful, was rarely supported by reflective dialogue or theoretical framing. The findings underscore the need for ELTE programs to embed dialogic pedagogy systematically across courses, strengthen reflective practices.

Keywords

References

Alexander, R. (2004). Towards dialogic teaching: Rethinking classroom talk. Dialogos.
Alexander, R. (2008). Culture, dialogue and learning: Notes on an emerging pedagogy. In N. Mercer & S. Hodgkinson (Eds.), Exploring talk in school, (pp. 91-114). SAGE
Bakhtin, M. M. (1981) The dialogic imagination: Four Essays (M. Holquist, Ed.; C. Emerson & M. Holquist, Trans.). University of Texas Press.
Borg, S. (2006). Teacher cognition and language education: Research and practice. Continuum. Burns, A., &
Richards, J. C. (Eds.). (2009). The Cambridge guide to second language teacher education. Cambridge University Press.
Burbules, N. (1993). Dialogue in teaching: Theory and practice. Teachers College Press. Corson, D. (1988). Oral language across the curriculum. Multilingual Matters.
Creswell, J.W. and Creswell, J.D. (2018). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (5th ed.). SAGE.
Duff, P. A. (2012). Case study research in applied linguistics. Routledge.

Howe, C., & Abedin, M. (2013). Classroom dialogue: A systematic review across four decades of research. Cambridge journal of education, 43(3), 325-356. https://doi.org/10.1080/0305764X.2013.786024
Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge University Press.
Lefstein, A. (2010). More helpful as problem than solution: Some implications of situating dialogue in classrooms. In K. Littleton, & C. Howe (Eds.), Educational dialogues: Understanding and promoting productive interaction (pp. 170–191). Routledge.
Mercer, N. (1995). The guided construction of knowledge: Talk amongst teachers and learners. Multilingual matters.
Mercer, N. & Howe, C. (2012). Explaining the dialogic processes of teaching and learning: The value and potential of sociocultural theory. Language, Culture and Social Interaction 1(1), 12-21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lcsi.2012.03.001
Mercer, N. & Littleton, K. (2007). Dialogue and the development of children's thinking: A sociocultural approach. Routledge.
Nystrand, M., Gamoran, A., Kachur, R., & Prendergast, C. (1997). Opening dialogue: Understanding the dynamics of language and learning and in the English classroom. Teachers College Press.
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd ed.). SAGE.
Reznitskaya, A., & Gregory, M. (2013). Student thought and classroom language: Examining the mechanisms of change in dialogic teaching. Educational Psychologist, 48(2), 114- 133.
Säljö, R. (2009). Learning, theories of learning, and units of analysis in research. Educational Psychologist, 44(3), 202-208. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00461520903029030
Seliger, H. W., & Shohamy, E. (1989). Second language research methods. Oxford University Press.
Silva, E. (2009). Measuring skills for 21stcentury learning. Phi Delta Kappan, 90(9), 630- 634.
Teo, P. (2013). Stretch your answers: Opening the dialogic space in teaching and learning. Learning, Culture and Social Interaction, 2(2), 91-101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lcsi.2013.02.002
Teo, P. (2019). Teaching for the 21st-century: A case for dialogic pedagogy. Learning, Culture and Social Interaction, 21, 170-178. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lcsi.2019.03.009
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.
Wells, G. (1999). Dialogic inquiry: Towards a socio-cultural practice and theory of education. Cambridge University Press.
Wertsch, J. V. (1991). Voices of the mind: A sociocultural approach to mediated action. Harvester Wheatsheaf.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Language Studies (Other)

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Fatma Sezgin ^*
0000-0002-4734-3305
Türkiye

Paşa Tevfik Cephe
0000-0002-4245-8648
Türkiye

Publication Date

December 23, 2025

Submission Date

November 25, 2025

Acceptance Date

December 17, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 1970 Volume: 8 Number: 2

DOI

https://doi.org/10.35207/later.1829959

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA45PH99BN

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Sezgin, F., & Cephe, P. T. (2025). Investigating Dialogic Teaching Competence in ELT Pre-Service Teacher Education. Language Teaching and Educational Research, 8(2), 196-209. https://doi.org/10.35207/later.1829959