Research on the BEIC Curriculum: Unveiling What Lies Under the Tip of the Iceberg

Es un detenido análisis de la investigación The Value of Curricular lntrospection, en que se incorpora la realimentación dada por diversos participantes nacionales y extranjeros en el CILAP 2007, a quienes se les expuso los resultados iniciales de esta investigación. El estudio surgió de la disparidad de criterios entre diversos actores del BEIC, de la ELCL, respecto a la pertinencia que para la enseñanza del inglés a niños en Costa Rica tienen los principios comunicativos denominados interacción, inmersión parcial y aprendizaje por experiencia. Así, mientras diseñadores de currículo y profesores del BEIC consideraban estos principios altamente eficaces, buena parte del estudiantado que realizaba la práctica docente pensaba lo contrario.A detailed analysis is provided here of the research project titled The Value of Curricular Introspection. It also includes the feedback given by the national and foreign participants in CILAP 2007, to whom this study was presented. The investigation emerged from the diverse opinions existing among BEIC-ELCL actors regarding the pertinence of interaction, partial immersion and experiential learning communicative principies for the teaching of English to children in Costa Rica. Thus, whereas BEIC curriculum designers and professors considered these principies to be highly effective, many student-teachers in that program believe just the opposite.

“Constructive Paranoia” Applied to Education (The Case of English Language Teaching)

This paper analyzes the concept of constructive paranoia stated by journalist and author Andrés Oppenheimer to promote development in Latin America. Based on that concept, this paper discusses the effectiveness of current English Language Teaching, particularly, as well as what should be done in order to obtain better results. As a conclusion, a re-structure of approach, curriculum and methodology in teaching the language is proposed.