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Field Pedagogic disposition to informalityfun
• a private university at Malang,
Indonesia •
a large class with mostly low-proficiency students
Capital Practice
Physical embodied cultural capital •
being kind, patient, and friendly •
presenting a friendly face •
complimenting students using students’ names
Personal institutionalized cultural capital
• making jokeshumour in the class
• choice of attire
• sense of humour
• self-confidence
• enthusiasm for teaching
• ability to speak English fluently
Figure 9: Relationship between Andis pedagogic disposition to informalityfun and capital, field, and practice
6.4.1.1 Manifestations of Andi’s pedagogic disposition to informalityfun in his practice
As stated in the previous section, Andi’s pedagogic disposition to informalityfun, in conjunction with his capital, generates his teaching practices i.e.
kind, friendly, complimentary, humorous, etc.. This subsection discusses examples of how these practices are implemented in Andi’s classroom. The excerpt below, taken
from a video recording of his lesson, shows how Andi acts in a kind, patient, and friendly manner to his students:
[Andi is teaching Reading Comprehension III to third semester students. There are approximately 40 students in the class, mostly female. He commences the lesson by greeting the
students] ANDI: Good afternoon everyone, how’s your life today? [smiling]
STUDENTS: Fine. ANDI: Fine?
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STUDENTS: So hot. ANDI: So hot?
STUDENTS: Tired and so hot. ANDI: I just finished my teaching in H16 room with G class so that I have to run to get here on
time. [Some students are late to class. They stand in front of the classroom door]
ANDI: Yup, come in. [While the students are looking for the seats, Andi cleans the whiteboard]
ANDI: I’m sorry because last week I couldn’t attend this class. I couldn’t meet you because I was out of town. I was in Bandung, but don’t worry, we’ll still have 16 meetings in total, so
we’ll have make-up class later. Okay, in the last two meetings last two weeks I gave you assignments, but before we talk about that, I’d like to review what we’re talking in the previous
meeting. [After some time Andi turns on the fan as it is hot inside the classroom]
As the above excerpt illustrates, Andi acted in a friendly and informal manner towards the students demonstrated through his informal greeting, how’s your life today? to open
the lesson. Moreover, he was smiling while he greeted the students and this implies that he wants to establish a close relationship with the students. Andi was also kind to the
students. He allowed the students who were late to join the class without making their tardiness an issue. Andi most likely thinks that it is important for the students to feel
comfortable during lessons and as a result he is flexible in his management of minor misdemeanours. Andi’s action to erase the content from the white board, turn on the fan
himself commonly the teacher asks one of the students to do that, and apologises to the students to create an image as a patient and kind teacher so that the students will feel
comfortable in the class and enjoy the lesson and learn as a result. Furthermore, before Andi closed the lesson he stated, “I’m sorry because I don’t
know what happened with this attendance list as I only find 20 names in this new attendance list. So for those who don’t find their names in the attendance list, please
write your name in a piece of paper”. Andi’s use of the words “sorry” and “please” indicates his kindness, politeness and respect for the students. Additionally, data from
the video recording of his lessons and the observation notes revealed how Andi always spoke to the students with a warm and professional tone of voice. These practices are
generated by Andi’s pedagogic disposition to informalityfun. Andi’s pedagogic disposition to informalityfun is also manifested through the
regular compliments he gives to the students with such expressions as “good”, “very
154 good”, and “very nice” if they answer his questions correctly. The following excerpts
drawn from the video recording further illustrates this point:
ANDI: Yup, next is Milka MILKA: Would you like a cigarette? [reading a question in the textbook] No. I don’t smoke
[answering the question]. ANDI: All right … good. I don’t smoke [emphasising Milka’s correct answer].
[Andi is discussing a topic about derivative. He asks his students to mention some derivative words]
ANDI: Happen? STUDENTS: Happening [entire class answers].
ANDI: Hurt? STUDENTS: Hurting [entire class answers].
ANDI: Hurting. Yup, very good.
As the above excerpts show, Andi responds the students’ answers with expressions such as “good” and “very good” to praise their correct answer. These compliments function
as feedback to reinforce the students’ participation and engagement. In addition, after discussing the material with the students, Andi says, “it’s very nice. Everyone answers
all the questions correctly”. Thus, Andi not only compliments particular students, he also compliments the entire class to promote a sense of collective effort. This
compliment is intended to condition the students to respond positively to the tasks. Another action of Andi’s, which demonstrates his habitus to informalityfun is
his use of the student’s first name when addressing them. This is illustrated in the following excerpt taken from the video recording of his lesson:
ANDI: Ok let’s check it together. We will start from the students at the back. Ilham, number 1 page 10 [pointing to Ilham to answer].
ILHAM: The teacher got Jamal to rewrite the exercises carefully [reading the questions]. They will write the exercises together [reading the correct answer].
ANDI: They will write the exercises together [repeating Ilham’s answer]. How about the others? OTHER STUDENTS: B Jamal review the exercises carefully [entire class answers together].
ANDI: Okay, the keyword is rewrite. The meaning is he has already done it before but it’s not satisfying and then he must write it again. So the first attempt he didn’t do his work carefully. So
the best answer is B. Good Number two, Basit [pointing to Basit to answer the next question].
155 As the above excerpt illustrates, Andi refers to the students by their name when he is
interacting with them e.g. Ilham and Basit which indicates that he has made the effort to familiarise himself with the students’ names. Moreover, even in circumstances where
he has forgotten a student’s name, he is prepared to ask the student to remind him e.g. “what’s your name again?”. This allows Andi to personalise his interactions with the
students which, in a large sized class, demonstrates to the students that he wants to acknowledge their identity.
Andi feels that the use of students’ names as a personal touch is essential for good behaviour management that will support him in being an effective teacher. It is a
key to building a good and strong relationship with his students. Although remembering students’ names is not an easy task, Andi made a great effort to do just
that. By contrast, Maya the previous case study teacher was not familiar with her students’ names. When she interacted with them, she referred to them as “you”. Maya
did not feel that the use of names when addressing her students was important. As a result, Maya was not approachable and had a pedagogic disposition to
formalitydistance. Another of Andi’s teaching actions that demonstrate his disposition to
informalityfun is his habit of making jokeshumours in the class. The excerpt below illustrates this point:
ANDI: Next, Tika [pointing Tika to answer a question] TIKA: I never eat meat. I’m a vegetarian [reading a question in the textbook].
ANDI: Ok. I’m a vegetarian [emphasising Tika’s correct answer]. Is there anyone who’s a vegetarian here? Ada yg vegetarian? [repeating the question in Indonesian]
STUDENTS: [Staring each other] … Joni [the students answer together] ANDI: Joni? Joni is omnivore, eat anything termasuk kursi meja [including chair and table].
[All the students laugh]
From the above excerpt, it is clear that Andi is willing to introduce humour into the interactions with his students in order to create a relaxed classroom atmosphere. The
humour invites the students to laugh and this seems to help them to enjoy the lesson. Another example of how Andi uses humour for positive effect is in the following
excerpt:
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[Andi commences the lesson] ANDI: All right. How’s your study this week?
STUDENTS: Good. ANDI: As you can see there is a camera. So our lesson today is being recorded. So if you want
to be in the video, look at the camera and say hi. [All the students laugh. One student sitting next to the camera looks at the camera]
ANDI: Yes, you can move in front of the camera and say hi. [The student then says hi and, again, all of the other students laugh]
The above excerpt shows that Andi’s willingness to display his sense of humour is well received by the students. Makewa, et al. 2011, p. 1 pointed out that “teachers who use
humour in teaching are generally rated effective in terms of motivation, creation of engaging lessons, and anxiety reduction in students. The teachers are also rated effective
in terms of stimulation”. Accordingly, Andi tries to make the learning process more engaging by creating jokes to make it enjoyable and fun. His use of humour during his
lessons is driven by his pedagogic disposition to informalityfun. The next subsection of this chapter examines the relationship between Andi’s pedagogic disposition to
informalityfun and capital, field, and practice.
6.4.1.1 Relationship between Andi’s pedagogic disposition to informalityfun and capital, field, and practice
Andi’s pedagogic disposition to informalityfun requires his capital to facilitate his practice in his field. Indeed, Andi’s friendly face, choice of attire, sense of humour,
self-confidence, enthusiasm for teaching, and ability to speak English fluently become the resources that provide him with power to implement his pedagogic disposition to
informalityfun. Andi acts in a way that is kind, patient, and friendly towards the students, as demonstrated through his preparedness to compliment the students,
acknowledge their identities, and share a joke during lessons. Andi asserted:
If I notice even though only one student looked unhappy in my class, it really influences my mood to teach. I will ask myself; “What’s wrong with the
student?” “Doesn’t he like my class?” “Does he feel that the material I gave is too difficult for him?”, etc. I always want to make every student interested in my
lesson Interview 1, 18112011.
157 The above comments demonstrate Andi’s view that the students should enjoy his
teaching. He acknowledges that the students’ impression of his teaching influences his motivation to teach. Furthermore, his hope that all of the students are happy in his class
and enjoy their learning experience indicates that Andi regards one of the purposes of his teaching as to help the students to enjoy learning. As a result, Andi has a pedagogic
disposition to informalityfun that drives the orientation of his practices towards delivering an enjoyable learning experience.
Furthermore, Andi believes that complimenting the students is important:
To me, giving compliments to students is necessary to appreciate the students’ effort in answering the questions. I always try appreciating it no matter what the
answer is. Therefore, the students will be more motivated to be active in the process of teaching and learning Interview 3, 13062012.
Clearly Andi believes that an effective way to motivate students to participate in the learning activities is to praise their efforts. Andi even praises the students when they
cannot answer the question entirely correctly to show his appreciation for their attempt and as a way to encourage them to work harder on the next occasion. Andi also
indicated, “I try to know my students and remember every student’s name” Interview 1, 28122011. This statement not only demonstrates that remembering students’ name
is important for Andi, it is also indicative of the respect he has for the students and the importance of establishing a good relationship with them.
Andi’s disposition to informalityfun is the result of his past school experience and the social conditions of his instructional practice. Bourdieu claimed that formal
education plays a crucial role in the creation of an individual’s habitus Ferguson Ladd, 1996. This notion is reflected in Andi’s statement, “I’ve got some favourite
lecturers when I took my bachelor degree. They were so kind to every student and had very interesting and creative methods in teaching. They also never gave pressure to their
students” Interview 3, 13062012. Andi’s educational experience at a private university greatly influences the way he teaches in that he tries to replicate the tolerance
and professionalism shown by his own teachers rather than the strict approach associated with public university teachers. Habitus should be considered as the
adjustment of a person to the world, or as the guiding map for how one should act Jenkins, 1992. As such, Andi’s experiences of friendly and fun teachers contribute to
158 his pedagogic disposition to informalityfun shaping his choice to act in a kind, patient,
and friendly manner to his students just as his own teachers did towards him. On the one hand, Andi’s pedagogic disposition to informalityfun underpins the
positive aspects of his interactions with his students and the relaxed classroom atmosphere he creates. On the other hand, it may be argued that the students do not fully
respect Andi’s authority as a result of this pedagogic disposition. The video recording and observation data revealed the students sometimes misbehaved and did not always
pay attention during lessons, reflecting the difficulties of establishing an effective balance between flexibility and strict control when teaching. To be an effective teacher,
Andi must be both warm and demanding. His pedagogic disposition to informalityfun can lead him to be a warm teacher; that is, a teacher who cares for the students and who
provides them with emotional support, but he also needs to be demanding; that is, he needs to be a teacher who expects something from the students both in terms of
academic work and behaviour Phelan, 2005. The following subsection of this chapter examines another of Andi’s pedagogical dispositions that shaped his instructional
practices.
6.4.2 Pedagogic disposition to dominance
