INVESTIGATION OF THE PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICES LITERATURE TEACHERS USE FOR TEACHING MODERN GREEK LANGUAGE IN SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL: A SOCIOLOGICAL APPROACH

The aim of this paper, which makes use of Basil Bernstein’s theoretical framework, is to take a sociological approach to the pedagogical practices that are implemented by literature teachers for teaching Modern Greek Language in the first year of Senior High School, which is a transitional year in the second tier of Greek secondary education. We also aim to investigate the corrective ‘strategies’ that these teachers adopt in order to contribute to their pupils’ successful acquisition of school knowledge related to the Language lesson. The research was carried out using the tools of structured observation and semi-structured interview with a sample of 14 literature teachers, who were working in Greek secondary education. The most significant research findings revealed that the pedagogical practices that were implemented by the teachers in the sample are linked to the implementation of explicit regulative and instructional rules that originate in a visible pedagogical practice. What’s more, ‘corrective’ strategies were implemented with the pupils who weren’t able to satisfy the sequencing and pacing rules of the transmitted knowledge. It also emerged that an important site for the completion of the acquisition of transmitted school knowledge is related to the field of ‘shadow’ education.   Article visualizations: