An exploration of Algerian school students’ and teachers’ experiences and perceptions of English learning and teaching within the context of the competency-based approach (second generation reform)

This research is an ethnographic study that explores the interplay between some Algerian teachers’ and students’ perceptions of their teaching and learning experiences in the context of the Competency-Based Approach (CBA) reform. The work targets the factors influencing classroom dynamics with a particular focus on the emotional and social aspects of teaching and learning. In exploring the students’ classroom experiences, I focus on the connection between students’ resistance and issues of power, equality, and affection. The teachers’ experiences highlight the importance of their role in times of change. Here, I focus on the teachers’ concerns
and struggles in relation to the lack of teacher training, the issue of class, divisions among teachers, and the effect of the poor working conditions on teachers and students. The purpose of this study is twofold. Firstly, to deeply understand the perceptions and experiences of teaching and learning under the CBA context in some Algerian middle and secondary schools. Secondly, to give voice to teachers and students by sharing their stories and classroom
experiences. The lack of evidence and literature on classroom experiences (especially the ones of students) makes this study also concerned with making a modest contribution to the existing literature and debate on CBA research and classroom experience in the Algerian and African contexts.

The study employs a theoretical framework that combines Biesta’s educational theory on the purpose of education, Freire’s humanistic approach to education, and Noddings’ theory of care. Data were collected through classroom observation, individual and group interviews with
teachers and students, informal conversation, field notes and document analysis. Ethnography was employed to allow for broader themes to emerge. The richness that ethnography brings to the study helps in capturing a wider look at the teachers’ and students’ perceptions of their classroom experiences.

Findings show that most students resist how they are taught and how they are treated. Most students have negative responses to the new way of teaching because of ability and inequality issues. Although the study reveals that teachers employ a variety of teaching approaches (including CBA), factors related to the lack of teacher training and professional development, the lack of collaboration among teachers and the lack of teaching resources and materials seem to negatively affect the teaching and learning experiences. Furthermore, the study highlights the need for more attention to the emotional and caring aspects of teaching as well as to the socio-economic situation of teachers and students to enrich the Algerian teaching and learning experiences. The study concludes that adopting a CBA policy (which is affected by globalisation and the move to a free economic market) under the current conditions might be
contributing to increasing the gap between advantaged and disadvantaged teachers and students in the Algerian school.