Discourse Strategies in English Language Pedagogy during the Practicum: A Comparative Study of Student Teachers in Bungoma County Secondary Schools in Kenya

Teacher effectiveness improves students learning outcome. Therefore, this paper sought to investigate teacher effectiveness in the use of discourse decision making strategies in English language lessons. The objective of the study was to i) examine the role of practicum length on English language student teachers classroom discourse strategies, ii) student teachers pedagogical effectiveness in the classroom by comparing their classroom discourse decision making strategies in the first half of the practicum (May- July 2014) and the second half of the practicum (September- November 2014). The study adopted mixed methods design, case study method. The classroom research involved two student teachers of English from a Public University and a Public Diploma Teachers College who were on practicum for one and two terms respectively. Purposive sampling was used to identify the two teachers who were on practicum. The data was collected using four data generation techniques, observation, supervisors notes, interviews and tape recording. The data was transcribed, coded and analyzed descriptively using SPSS computer package and qualitatively basing on the emerging themes. The findings include modification of grammar, balance in the use of convergent and divergent questions, improvement in wait time, improved student participation and collaborative learning. The findings have policy implication in English language teaching field and stakeholders including pre-service teachers, teachers of English language, language educators and curriculum designers.