This research examines the perspectives and stances that pre-service teachers take as a result of using an inquiry-based curriculum (Whole Language). The questions are: how do pre-service teachers develop critical perspectives through an inquiry-based curriculum, what are these perspectives, and what is the actual nature of the process. The researcher initiated a teacher-based study within which an inquiry-based curriculum was delivered. The data were collected in a college-level foreign/second language teaching methodology course and included videotapes and audiotapes of classes (each class was videotaped and audio taped), interviews with the pre-service teachers, students' artifacts that were done in class and their reflections, and the researcher's reflection journals (which documented her observations and insights).
The findings suggest that the pre-service teachers acquired critical perspectives on issues of fairness in assessing knowledge of a foreign language, reflected on power relationships within teaching methods, and took a position on foreign language education as the course progressed. This study is significant because it suggests the opportunities of reflection on the quality and fairness of their foreign language methods, of educational experiences in supporting the development of a critical perspective, and the importance of a commitment to make educational changes.
