Impacts of oral corrections in foreign language classrooms: pointing ways based on the critical interculturality perspective

Abstract

The learning process of a foreign language goes not only through positive moments, but also through various difficulties to the learners, and the impacts of oral corrections that are made in the classroom are part of one of the aspects linked to the difficulties during students’ development. This study aims to contribute to the area through a reflection on methods used in oral correction, suggesting practical ways to work in the classroom based on the critical interculturality perspective, in which the foreign language teacher creates an intercultural micro space during classes by observing his/her students’ individualities. Moreover, it analyses the oral correction methods adopted by English teachers in the context of the project Idiomas para Fins Acadêmicos (IFA) at Universidade Federal do Paraná. It also observes teachers’ practices judging them towards the possibility of improvement. In this context, it was observed that teachers in the project IFA have distinct approaches. Two of them focus on a less direct oral correction approach and four either make direct oral corrections right after the students’ errors or mistakes or do not make corrections. This observation points at a lack of reflection about methodological procedures based on the critical interculturality perspective, since there is no look into students’ individualities and, therefore, there are no attempts of change in the social structure.