bede.mccormack@hunter.cuny.edu
212-772-4665
1012 Hunter West

Dr. McCormack’s twenty-plus year career in adult TESOL education has included English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and English as a Second Language (ESL) teaching, EFL program management, and EFL/ESL teacher education courses including methods and materials, second language acquisition theory, and linguistics.

Dr. McCormack taught a wide range of courses including general EFL courses, English for Academic Purposes, and content-driven EFL and ESL courses at the college level, and TESOL teacher education courses.  His career in TESOL began shortly after receiving his Bachelor’s in English Literature from Grinnell College when he moved to Japan, where he lived and taught for fourteen years.  His MA in applied linguistics at the University of Durham, England, provided him with his initial training in the field, and was followed by a doctorate in Second Language Acquisition (SLA), also from Durham.

Teaching

Dr. McCormack teaches courses for both K-12 and adult-track teacher candidates on the TESOL MA program, including theory of second language acquisition, pedagogical English grammar, phonetics and phonology, TESOL methods and materials, and approaches to teaching second language reading. 

Dr. McCormack has also conducted workshops and made conference presentations on TESOL-related topics in the United States, Britain, and Japan that have focused on the use of authentic materials in the classroom, the relationship between SLA theory and classroom practice, the development of speaking and discourse skills, the development of listening skills, the role of grammar instruction in the second language classroom, and the integration of language skills in the ESL classroom.

Research

Dr. McCormack’s primary research interest focuses on teacher candidate meta-knowledge of language and how that translates into classroom practice.  One project he is currently involved with is an examination of teacher candidates’ knowledge of lexico-syntactic structures and how teacher candidates use that knowledge to identify, analyze, and possibly correct learner errors.  Another ongoing project considers the discourse of mentor-teacher candidate post-observation feedback sessions and how these shift over time in terms of what aspects of language (morpho-syntax, lexicon, phonology, discourse) are made significant by each interlocutor, and how they are made significant (register, maintaining a conversation turn).  Results from this investigation identify linguistic markers of professional development, and suggest approaches mentors can use in post-observation discussions to promote this professionalism.

Dr. McCormack has also researched, presented and published on second language attrition from a generative perspective, arguing for some role for universal grammar in the attrition process.