Post-method Pedagogy and the Reconceptualisation of BANA Methodologies in Saudi Higher Education

Abstract

Building on earlier discussions of appropriating British, Australasian, and North American (BANA) teaching methodologies in Tertiary, Secondary, and Primary English education (TESEP) contexts, this study critically re-examines the feasibility, limitations, and consequences of methodological transfer in Saudi higher education. While earlier research problematised the cultural and pedagogical mismatch between Western communicative methodologies and local educational realities, the present study moves beyond the notion of appropriation toward a reconceptualisation grounded in post-method pedagogy, teacher agency, and English as an International Language (EIL). Drawing on a mixed-methods case study involving classroom observations, teacher reflective accounts, and student questionnaires at a Saudi university, the present study demonstrates that the success of BANA-origin methodologies does not depend on cultural adaptation alone, but on teachers’ ability to theorise from practice and enact locally responsive pedagogy. The findings suggest that communicative competence in TESEP contexts is best fostered through principled eclecticism, selective translanguaging, and context-sensitive task design rather than wholesale adoption or rejection of Western methods. The study argues for a shift from methodological dependency toward pedagogical self-reliance in TESEP environments.