scholarly journals The Influence of Short-term International Intensive Programme on Student Teachers’ Perception of Their Future Profession

2016 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
pp. 35-49
Author(s):  
Anna Czura ◽  
Joanna Pfingsthorn

Foreign language teacher training programmes often require student teachers to spend some time in a country where the target language is spoken. While research on the role of study abroad experiences in general teacher education is well documented, investigations dealing with the impact of mobility initiatives on FL teacher education are rather scarce. The present study, based on oral interviews, examines long-term effects of a two-week international workshop, an Erasmus Intensive Programme IP, on student teachers’ perception of their role as FL teachers. The IP aimed at finding ways to incorporate elements of the arts into English classes in four European countries: Germany, Poland, Turkey and Lithuania. The IP participants were invited to take part in lectures, practical workshops and visits to local schools. The results of the study reveal that within approximately a year after the completion of the IP the participants from Poland express a general positive attitude towards the infusion of the arts into the EFL curriculum. The IP experience evoked the future teachers’ reflection upon a number of key issues in the profession of FL teaching: the degree of individualization and learner autonomy in class, rejecting the idea of teacher as solely an authority figure, the use of various forms of social interaction in class, and self-improvement or life-long learning being inherent aspects of the teaching profession.

Author(s):  
Przemysław E. Gębal ◽  
Monika J. Nawracka

This article discusses the issues of academic education of foreign language teachers in three different educational systems. It presents them in the context of education culture and school culture, showing their influence on the way of organization and realization of education processes. School and education in general, including university preparation for the teaching profession is a place of developing so-called social capital. Reflection on the way these processes operate plays a key role in the planning and implementation of effective educational activities, using the so-called good practices of each of the systems. In the comparative research, the teacher training programmes in Iran, Germany and Poland are subject to comparative analysis against the framework of European standards for teacher education.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 154
Author(s):  
Merve Selçuk ◽  
Ece Genç Yöntem

Becoming a teacher of English language requires both knowledge of theory and practice. Teacher candidates at the faculties of education in BA programs in Turkey practice teaching through observing real classrooms and doing micro-teachings in real schools during their four-year teacher training. This study was conducted at a foundation university in Turkey, in which senior pre-service teachers, before they enter the teaching profession and become novice teachers, go and experience teaching to fulfill the requirements of the practicum (school experience course) in their last semester. This course requires them to observe three different levels of classroom in real schools, write reflective papers, prepare lesson plans and practice teaching. The transition from pre-service to novice teacher can be facilitated via successful practicum programs offered by the faculties of education in Turkey. The impact of practicum tends to result in either entry into teaching or teacher retention. The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the effects of this program on students’ decisions on entry into the profession. The data were collected in two stages: Before and after the practicum. At the beginning of the last semester, before they go practicum, five pre-service EFL teachers were asked the reasons for choosing teacher education programs, and their concerns related to practicum and the profession through an in-depth semi-controlled interview. Those pre-service teachers were also interviewed on the same topics at the end of the semester, after practicum. Results indicated that practicum or school experience has contributed positively to their perceptions regarding their entry into teaching because almost all of them wanted to enter teaching at the end of the program, and they are in-service teachers now. These findings suggest that teacher education courses should aim to develop students’ practical knowledge, and the relationship among the mentor teacher, the supervisor, and the student teacher should be valued and supported more in teacher education programs.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdu Kisige ◽  
Betty Akullu Ezati ◽  
Alice Merab Kagoda

Developing a teacher education curricular content is an enduring concern for teacher educators. A continuous method to providing quality teacher education curriculum content discloses the potential for teacher educators to produce high-quality teachers. Drawing on data from twenty teacher educators and sixteen student teachers in public institutions in Uganda, this article explored the perceptions of the teacher education curriculum content held by academic staff and student teachers in public Universities in Uganda. Using Pedagogical Content Knowledge Model as a tentative model of teacher preparation and Constructivism theory as an interpretive framework, the study was guided by one objective namely: (1) to analyze the perception of internal stakeholders about teacher education curriculum content offered in Makerere and Kyambogo Universities. This research adopted a qualitative, multiple case study design that was anchored in the interpretivist paradigm and directed by the social constructivism thinking. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews were participants from twenty teacher educators and sixteen student teachers who were purposively and conveniently selected. It was therefore concluded that both lecturers and student teachers viewed teacher education curriculum content positively viewing it as enabling learners to be equipped with specialized teaching skills, essentially directed towards teaching profession. Thus, recommendations to improve the stakeholder perception of the teacher education curriculum content are made and these include: teacher education curriculum review and the need to design a 21st-century teacher education curriculum by teacher trainers in corroboration with other university units rendering a training service to teacher trainees. This would bridge the gap of the disjointed teacher education curriculum content at Makerere and Kyambogo Universities hence strengthening the building blocks that produce a teacher.


Author(s):  
Emma Riordan

For non-native speaker language teachers (NNSLT), that is, teachers who teach a language which is not their own first language, one very important skill is competence in the target language. However, the development and maintenance of language skills are often neglected in language teacher training for language teachers. It is assumed that the trainees have already reached the requisite level of competence prior to entry into teacher training programmes, or that the general language courses available to them are sufficient in addressing these language needs. In this paper I argue for the introduction of a new area of Language for Specific Purposes (LSP) to deal with the language skills needed by this learner group. I examine the literature relating to language for non-native speaker language teachers and review research in the teaching of language to NNSLTs. I describe a language course designed specifically for the education of non-native speaker teachers of English at a German university. Questionnaires, surveys and pre- and post-testing methods were used to evaluate the course. The study’s results suggest that the LSP approach is both feasible and successful in improving student teachers’ language skills for the purposes of teaching.


2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (32) ◽  
pp. 257
Author(s):  
Isaac Sonful Coffie ◽  
Nutifafa Godson Doe ◽  
Jonah Addai Tabi

Ghana is currently running a new teacher education program for the training of teachers at the pre-tertiary level. At the heart of the new national teacher education program is Supported Teaching in School (STS), the practical school-based component of the teacher education program embedded throughout the whole 4-years. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of STS in pre-service teacher preparation and identify any possible challenges associated with the program. The study adopted qualitative a case study design, with the main instruments for data collection being interviews and documentary analysis. Data collection was done through individual and focus group interviews, and documentary analysis of Student Reflective Journals. Individual interviews were conducted for six pre-service science teachers and the focus group interview was made up of four pre-service teachers using the Ishikawa or fishbone tool. From the analysis of data done using “topological analysis,” it was revealed that supported teaching in school is impacting on the pre-service preparation in; real classroom exposure giving them firsthand experience of the classroom situation; lesson planning and delivery; teacher professionalism as the pre-service teachers now exposed to traits of the teaching profession and qualities of a good teacher; and classroom management for effective lesson delivery. Particular challenges such as mentor-mentee relationship, lack of proper planning, and insufficient time for observation were identified to militate against the program. It is recommended that, appropriate training and incentives should be given to the mentors to prepare them adequately for the program.


ReCALL ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melinda Dooly ◽  
Randall Sadler

AbstractThis article presents a pedagogical design for teacher education that combines flipped materials, in-class instruction, and telecollaboration (also known as virtual exchange) for foreign language teacher education. The context of this study is a course on technology and language learning for future teachers in which the flipped classroom concept was applied to technology-infused collaborative teacher training between future ESL/EFL instructors located at two partner universities (one in the USA, one in Europe). The three main teaching approaches (flipped materials, in class, and telecollaborative, or “FIT”) were symbiotic in that each structure reinforced the other through reception, discussion, and reflection as a means to help the student teachers bridge the gap between theory and practice. We apply classroom ethnographic discourse analysis to data sources (face-to-face and online discussion groups, student e-portfolios) to look at uptake of ideas, conceptual understanding, and successful transfer of new knowledge, and thereby identify whether the design provides significant learning opportunities for the future teachers. Although most studies of telecollaboration in language teacher education look principally at output, this approach allows an in-depth look at the learning process as knowledge is developed collaboratively between the participants.


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 100
Author(s):  
Sotco Claudius Komba ◽  
Sarah Vincent Chiwamba

<p>It is ideally expected that after student teachers have gone through comprehensive curricula contents, they should possess the necessary competences and skills to enable them deliver effectively as teachers. However, some student teachers in Tanzania have expressed their concerns that some of the contents found in the curricula for teacher training programmes do not link with the contents taught in secondary schools. Therefore, this study was designed to examine the congruency between the contents student teachers cover during their studies at Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), one of the Tanzanian teacher training institutions, and contents taught in Tanzanian secondary schools. The study involved a randomly obtained sample of 181 third year students, pursuing various teacher education degree programmes. The study adopted a cross-sectional research design in which a set of questionnaire, which consisted of both open and closed-ended questions, was administered to the sampled respondents. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS in which frequencies and percentages of responses to the questions presented in the questionnaire were computed to answer research questions advanced for this study. The findings were as follows: First, the majority (66.9%) of student teachers felt that there was a congruency between the University contents and secondary school contents and about one third (33.1%) of student teachers felt that the congruency did not exist. Secondly, the majority (95%) of student teachers felt that the contents of education courses taught at the University were applicable in real school situations and the minority (5%) did not feel so. Third, the majority (91.7%) of student teachers felt that the teacher training programmes offered at SUA had enabled them to acquire sufficient classroom teaching skills and basic theories in education. Fourth, some challenges facing teacher training programmes offered at SUA, as reported by the respondents, included irrelevant contents in some university courses, inadequate infrastructures, and lack of opportunities for practice, to mention but a few. Based on these findings, it is recommended that whenever an opportunity to review the existing teacher training programmes comes, the exercise should be preceded with needs analysis to help determine if the existing programmes adequately address the needs of the teaching profession for which the student teachers are being prepared.</p>


2007 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 358-360

07–615Dogancay-Aktuna, Seran (Southern Illinois U, USA), Expanding the socio-cultural knowledge base of TESOL teacher education. Language, Culture and Curriculum (Multilingual Matters) 19.3 (2006), 278–295.07–616Gonçalves, Maria de Lurdes (U Aveiro, Portugal) & Ana Isabel Andrade, Connecting languages: The use of theportfolioas a means of exploring and overcoming frontiers within the curriculum. European Journal of Teacher Education (Routledge/Taylor & Francis) 30.2 (2007), 195–213.07–617Kurihara, Yuka & Keiko Samimy (Ohio State U, USA), The impact of a U.S. teacher training program on teaching beliefs and practices: A case study of secondary school level Japanese teachers of English. JALT Journal (Japan Association for Language Teaching) 29.1 (2007), 99–122.07–618Poulou, Maria (U Patras, Greece), Student-teachers' concerns about teaching practice. European Journal of Teacher Education (Routledge/Taylor & Francis) 30.1 (2007), 91–110.07–619Santoro, Ninetta (Deakin U, Australia), ‘Outsiders’ and ‘others’: ‘Different’ teachers teaching in culturally diverse classrooms. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice (Routledge/Taylor & Francis) 13.1 (2007), 81–97.07–620Vacilotto, Silvana & Rhoda Cummings (U Nevada, Reno, USA; [email protected]), Peer coaching in TEFL/TESL programmes. ELT Journal (Oxford University Press) 61.2 (2007), 153–160.


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