An Appraisal of a Computer-Based Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Course for Nigerian English Teachers and Teacher-trainers

2011 ◽  
pp. 642-650 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kehinde A. Ayoola
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Computer Literacy ◽  
Time Course ◽  
English Language ◽  
Continuing Professional Development ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Course Content ◽  
British Council ◽  
Teacher Trainers

This chapter is a presentation of a continuing professional development (CPD) programme for English teachers and teacher-trainers in Nigeria using one of the states in Nigeria as a case study. It evaluates the effectiveness of the computer assisted programme, which was part sponsored by the British Council, and concludes that it did not achieve its desired objectives due to a number of reasons. For instance, it was observed that the course content was too loaded for a part-time course. Other reasons for the failure of the programme include absence of internet connectivity, low level of computer literacy, poor power supply and lack of commitment on the parts of both the trainees and the institutions they worked for. The chapter ends with suggestions on how the anomalies observed could be corrected so that computer resources could be used more effectively in the design and implementation of continuing professional development (CPD) programmes for English Language teachers and teacher-trainers in developing countries.

scholarly journals Experiences of Timorese language teachers in a blended Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) for Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

Open Praxis ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monty King ◽  
Bernadete Luan ◽  
Esperança Lopes
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
English Language ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Continuing Professional Development ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Course Content ◽  
English Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Institute

This paper details the experiences of a group of Timorese English language teachers from Lorosa’e English Language Institute (LELI) in Dili, Timor-Leste, who participated in a professional development MOOC entitled Teaching for Success: Lessons and Teaching between March and April 2017. Drawing on the pedagogical principles of blended learning; participants engaged with online course content, and once a week met as a study group to view some video content together and discuss issues arising from it. The authors draw on participant observation, individual and focus group interviews and post-course author reflections to outline the benefits and challenges of doing blended MOOCs in Dili, and propose that they can provide local English language teachers opportunities for subject area knowledge building, language literacy development and more general lifelong learning.

scholarly journals Female English Teachers Perceptions and Experience of Continuing Professional Development in Qatar

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 160
Author(s):  
Saba Qadhi ◽  
Alan Floyd
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Teacher Development ◽  
English Language ◽  
Current Model ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Continuing Professional Development ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching

The Qatari government views English language learning as crucial to the country’s future success. Anecdotal evidence suggests, however, that English language teachers (ELTs) employed in Qatar may not necessarily have the appropriate training, qualifications, and experience to enable them to teach successfully. Despite growing research and interest in the continuing professional development (CPD) experiences and needs of ELTs in Western contexts, there remains a lack of research in Middle Eastern countries in general and in Qatar in particular. The aim of this study was to address this gap by exploring female ELTs’ perceptions and experiences of CPD in Qatar in order to develop new practical and theoretical insights into our understanding of this area. The study draws on data from life history interviews undertaken with 16 female ELTs with at least 3 years of teaching experience in Qatari schools. The study found that the participants had very different experiences of CPD based on their personal and professional characteristics. This suggests that for it to be perceived as a positive experience, the current model of professional development for ELTs may need revising. We propose a paradigm shift from a traditional “one size fits all” CPD model towards a more dynamic and interactive style of teacher development that facilitates both personal reflection and professional discourse among teachers. It is argued that such a shift would prove a considerable step forward for English language teaching in this country.

scholarly journals Exploring In-Service TEYL Teachers’ Assessment Literacy: Implication For Continuing Professional Development

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-51
Author(s):  
Amalul Umam ◽  
Yani Awalia Indah
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Group Discussion ◽  
Continuing Professional Development ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Assessment Literacy ◽  
Literacy Standards

Assessment is central and holds essential role in language learning from which the result of the teaching and learning are derived. It shows that the ability of language teachers in assessing their students is crucial. This study explored the assessment literacy of in-service TEYL teachers in Bogor by employing narrative case study. The subjects of the study were 19 English teachers around Bogor. In collecting the data, CALI (Classroom Assessment Literacy Inventory) and FGD (Focus Group Discussion) were employed. The data gathered from CALI were then scored and analyzed, and FGD data were coded based on the assessment literacy standards from which conclusion were derived. The findings reveal that teachers have poor level of assessment literacy. Consequently, teachers must update themselves by conducting continuing professional development. HIGHLIGHTS: Assessing Young Learners is complicated and challenging for Indonesian teachers because of the demand of the Curriculum 2013. Assessment literacy is central in English language learning from which teachers can assess their students and communicate the results to the stakeholder. Continuing Professional Development is an important action that can be done by teachers to increase their assessment literacy.

scholarly journals ENHANCING ENGLISH TEACHERS’ PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: PORTRAYING A MENTORING PROGRAM

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 90
Author(s):  
Zuliati Rohmah
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
English Language ◽  
Continuing Professional Development ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Further Education ◽  
Training Institution ◽  
Teaching Methodology ◽  
Mentoring Program ◽  
Traditional Practice

Quality English teachers are required to have a good mastery of English language skills and language teaching methodology. New teachers or lecturers, in particular, need assistance in improving these two aspects. One of the ways is through Continuing Professional Development (CPD). Traditionally, professional development (PD) is done by attending professional forums and pursuing further education. However, this traditional practice has some weaknesses, one of which is giving little opportunity for teachers to take control over their own learning (Kennedy, 2005; Rose & Reynolds, 2007). While mentoring practices as a form of CPD are common in more developed countries, they are not widely practiced in Indonesia. To respond to the scarcity of research in this area, the current study is conducted by using observations and questionnaire as the instruments to portray the implementation of a mentoring program in an English training institution in East Java, Indonesia. Specifically, the article reports the practice of the mentoring program and the mentees’ perceptions of the mentoring sessions with the mentor. The findings show that the teachers respond positively to the mentoring program, and they also feel that their self-confidence is improved after joining the program. The mentoring program conducted in the institution helps the teachers to enhance their professionalism as English teachers.

scholarly journals Challenges for Professional Development of Malaysian ESL Teachers

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruzana Omar ◽  
Radzuwan Ab. Rashid2
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Primary School ◽  
English Language ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Ministry Of Education ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Esl Teachers ◽  
Part Time ◽  
English Language Teachers

The paper aims to provide insights into the current understanding of the challenges faced by in-serviced primary school ESL teachers in completing their degree on a part-time basis. In relation to the government’s effort to improve the quality of primary education, many English language teachers have enrolled in the ‘Teacher’s First-degree program’ offered by the Ministry of Education. The participants of the program, somehow, face a number of challenges. As adult learners, the ESL teachers need to follow in doing the degree part time as all of them are full time teachers and teaching in different schools. Sociocultural theory of Lev Vygotsky provided the theoretical framework for this case study. This qualitative study explored the experiences of five in-service primary school English language teachers who were involved in the program. Semi-structured interviews were carried out to identify the challenges faced by the teachers in completing a primary school teacher’s first-degree program organized by the Ministry of Education (MOE). The main data generated from semi-structured interviews was analysed using thematic analysis approach. The findings revealed that job commitments, family commitments, health mental issue and time management are the main challenges faced by them. Exploring in-service primary school English teachers challenges in furthering their studies part-timely might give the Ministry of Education (MOE) consideration in understanding of language teachers’ selves and needs while pursuing their first degree. This research might also be helpful to investigate the current practices of the professional development of primary school English teachers in Malaysia.

scholarly journals The discursive construction of teachers and implications for continuing professional development

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramesh Nair ◽  
Roshayani Arshad
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
English Language ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Continuing Professional Development ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Specific Reference ◽  
Discursive Construction ◽  
Course Of Action ◽  
English Language Teachers ◽  
The Government

The Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013-2025 is a document that spells out a plan of action for revamping the Malaysian education system. Therefore, it is no surprise that references are made to teachers and their role in ensuring the successful execution of the action plan. Although the blueprint does not set out a course of action for teachers of individual subjects, specific reference is made to English language teachers and this is ideologically significant. In order to understand this significance and how the blueprint positions Malaysian English language teachers, the document needs to be located within the wider discourse community, vis-à-vis through an intertextual reading. In this paper, we first examine the discursive construction of English language teachers in the blueprint as well as media texts to illustrate how these texts have collectively constructed the identity of Malaysian English language teachers. Next, we argue that this discursive construction of Malaysian English language teachers has had consequences for the way continuing professional development programmes have been organised for them in the first of three waves of the Malaysian Education Blueprint action plan from 2013 to 2015. The findings reveal that continuing professional development programmes during this period have focused predominantly on the training of the discursively constructed inept Malaysian English language teacher to ensure they possess the desired proficiency and are able to make changes to existing classroom practices that are aligned with the government agenda.

scholarly journals English Language Teacher Professional Development During COVID-19 in Nepal

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 103-112
Author(s):  
Ganga Ram Gautam
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Online Resources ◽  
Teacher Professional ◽  
English Language Teachers ◽  
New Situation

COVID-19 pandemic has brought a big pedagogical shift in education across the board. In this context, teachers expected to be adaptable in the new situation in by familiarizing themselves to the emerging technology-driven pedagogy. This article explores how 102 English language teachers in Nepal prepared themselves to respond to COVID-19 by attending various professional development events organized between April and September 2020 by different professional forums and organizations. The results show that English teachers in Nepal attended three kinds of events that include training programs to learn technology, events to learn about the online resources for English language teaching and professional development events to enhance their professional skills. Participation in these events made English teachers digitally confident to run the classes online and increased awareness of the integration of online resources in English language teaching.

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