scholarly journals Supervising English Teachers: Saudi Principals and the English Language Barrier

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 54
Author(s):  
Jwahir Alzamil
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Schools ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Female Principals ◽  
Language Classes ◽  
English Language Teachers ◽  
Supervisory Practices

Principals’ supervision has been an important aspect of school leadership, which has aimed to improve the overall quality of teaching in schools by improving the work of individual teachers. This study has identified a need to fill an existing gap in the teaching supervision literature, as researchers have overlooked the possibility that principals’ mastery of the English language may affect the supervision of English language teachers. It therefore examines whether Saudi female principals who did not major in English language face difficulties supervising English language teaching in secondary schools. This study was carried out over a week. The data was collected from five female principals working in secondary schools by means of semi-structured interviews. The results showed that the main obstacle faced by principals supervising English language classes was understanding the English language itself. Data collected by the study show the need for Saudi Arabian principals to be aware of their limitations in understanding English when supervising English language teachers; having this information can be crucial for improving supervision and planning successful supervisory practices. Moreover, it can help principals evaluate themselves and review the way they supervise English language teachers.

scholarly journals Pre-Service English Language Teachers’ Levels of Reflectivity during the Process of Identity Construction in Pedagogical Practicum: A Snowball

HOW ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 53-77
Author(s):  
Angélica María Pita-Castro ◽  
Yury Alicia Castiblanco-Rincón
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Private University ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Reflective Journals ◽  
The People ◽  
Van Manen ◽  
English Language Teachers ◽  
The Way

This research study is about the way pre-service English language teachers’ levels of reflectivity, proposed by Van Manen, give an account of the construction of their identity as language teachers during their pedagogical practicum in a BA program of English Language Teaching at a private university in Bogota, Colombia. This study follows the principles of narrative research to explore the way the participants live their pedagogical practicum experience. Data were collected from the participants’ reflective journals and audio-recorded semi-structured interviews. Findings reveal that pre-service English language teachers possess a level of reflectivity, although they are unaware of it at the beginning of their pedagogical practicum. Thus, their identities as language teachers are constructed depending on the context, the people that are around them, and the specific time; hence, the levels of reflectivity as proposed by Van Manen are set in an incognito manner.

scholarly journals MICROTEACHING LESSON STUDY FOR PROSPECTIVE ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHERS: DESIGNING A RESEARCH LESSON

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdullah Coşkun
Keyword(s):  
Lesson Study ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
State University ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Self Reflection ◽  
Young Learners ◽  
Group Members ◽  
English Language Teachers

In this study, Microteaching Lesson Study (hereafter MLS) was applied for a research lesson designed by the MLS group members including three third-year prospective English language teachers in line with the Content and Language Integrated Learning (hereafter CLIL) approach. This qualitative study aims to uncover the contribution of MLS to the improvement of the teaching within a single lesson geared toward young learners and the perspectives of MLS group members about major components of the MLS process. The participants of the study are three MLS group members, 15 peers and an instructor in the English Language Teaching (hereafter ELT) department of a state university in Turkey. The lesson collaboratively developed by the MLS group members was presented three times by a different member to a different group of five peers who pretended to be young learners. After each lesson, revision meetings were held to analyze the self-reflection of the presenter, the peer/instructor feedback about the lesson and the recorded lesson. The analysis of the revision meetings illustrated the instructional improvement cycle of MLS. Moreover, the analysis of the semi-structured interviews with the MLS group members revealed that they were generally satisfied with the major components of MLS, such as collaborative lesson planning and receiving feedback from peers although a few concerns were mentioned as well. It is suggested that MLS should be incorporated into ELT programs.

scholarly journals Teacher cognition of pronunciation teaching amongst English language teachers in Uruguay

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graeme Couper
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Teacher Cognition ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Qualified Teachers ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
English Language Teachers

This article reports on the concerns and issues which 28 experienced and well-qualified teachers expressed during individual semi-structured interviews with the researcher. It describes and discusses the participants’ views, pulling together themes representative of a wide range of perspectives on pronunciation teaching. Themes include: teacher anxiety about pronunciation and pronunciation teaching; external factors affecting pronunciation teaching such as curriculum and exam pressures, textbooks, and training received; approaches to teaching and error correction; activities and techniques; and issues related to literacy bias, listen-and-repeat, use of phonemic symbols and pronunciation goals and models. These findings, taken in conjunction with studies of teacher cognition in other contexts, serve to inform all those with an interest in English language teaching, whether they be researchers, teachers or teacher educators, curriculum designers or textbook writers.

scholarly journals English language assessment in Malaysia: Teachers’ practices in test preparation

2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Looi Chin Ch'ng
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Classroom Teaching ◽  
Assessment Practices ◽  
Ministry Of Education ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Assessment Guidelines ◽  
English Language Teachers

In the context of English language teaching, many studies that claimed to investigate teachers’ assessment practices were actually exploring their perceptions and belief with little reference to what they were practising in schools. The need to address such a limitation has prompted this study to examine the current formal assessment practices of English language teachers in lower secondary schools. Specifically, this paper reports how the teachers prepare the formal assessments. Extensive structured interviews were conducted with 72 teachers from 24 schools in Kuching division, Sarawak. Relevant documents such as test papers and assessment guidelines were also collected for further analysis. The findings from this study revealed that a majority of the teachers conducted formal assessments mainly due to the requirements of the school and ministry while following pre-determined steps in preparing a test. Furthermore, the findings also revealed teachers’ reliance on commercial reference books in constructing exam questions and sample answers. The outcome of the study provides an insight on the nature of English language teachers’ assessment practices in relation to the classroom teaching and learning at the secondary level.This could help inform the Ministry of Education in providing necessary support for the teachers particularly assessment practices in ESL context as well as in formulating a better assessment policy for schools.

scholarly journals An Exploration of Classroom Practices in Secondary Schools

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Mehnaz Tazeen Choudhury
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Schools ◽  
Teacher Beliefs ◽  
English Language ◽  
Classroom Practices ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Minimal Amount ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Teacher Training Programs ◽  
English Language Teachers ◽  
State Of Affairs

This study was undertaken in the secondary schools of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Students from Bengali medium schools of Bangladesh do not achieve even a minimal amount of proficiency in English even after completing high school. Moreover, they are seen to remain teacher dependent even at tertiary level. Learner autonomy is seen as a crucial need of the time in the context of Bangladesh. Either classroom practices or teacher beliefs, or both are responsible for this state of affairs. Therefore, it became imperative to research to find out the classroom practices of English language teachers and see whether they were autonomy supportive. This was exploratory qualitative research, and the participants were class VII English language teachers from five government and non-government Bengali medium schools. Classroom observations and semi-structured interviews were used to collect the data. Findings of this study have implications for teacher training programs and how they need to be redesigned to bring about a change in teacher beliefs and approaches.

scholarly journals The use of reflective practice towards achieving effective English language teaching at primary schools

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 364
Author(s):  
Siti Noor Aneeis Hashim ◽  
Nurahimah Mohd Yusoff
Keyword(s):  
Reflective Practice ◽  
Learning Process ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
English Language Teachers

<span>The purpose of this study was to explore the use of reflective practice by English language teachers in providing effective English language teaching in primary school classrooms. This qualitative case study involving six in-service English language teachers who were selected based on purposive sampling. The data in this study were collected using teachers’ reflection logs and a series of semi-structured interviews with the English language teachers. Thematic analysis was used to identify emerging themes based on the codes gathered from the interviews and teachers’ reflections logs. The results showed that the English language teachers used reflective practice erstwhile in preparing and providing effective English language teaching for the students. They reviewed what has been accomplished and identify constructive guidelines to follow to succeed in the future teaching. They have also been doing variations of changes in teaching based on reflecting on the quality of instruction, levels of instruction, using incentive to motivate the students and managing time equally in teaching and learning process to help the children in learning English language. Since there is no clear guideline for teachers who use reflective practice in their classes, this study provided some insights on the preparations and the use of reflective practice as part of their teaching and learning process.</span>

scholarly journals Teachers’ perceptions of incorporation of corpus-based approach in English language teaching classrooms in Karachi, Pakistan

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 611-629
Author(s):  
Javeria Jamal ◽  
Asmara Shafqat ◽  
Ehtsham Afzal
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Teaching Methodology ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
New Strategy ◽  
English Language Teachers ◽  
Interest And Motivation

The objective of the study is to understand language teachers’ perceptions regarding incorporating a corpus-based approach, i.e., corpus-based teaching methodology in English Language Teaching (ELT) classroom contexts. The design of the study is qualitative. The sample is taken from 19 English language teachers who are currently enrolled as students of Master of Applied Linguistics at NED University, Karachi, Pakistan. The instrument of the study is an open-ended questionnaire and also a focus groups based on semi-structured interviews. A thematic analysis of the interviews is conducted, as a result of which different themes emerged that conform to the benefits of incorporating corpus-based materials and activities in ELT classrooms. The findings show that use of a corpus-based teaching methodology in ELT classrooms is accepted as a new strategy for teaching different aspects and skills of English language such as vocabulary, grammar, reading, and writing. The pedagogical implications are found to be significant for curriculum designers, ELT teachers, and administrators at educational institutes where they want to enhance their students' interest and motivation levels. Material designers, corpus-based tools researchers, and teachers are suggested to collaborate for designing effective corpus-based materials for teaching as it increases the reliability of the teaching material.

scholarly journals MULTIMODALITY, MASS MIGRATION AND ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 595-622
Author(s):  
Vanderlei J. Zacchi
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
English Teaching ◽  
Digital Era ◽  
Mass Migration ◽  
Important Means ◽  
English Language Teachers

Abstract: This paper aims to discuss the use of multimodality in English language teaching. The corpus consists of a set of activities based on a series of pictures related to the seizure of two trucks carrying US-bound migrants in 2011. Two different groups, comprised of pre-service and in-service English language teachers, took part in the research. The first part of the activity involved loose interpretations of the pictures and a discussion about migration nowadays. Afterwards, other activities were carried out based on Luke and Freebody's four-resources model (1990). Some preliminary analyses lead us to conclude that the reading of images is very much culturally sensitive and that multimodal ways of meaning making are becoming more powerful in the globalized, digital era, turning them into an important means for English teaching nowadays.

scholarly journals Kuwaiti Instructors' Beliefs about English Language Teaching and Their Awareness of Global English

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 87
Author(s):  
Ahmad F. Alnwaiem ◽  
Abdullah M. Alazemi ◽  
Abdullah A. Alenezi
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
English Language ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Global English ◽  
English Language Teachers

The beliefs of EFL teachers are an essential term perceived in a number of educational fields. Especially in teacher education and behavioural research, this term is usually related to teachers&#39; habits and practices in classes, considering their impact on each other. The aim of this study is to add to prior studies on the subject of teachers&#39; beliefs and to concentrate on English language teachers (ELT). The objective is to merge the theory of instructors&#39; beliefs with Global English (GE). The research question &#39;what are the Kuwaiti instructors&#39; beliefs about ELT and their awareness of Global English?&#39; formalizes these aims. To accomplish the research: To discover teachers&#39; beliefs about ELT and their awareness of Global English. This research concentrates on English language teachers at the university level. The collection of data has been conducted over two months. For data collection and interpretation, this study adopted a qualitative research methodology. Surveys were chosen as the instrument for data collection. The study used qualitative content analysis in relation to the data analysis method. Moreover, the findings were evaluated based on a deductive and inductive approach to qualitative data analysis. Results indicated various kinds of teachers&#39; beliefs about ELT. Including views about the English language, ELT in relation to the standards, ELT with regard to the GE context. English-language beliefs played a central role in shaping two other views, which were considered secondary beliefs. Except for the content of teachers&#39; beliefs, the study&#39;s findings have shown two significant categories of influences: internal and external, that affect the development and application of teachers&#39; beliefs in classrooms. In this study, the internal factor referred mainly to English-language teaching beliefs based on its ability to influence other cognitive constructs (i.e., different convictions, behaviours, sensitivity) and teaching practices. As far as external factors are concerned, the teachers&#39; diverse experiences with individuals (e.g., parents and retired teachers) and administrative legislation (e.g., policy and curriculum) are the main factors. Finally, it was possible to conclude the findings of this analysis in the same manner as previous studies, which combined teacher cognition theory with the field of GE. In other words, teacher beliefs play a crucial part in the teacher&#39;s cognitive system as a decisive role in their teaching practice. This study proposes further research to reinforce the results of contemporary research in this area.

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