Change in the Perceptions of Pre-Service Teachers as a Result of the Difficulties They Faced During Elt Practicum: Insights from a Four-Week Teaching Practice Period.

By Chnara Hassan Khdhir

This book talks about how final year ELT pre-service teacher perceptions of teaching and learning English changed as a result of the difficulties they face throughout their teaching practice period.

The difficulties they experienced during the practice teaching period, however, found to influence pre-service teachers' perceptions. Such difficulties and experiences also found to be helping pre-service teachers to develop more awareness about the reality of teaching.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Apr 30, 2015
• ISBN: 9781504941570

Chnara Hassan Khdhir

Chnara Hassan Khdhir was born in 1975 in Kirkuk, Iraq. She has achieved her MA in teaching the English language and TESOL in 2014 at European University of Lefke, Cyprus. She is an assistant lecturer at faculty of physical and basic education in the School of Basic Education, Department of English, since 2011. She has achieved her BA in Translation from the University of Koya 2009 and a diploma in English language teaching methodology, teaching preparation institution, Hawler, Iraqi Kurdistan, 1995.

Book preview

CHANGE IN THE PERCEPTIONS

OF PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS AS

A RESULT OF THE DIFFICULTIES

THEY FACED DURING ELT PRACTICUM

INSIGHTS FROM A FOUR-WEEK TEACHING PRACTICE PERIOD.

CHNARA HASSAN KHDHIR

45024.png

AuthorHouse™ UK

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403 USA

www.authorhouse.co.uk

Phone: [phone]

© 2015 Chnara Hassan Khdhir. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 04/28/2015

ISBN: 978-1-5049-4156-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5049-4157-0 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

CONTENTS

Dedication

Acknowledgement

Abstract

Chapter 1

Introduction

Introduction

1.1 Background To The Study

1.2 Motivation For Studying The Particular Research Topic

1.3 Aims Of The Study

1.4 Research Questions

1.5 Research Context

1.5.1 ELT Programme

1.5.1.1 Teaching Practice

1.6 Limitations Of The Study

1.7 Definition Of The Terms Used

Chapter 2

Literature Review

Introduction

2.1 Pre-Service Teachers

2.2 Pre-Service Teacher Training

2.3 Challenges Pre-Service Teachers Experience During Their Teaching Practice Training

2.3.1 Classroom Management

2.3.2 Speaking Anxiety

2.3.3 Motivation And Guidance

2.3.4 Teaching Context

2.3.5 Self-Efficacy And Stress

2.3.6 Lack Of Confidence

2.3.7 Mother Tongue Usage In The Classroom

Chapter 3

Methodology

Introduction

3.1 Research Design

3.2 Participants

3.3 Characteristics Of The Pre-Service Teachers

3.4 Data Collection Instruments

3.4.1 Interviews

3.4.2 Reflective Reports

3.5 Data Collection Procedures

3.6 Data Analysis

3.7 Ethical Considerations

3.8 Validity

3.9 Reliability

Chapter 4

Findings

Introduction

4.1 Analysis Of The Interviews And Reflective Reports

4.1.1 Coding And Categorizing

4.2 Findings From The Interviews And Reflective Reports

4.2.1. Teacher Roles

4.2.2 Importance Of Language Skills

4.2.3 Error Correction

4.2.4 Motivation

4.2.5 Teaching Approach

4.2.5.1 Language Teaching Approach, Methods And Techniques

4.2.6 Use Of Mother Tongue/ Native Language

Chapter 5

Discussion And Conclusion

Introduction

5.1 Discussion Of The Findings

5.1.1 Key Findings

5.2 Implications Of The Study

5.3 Recommendations For Future Research

References

Appendix: 1

Appendix: 2

Interview Questions

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3.1 Characteristics of the participants

Table 3.2 Strengths and weaknesses of semi-structured interviews

Table 4.1 Process of Categorisation

DEDICATION

Dedicated to:

My honorable mother who always, lightened my way and never felt tired of waiting for my return.

The memory of my father, who did not see his dream come true.

My Mirror and Twin of my soul, Hanasa.

My dear sisters and brothers.

My beautiful nephew RAHA.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

At the beginning, I offer my deepest gratitude and sincere appreciation to my supervisor Dr. Emre Debreli for his keen supervision, valuable guidance; extensive assistance and constant support throughout my thesis with his patience and knowledge. Without his encouragement and effort this thesis would not be under the shed of light.

I would like to express my gratitude to Assist. Prof. Dr. Sonuc Dimililer, for her advice and encouragement during the academic years of Master programme. She is very kind and knowledgeable and supported me like her young sister, it will never be forgotten.

Dr. Figen Arkin; peace be upon her. I also wish to thank Alev Lort for her kindness in the university library.

I would like to thank all the pre-service teachers who participated in the interviews of my study who gave me their opinion and discussion about the materials.

I would like to extend my gratitude to my dearest friends: Fatme Sannav, Naskhanym Chausheva for their encouragement and infinite kindness with me through this process.

I am greatly indebted to my mother, and my brothers and sisters for their patience and endurance during the academic years of my study at university, and my interest in complete higher education was developed and encouraged by my kind mother, and I appreciate all the best things they did for me in the right direction in my developing years.

ABSTRACT

CHANGE IN THE PERCEPTIONS OF PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS AS A RESULT OF THE DIFFICULTIES THEY FACED DURING ELT PRACTICUM: INSIGHTS FROM A FOUR- WEEK TEACHING PRACTICE PERIOD.

CHNARA HASSAN SALIHI

SUPERVISOR

Dr. EMRE DEBRELI

FEBRUARY 2014

This study investigated the difficulties pre-service teachers had during their teaching practice and whether and how those difficulties affected their perceptions of teaching and learning EFL in one of the universities in Northern Cyprus. In the study, a qualitative approach is adopted. Semi-structured interviews, before and after the practice teaching period, and also reflective reports written by the pre-service teachers are used to gather data. The analysis of the findings showed that pre-service teachers had similar and strict perceptions of teaching and learning EFL before they started practice teaching, which were away from pedagogical reasoning. The difficulties they experienced during the practice teaching period, however, found to influence pre- service teachers’ perceptions. Such difficulties and experiences also found to be helping pre-service teachers to develop more awareness about the reality of teaching, and to differentiate theory and practice; providing them more practical knowledge development. Recommendations along with the emerging findings were also made.

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

Introduction

The present study focuses on how final year ELT pre-service teacher perceptions of teaching and learning English change as a result of the difficulties they face throughout their teaching practice period, at European University of Lefke in Northern Cyprus. This chapter provides background information to the particular topic and explains the aims of the study. In addition, information about the context of the study, definitions of the terms used throughout the thesis, and the limitations of the study are also presented. Finally, organization of the book is outlined.

1.1 Background to the study

Teacher education forms one of the most rapidly growing areas of research nowadays. In the globalised world, where English is used as an international language, the area of English language teacher education has also gained crucial importance. Studies pertaining to explore English language teaching and teachers who intend to teach English deal with various issues and all of these issues are somewhat connected to the education of English language teachers. To date, various studies have been carried out with different groups of English language teachers (e.g., pre-service, in-service, experienced). The pre-service teacher group, however, might be considered a different entity. As Harris (1991) and

Debreli (2013) state, pre-service teachers are the group who are at the stage of experiencing the most challenges and difficulties compared to in-service or experienced teachers. According to Harris (1991), pre-service teachers enter classrooms today with high expectations of themselves and their students, as well as knowing that the first steps of teaching are difficult, and that over the course of their training or teaching, they experience a decreased strength of belief in their own efficiency and in the learning potential of students. Johnson (2006) links this decrease to the various difficulties pre- service teachers encounter in their professional development.

Johnson (2006) and Borg (2006) suggest that one of the most difficult challenges for pre- service teachers is how to use educational theories in their teaching practice. Many studies, for example, report that when pre-service teachers start their practice teaching, after a few teaching sessions, or while teaching, they face dilemmas or difficulties between what they have been taught, and what they actually experience in classrooms (Cabaroglu and Roberts, 2000; Johnson, 1996). Such difficulties, according to many, lead to changes in pre-service teacher perceptions of teaching and learning (Calderhead, 1996; Debreli, 2012; Erkmen, 2011). In other words, if a pre-service teacher perceives language teaching as means of teaching grammar inductively, and if he/she experiences teaching grammar deductively as difficult or problematic (which he/she was not aware of before their actual classroom experience), their perception of grammar teaching might change; perhaps to believing that grammar should be taught deductively (Hollingsworth, 2002; Altan, 2006). The difficulties pre-service teachers face during teaching practice, however, are usually considered unique to each pre-service teacher (Debreli, 2012), and are likely to be context-bound. In