Cómo mejorar la enseñanza de inglés como lengua extranjera: creencias y actitudes de los profesores en formación sobre los materiales didácticos

Abstract

Introduction: Teaching materials lay at the core of both effective instruction and successful learning of foreign languages (FL). This study investigates pre-service EFL teachers' beliefs about the effectiveness of teaching resources. Methodology: The participants were 84 students of teaching degrees enrolled in an English programme at a university in Spain. To collect the data, a survey was passed that inquired participants about their previous EFL learning experience, and both about their beliefs about teaching resources and how they would use them in the future. A mixed methods approach was used to analyse the data. Results: The participants had found the teaching resources of EFL inappropriate for the successful learning of this language, and were unanimous at the necessity of having criteria to select materials that meet the needs of students and teachers. Discussion: The participants had undergone a frustrating EFL learning experience both due to the resources that had been used, and to the way those resources had been implemented by their teachers. Conclusions: The design of innovative resources seems to be the way to make EFL learning accessible to everyone.