Pre-service Language Teacher Education Research Articles

Bridging the gaps: Using social media to develop techno-pedagogical competences in pre-service language teacher education

To use technology effectively in the language classroom, pre-service teachers must develop basic techno-pedagogical competences for the classroom and learn to select from abundant online resources. Research underlines the importance of autonomous, collaborative and networked approaches to in-service teacher education and the present empirical study extends this model to pre-service trainees. It investigates whether constructivist principles of group collaboration, web-based research, and social networking can inform effective course design for pre-service teachers of several target languages and to what extent these teachers can acquire techno-pedagogical skills, learn to filter online content, and adopt collaborative learning practices without direct contact with learners. Group projects involving online curation, wikis and social media were analysed and results show progress in techno-pedagogical competences, collaborative skills, and attitudes to ICT, suggesting social media can allow trainee teachers to benefit from and contribute to online teaching and learning resources, laying the groundwork for ongoing professional development.

The Essentials of the Foreign Language Learning Environment: Through the Eyes of the Pre-service EFL Teachers

Abstract The present study aims to identify pre-service EFL (English as a foreign language) teachers’ perceptions in relation to various aspects of foreign language learning environments. 50 pre-service EFL teachers participated in the study. They were in the fourth year of their 4-year undergraduate teacher education program at an English Language Teaching department in Turkey. Data were collected by means of open-ended questionnaires and were analyzed qualitatively. ‘Language teaching materials’ and ‘teaching techniques and methods’ were the most frequently mentioned elements of the foreign language learning environment by pre-service EFL teachers. Findings were discussed in relation to pre-service language teacher education.

A Critical Analysis of Foreign Language Pre-service Teacher Education in Turkey

Although research studies delving into foreign language teacher education in Turkey have been growing exponentially over the last few decades, so much more still lies undiscovered. What is mostly needed is not the synopsis of what Turkish foreign language teacher education policy has gone through, but the critical investigation of how it has been shaped so far, thereby allowing us to better comprehend the underlying challenges, failures, and precepts in teacher education. Yet, this need has received scant attention. This critical study, therefore, aims to display the historical process of foreign language teacher education policy in Turkey and to look into its present situation. Put simply, this study has revealed how pre-service language teacher education in Turkey has progressed through Ottoman and Turkish education era and how it has taken on much greater prominence in recent years. The study also presents some suggestions for language teacher education (hereafter LTE) program developers and tea chers.

Two approaches to the use of blogs in pre-service foreign language teachers' professional development: a comparative study in the context of two universities in the UK and the US

This article explores the use of blogs for pre-service language teacher education in two national settings, the UK (University of Cambridge) and the US (University of South Florida). Taking two approaches to blogging and to learning through blogging (one based on self-reflection and a constructivist approach and one based on social and collaborative learning and a sociocultural approach), the research examines how pre-service language teachers both use and understand the affordances of blogs for their professional development. Data were collected from the participants' blog entries during their eight/nine month courses and from individual interviews conducted and analysed inductively. Some distinct themes emerged from the two settings. In the UK setting, there was deep analytical reflection on professional development, on professional identity and on change, with the participants perceiving the benefits of the blog to be the distance it provides from events and the cathartic effects of writing. In the US setting, findings suggest that the blog was used as a space for joint sharing of resources and ideas, and for co-constructive learning. Participants noted the affordances to be sharing information, developing professionalism and collaborative learning. While the approach to blogging was different in the two settings, the engagement in both was dialogic; the blogs functioned as a ‘thinking device’ that enhanced professional development. Their use may transfer from pre-service teachers' learning to their teaching.

The Use of the EPOSTL to Foster Teacher Autonomy: ELT Student Teachers’ and Teacher Trainers’ Views

It was the aim of this pilot study to investigate ELT (English Language Teaching) student teachers’ and teacher trainers’ views on the use of the EPOSTL (The European Portfolio for Student Teachers of Languages) in pre-service language teacher education of a Turkish state university. Upon the implementation of the EPOSTL as a reflection tool for the second semester of 2010, 25 student teachers and 4 teacher trainers were interviewed through the questions prepared and piloted. The findings indicated that both student teachers and teacher trainers found the use of the EPOSTL beneficial in terms of reflection, self-assessment and awareness. In the light of the findings, it is proposed that the EPOSTL should not only be integrated into teacher education programmes but also be converted into an online format to make it more convenient for the student teachers.

‘We teach plastic lessons to please them’: The influence of supervision on the practice of English language student teachers in Kenya

This article analyses the process of supervision by teacher educators and its influence on English language student teachers during a practicum in Kenya. The student teachers were enrolled in a four-year Bachelor of Education course for teaching English at secondary school level. Drawing on the perspectives of teacher educators, co-operating teachers and student teachers, this analysis suggests that supervision was brief and un-coordinated and that the feedback student teachers received was mainly evaluative, directive and focused on general, rather than subject-specific pedagogy. Student teachers’ concerns during the practicum were related largely to pleasing their supervisors and obtaining a pass mark, and this limited the extent to which student teachers developed the pedagogical reasoning that is considered to be the main goal of teaching practice by both the Kenya government and current literature in the field of language teacher education (LTE). This study has implications for the conduct of teaching practice on pre-service language teacher education courses in Kenya and more generally.