Secondary School English Teachers Research Articles

English Language Teachers’ Classroom Assessment Practices of Oral Language Skills in Secondary Schools in Tanzania

This study investigated secondary school English language teachers’ classroom practices in the assessment of oral language skills in Tanzania. The study was informed by a phenomenological research design. Data were collected in six schools through interviews with eight (8) teachers, classroom observation and documentary review. All interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data analysis was conducted through a thematic approach. Findings revealed that classroom oral language assessment in secondary schools was sparingly conducted in the studied schools. Where it was conducted, it was dominated by debates, group discussions and classroom presentations, dialogues, dictation, interviews, questions and answers and computerassisted assessment. It was further foundthat smaller classes benefitted from oral language assessment than larger classes. Teachers with larger classes were hampered from conducting oral language assessments due to time limitations. The paper concludes that students’ oral language skills can better be

Effectiveness of outcome-based approach to design contents for training secondary school English teachers in Laos

This research aimed at evaluating effectiveness of an outcome-based approach for redesigning contents (training tasks, instructions, and assessments) of a teacher training program. Research participants were three English secondary school teachers. The effectiveness was evaluated by assessing abilities of in-service teachers to use 15 student-centered teaching techniques to design activities to teach English, appropriateness of training contents and usefulness of abilities gained from the training. Therefore, the data were gathered by assessing trainees’ abilities during and after training and interviewing them at the end of the training. The findings show that all of the in-service teachers have gained high abilities to use the 15 students centered teaching techniques for designing activities to teach English. The findings from interview show that the training contents are suitable for training the new teaching skills and they confident to use them. Therefore, high training achievement and very positive opinions found in this research confirm that outcome-based approach is effective to use for designing contents of training program.

Children’s Literature in Transcarpathian Schools for Teaching English as a Foreign Language

Since the origins of formal foreign language teaching, literature has always played an important role. Currently, modern language teaching trends suggest starting foreign language learning as early as possible; thus, the use of children’s literature in foreign language teaching is undergoing a revolution. This situation encouraged us to examine the use of children’s literature and the attitude of foreign language teachers to it. This article focuses on primary and secondary school English language teachers in a western county of Ukraine (N = 118). The results of the qualitative research revealed that the teachers’ general attitude to the use of children’s literature is positive; they are aware of their advantages but still avoid using these materials. Most teachers do not apply children’s literature in their foreign language teaching because the school curriculum is too congested and fast-paced, they do not have access to appropriate authentic children’s literature, or they were not taught how to utilize authentic children’s literature during their university years. Results suggest that teachers should be encouraged to use children’s literature, though there is no universal solution. The first suggestion is for schools themselves to support teachers, but it would be a significant step forward if this approach were also to be taken in in-service training.

The Item Analysis of English Linguistics in the Public Secondary School English Teacher Employment Exams: 2019-2022

The study aimed at examining the number of English linguistics questions, question formats, and test trends of the Public Secondary School English Teacher Employment Exam (PSSETEE) from 2019 to 2022. The results of the study revealed that the proportion of English linguistics questions had the highest proportion on the exam, comprising more than 26 percent in the PSSETEE. When analyzing the ratio by sub-field, phonology/ morphology and syntax/semantics showed the largest proportion in English linguistics questions, comprising more than 90 percent of the items. In particular, the ratio of phonology/morphology was more than that of syntax/semantics in the recent 4 years. This was different from the fact that syntax/semantics had the largest proportion in English linguistic questions from 2014 to 2018. Regarding question formats, the English linguistics questions tended to show more extended-response essay formats (n=16) than short-answer formats (n=10). Finally, the discrepancy between the rate of English linguistics courses in the Teachers College curriculum and that of English linguistics questions on the exam was discussed with future suggestions.

The influence of Quizziz-online gamification on learning engagement and outcomes in online English language teaching

Game-based English learning was considered as one of the effective techniques to develop student learning motivation and engagement. It is popular due to today's more advanced gadget technology and the COVID-19 pandemic requiring students to study from home. Much research on the gamification of English learning in various countries involving different age levels was conducted. However, very few research focused on Quizziz-online gamification for English learning purposes in the context of junior high students. This research investigated the level of students' engagement and learning outcomes of Quizziz-online gamification on English learning development in junior high school. This case study involved a secondary school English teacher and 62 students in the 9th grade at a private junior high school in Batu City, East Java Province, Indonesia. The data collection methods were observation, interview, and students' test results. Based on the descriptive and thematic analysis, it was found that gamification affected students' engagement, better active participation, and discipline. However, their English learning outcomes were dynamic. Thus, integrating an internet-based game, Quizziz, in English instruction with more cognitively driven approaches is worth implementing for better English outcomes.

FOCUS ON TEACHING GRAMMAR IN CONTEXT

The material presented in this article focuses on teaching grammar as the recent research recognizes the necessity of studying grammar and notes that learning is especially effective if grammar categories are included in meaningful communicative context. The paper is especially useful for secondary school English teachers as it identifies different options for focusing on grammar and integrating it into context, offers examples of learning activities for a specific option. The article also includes the description of the option, its theoretical and empirical basis and an example that illustrates the ways of its implementation in the classroom.
 The paper highlights the basic principles for teaching grammar, namely E-Factor and A-Factor. E-Factor means Efficiency and, teaching any grammatical category, its components – economy, ease and efficacy – should be kept in mind. A-Factor means Appropriacy and contains a lot of factors, such as learners’ age, their hobbies and interests, learners’ previous level of knowledge, etc. Teachers should consider them all to succeed in grammar presentation. The authors offer multi-vector opportunities for learning grammar to encourage students to learn it understanding its necessity because mastering grammar is the basis of language proficiency.

Towards the Sustainability of English Language Teachers Professionalism via Professional Development Programs: Extrinsic and Intrinsic Satisfactions.

With a great emphasis on understanding teacher satisfaction in designing and improving professional development programs (PDPs), this study investigated the intrinsic and extrinsic aspects of satisfaction among Malaysian English as a Second Language (ESL) primary school teachers after finishing their first-degree program. A mixed-methods design was employed by using both quantitative methods (by administering survey research) and qualitative methods (through the use of items of the semi-structured questionnaire). The survey questionnaire was adapted from OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) questionnaire to measure the level of intrinsic and extrinsic teacher satisfaction among the samples. Descriptive analysis was used to analyse the survey research data collected from 30 secondary school English language teachers in Kuala Terengganu, east coast of Malaysia. The findings revealed that personal gains did not contribute much to PD activities in relation to the level of the teacher's extrinsic satisfaction after following their first-degree PD program. The study indicates that teachers differ from each other in terms of the source of their motivation for PD, whether intrinsic or extrinsic, and the type of development they aim for. This is hoped to show direction to the policymakers and organizers of PD programs in enhancing the program by taking into consideration of the teacher satisfaction, seniority, and professional background.

Measuring and profiling Chinese secondary school English teachers’ language mindsets: an exploratory study of non-native teachers’ perceived L2 proficiency loss

AbstractNon-native second language (NNL2) teachers’ perceived L2 proficiency loss is a widespread, yet largely underrepresented phenomenon. This study used a sample of 969 Chinese secondary school non-native English teachers (91.6% female,Mage = 37.18, SD = 9.45) to examine their decremental beliefs toward English language proficiency within the framework of mindsets. Both variable-centered and person-centered approaches were adopted to perform data analysis. Confirmatory factor analysis provided validity evidence for the decremental mindset construct. Latent profile analysis categorized the participants into three groups: low decremental mindset, moderate decremental mindset, and moderate-high decremental mindset teachers. Multi-group structural equation modeling demonstrated that the direct effect of a decremental mindset on effort beliefs about English language ability loss was evident across the three groups, whereas only the decremental mindset of certain moderate-high decremental mindset teachers could lead to prevention-focused motivation. As an early attempt to examine people’s decremental beliefs toward language ability, this study extends existing research on language mindsets and provides a new perspective for the analysis of NNL2 teachers’ perceived L2 proficiency loss. Practical implications for NNL2 teacher educators and administrators are discussed on the basis of the findings.

Effects of Training in ICT-Assisted English Language Teaching on Secondary School English Language Teachers’ Knowledge, Skills, and Practice of Using ICT Tools for Teaching English

This quasiexperimental study was conducted in order to see the impact of training in Information Communication Technology- (ICT-) assisted English language teaching on secondary school English language teachers’ knowledge, skills, and practice of using ICT tools for teaching English. To this end, a one group within-subject quasi-experimental design was applied. The study included 20 teachers from Hawassa City Administration in Sidama Regional State of Ethiopia using availability sampling. Repeated measures data were obtained using tests and questionnaires and analyzed quantitatively by using SPSS version 25. Friedman’s test was computed so as to compare the related samples’ mean scores for the tests as well as questionnaires. Related-samples Kendall’s coefficient of concordance was computed on the SPSS in order to see the magnitude of the effect of the training. The results showed training in ICT-assisted English language teaching significantly improves teachers’ knowledge and skills of ICT tools for teaching English and their practice of using ICT tools in teaching English. Recommendations were made in view of that. To be specific, there are needs for teacher training in information communication technology-supported English language teaching.

The Influence of Contextual Factors on Teachers’ Cognitions on Use of Instructional Media in English Language Pedagogy in Secondary Schools in Kenya

Teachers' cognitions, that are knowledge, beliefs and thoughts, shape their pedagogical activities. This paper examined the influence of contextual factors on teachers' cognitions on instructional media use in English language pedagogy among secondary school teachers of English in Kenya. Schools were categorized as National, Extra-County, County and Sub-county. Simple random sampling was utilized to obtain the fifteen schools that participated in the study. Fifteen (15) heads of department were purposefully selected and interviewed, while thirty (30) teachers of English were randomly selected, interviewed and observed in class. The study was guided by Vygotsky social learning theory. Qualitative approach and Multiple Case study method were utilized in line with interpretivist-constructivist paradigm. Data was analyzed thematically and presented in narrative form. The findings of the study revealed that teachers' cognitions on instructional media are influenced by contextual factors such as school type, institutional support, colleagues, the syllabus, learners and the mode of evaluation.

TPACK Instrument For English Language Teachers in A Malaysian Secondary School Context

Technology integration into education has seen initiatives carried out by the Malaysian government involving resource enrichment, professional development and training, and the expansion of tools and content available on multiple platforms. The teachers are at the core of realising and executing the integration of technology into classroom instruction. As such, teacher knowledge required for technology integration is of utmost importance. The Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework proposes that a teacher needs to be equipped and competent in all the seven components: Technological Knowledge (TK), Pedagogical Knowledge (PK), Content Knowledge (CK), Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK), Technological Content Knowledge (TCK), Technological Pedagogical Knowledge (TPK), and Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK) to integrate technology effectively into their instructions. This study aims to adapt the survey of English as Foreign Language - Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (EFL-TPACK) by Baser et al (2015) and investigate the reliability and validity of the instrument when used in the context of Malaysian secondary school English language teachers. Twenty secondary school English language teachers in Sarawak participated in this study, and the IBM SPSS 21 was used for statistical analyses. The reliability of the instrument is at a Cronbach Alpha of 0.95 overall. The final TPACK survey included 38 items: 9 TK, 6 PK, 4 CK, 5 PCK, 3 TCK, 7 TPK, and 4 TPCK items. The survey also showed all positive inter-item correlations suggesting convergent validity. The adapted TPACK survey is found to be reliable and valid to be administered to measure the TPACK level of English language teachers in the Malaysian secondary school context.

English Teachers’ Conceptualizations of Key Competencies in English Language Teaching and Challenges to Their Implementation

Limited empirical research on the key competencies of front-line English teachers, particularly primary and middle school English teachers in rural regions, exists in the current literature. This research focuses on front-line instructors and examines their mastery of the key competencies in English language teaching. Through in-depth interviews, this paper examined eight rural junior middle school English teachers on their understanding of developing students’ key competencies in English language teaching, as well as the obstacles and challenges they experienced in curriculum implementation. The study found that although front-line teachers have a positive attitude toward the key competencies, there is still a certain gap between their comprehension of key competencies and policy requirements and practical demands. In order to implement core qualities and effectively promote curriculum reform, we need to strengthen teacher development training for front-line English teachers, especially for primary and secondary school English teachers in rural areas, to improve their understanding and professionalization of the new round of curriculum reform.

Villain, Coward, or Neither: Exploring Latter-Day Saint English Teachers’ Beliefs toward Using Young Adult Literature

Debates over censorship of young adult literature are pervasive and ongoing in secondary schools and communities. However, there is the little conversation surrounding how a secondary school English teacher’s religious beliefs influence their professional identity and decision-making. This study explores the beliefs of English language arts teachers within a specific faith group in utilizing young adult literature. Findings show teachers express varying levels of comfort and discomfort when choosing to use young adult literature with specific topics and themes. Implications for teacher education are discussed.

Multimodal knowledge building in a Japanese secondary English as a foreign language class

Multimodal analysis examines how different modes, such as space, gesture, and language, instantiate meaning together. In this paper, a Systemic Functional-Multimodal Discourse Analysis demonstrates how teachers enact their pedagogy with their students across modes through what is represented experientially, how relationships between people are construed interpersonally, and how coherent texts are realized textually. This paper is a preliminary study of classroom data from a larger project looking at the multimodal pedagogy of Japanese secondary school teachers of English through the paired lenses of Systemic Functional-Multimodal Discourse Analysis and Legitimation Code Theory. It demonstrates how methods from these perspectives may be productively combined. How this teacher builds cumulative knowledge multimodally can be uncovered through the analysis of pedagogic register (Rose, 2018) and exchange (Berry, 1981; Martin and Rose, 2007), as well as classroom space and representing and textual action (Amundrud, 2017; Martin and Zappavigna, 2019). How both gesture and dialogic exchange between the teacher and students modulate the contextual relation of the knowledge construed in class is also explored via semantic gravity, which looks at how closely connected knowledge practices are to their context (Maton, 2014). As a preliminary study, the paper closes with limitations and future directions for this pedagogic multimodality research.

French Teachers of English: Are They Trained to Teach English Pronunciation and Oral Comprehension Properly?

Many researchers agree to say that English teachers generally lack adequate skills to teach pronunciation properly (Macdonald, 2002; Chen & Goh, 2010), and that "there is a definite need for more courses for ESL teachers" (Derwing, 2010, p.27). We propose to present a survey that was conducted with 60 French primary school teachers and 71 secondary school teachers of English. The study was conducted in several private and public primary schools and high schools. Through a questionnaire, it focused on teachers’ self-efficacy (i.e their "individual beliefs about their own abilities to perform [the teaching of English pronunciation] (…) and achieve specific results" (Chen & Goh, 2010, p.333), on how the teachers working in these schools were trained (or not) to teach English pronunciation, and how they are used to working on pronunciation and oral comprehension in their classes. An analysis of the responses will make it possible to answer the following questions: what is the profile of primary school teachers and secondary school teachers in France? What are their needs and objectives? Are they capable of teaching English pronunciation efficiently and what can we objectively expect from them?

The Corpse Everyone Loved by Hannah Hess

Reviewed by: The Corpse Everyone Loved by Hannah Hess Susan Addelston (bio) the corpse everyone loved Hannah Hess Fulton Books https://fultonbooks.com/books/?book=the-corpse-everyone-loved 329 pages; Print, $19.95 While one is admonished never to speak ill of the dead, this corpse in particular is loved only because he is dead! We're not suggesting necrophilia here, [End Page 100] but it is true that with one exception, noted below, no one had a kind word to say about this particular body. William Hennessey's corpse was discovered in a high school science laboratory after hours. Suddenly, there is an embarrassment of suspects. Almost the entire faculty for one, a large part of the student body for others, and not even the custodial staff is beyond suspicion. Mrs. Hess, who had me at the dedication page, has written a fast-paced, intricately plotted contemporary New York city mystery with some surprising plot twists and believable characters. One supposes that all English teachers believe in their inner hearts that they can write the Great American Novel. Most would be happy to finish even one book for publication. Mrs. Hess's first published book The Third Side of the Desk was an intriguingly perceptive account of the intersectional interests of teachers, students and parents. She has subsequently taken to writing her own favorites—mysteries. The first novel, Honest Deception, relied on her own background as a young Jewish-German refugee just before World War II. There was enough macabre history there to encourage me to read all of her subsequent novels. In the interest of full disclosure, we note that my friendship with the author is professional, she's a retired New York City Secondary School English Teacher who also served as a high school assistant principal and principal, while I served as a Secondary School Social Studies teacher in the same urban environment, albeit in different schools. Having gotten that out of the way, mystery books are not my favorite genre. I'm never sharp enough to guess the endings no matter how many obvious (to others) clues are strewn about. With non-fiction social studies books, I can feel superior—I know how they end! It's easy to identify with known characters and their stories. Fictional inventions require a lot more work on the reader's part for any satisfying reward. In this case, however, there are many reasons why this book is worthy of such an effort. If you're reading this—thank a teacher. If you have a high school diploma (perhaps as much as ninety percent of our population) the setting will be ever so familiar. If you've ever had any interactions with the police, good or bad, it's fun, albeit a little sugar coated, to have at least one as a major character. If you've had children, the heroine's interactions with her own three, the youngest a preternaturally accepting teenage son, will surely cause a sympathetic nod of the head. If you've ever had a pet, there's a dog in [End Page 101] this story, giving a reader the urge to reach down to pet silky warm fur. That's a rather large section of the population for which this urbane book will be as comforting as a glass of wine after a long day—something else that both the author and her characters share a liking for. Just why was this particular corpse so loved [sic] by so many? The irony is many layered. One would think that teachers as a profession would hardly be exciting enough to be murdered and in school no less. This corpse, however, had some interesting sidelines as a drug dealer, sexual predator, bully and oh, yes—a not very good teacher! The students struggle to survive his poorly taught classes, knowing that high grades and important college recommendations might come from his pen. He makes it quite clear to his unfortunate pupils just what some of them, females especially, must do to earn desperately needed passing grades. It turns out that the only woman who truly cared for him, or at least the man she thought she...

In-Service EFL teachers’ engagement in reflexive practice via video enhanced observation

ABSTRACT Building upon the interrelationship between learning and changing, this study investigates how cyclical engagement in reflexive practice influences the teachers’ professional development. We implemented our video-enhanced ‘Reflexive Practice Triplication Model’ which we developed in our specific context. We conducted the research with 8 secondary school teachers of English at a private K12 school in Ankara, Turkey. Drawing on multiple sources of data, we used a triangulation technique to reveal the qualitative and quantitative impact of reflexive practice. The findings showed that collaborative engagement in reflexive practice contributed substantially to EFL teachers’ professional development traceable in the changes in beliefs on reflexivity, attitudes towards collaboration, contextual and pedagogical knowledge. The study provides implications as to how reflexive practice can be used in local contexts where specific needs are to be considered.

SPEAKING TEACHING STRATEGIES BY SECONDARY SCHOOL ENGLISH TEACHER

The research aims to find out the strategies used by teachers in teaching speaking to students in secondary school and teachers’ perception about the method. This study involved ten English teachers at several secondary schools in North Sumatra. To collect the data, researchers use qualitative descriptive methods by distributed questionnaires as research instruments using the google form platform. This research was conducted to find and identify the teachers’ strategies in teaching speaking. Research indicates that the strategies used by the English teacher were information gap, communicative language by real life situation, brain storming, picture storming, discussion, story-telling, role-play, daily integration in learning process, speech and games. Whereas the teacher's response to the strategy produces a positive attitude because their perception answers that the strategy they used was satisfying and effective to help students to improve their speaking skills. The results of the study also reveal that the teachers’ strategies are essential to improving students' willingness to study at school. Thus the teacher strategy is the key to success in teaching. The results of this study provide a full description of teaching practice, and the assessment employed by the teacher. From this research, it is suggested that teachers use speaking teaching strategies by paying attention to steps to perform the method.

Effects of information communication technology-assisted teaching training on English language teachers’ pedagogical knowledge and English language proficiency

This study was conducted to examine the effects of training in Information Communication Technology-assisted (ICT-assisted) English language teaching on secondary school English language teachers’ pedagogical knowledge and English language proficiency. To achieve this goal, a one-group within-subject quasi-experimental design was utilized. Twenty-two (n = 22) teachers selected from three government secondary schools in Arba Minch and Sawla towns of Gamo and Gofa zones of South Nations, Nationalities, and the Peoples Regional State of Ethiopia were included in the study using a comprehensive sampling technique. Four rounds of repeated measurements were used to collect data and Friedman’s test was used to compare the mean scores to examine the effects of the training on the teachers’ pedagogical knowledge and English language proficiency. Related-samples Kendall’s coefficient of concordance (effect size) was also run using the same non-parametric test of Friedman’s test to exmine the magnitude of the effect. The results revealed that training in ICT-assisted teaching has a significant effect on the pedagogical knowledge and English language proficiency of the teachers. Moreover, the independent variable (training in ICT-assisted English language teaching) has a strong effect (effect size) on their pedagogical knowledge and English language proficiency. Based on the results, in-service teacher training in ICT-assisted teaching is recommended to harness the potential of new technologies for English language teachers’ professional development.

Assessment of Teachers’ Technological and Pedagogical Knowledge of Integrating ICT in teaching English in Secondary Schools in Nairobi County, Kenya

The purpose of this study was to assess teachers’ technological and pedagogical knowledge of integrating ICT in teaching English in secondary schools in Nairobi County, Kenya. The study was guided by two frameworks: Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK), and Teacher Cognition. The study employed an explanatory sequential mixed-methods approach to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design, and pragmatic world view as a philosophical orientation. The sample consisted of 20 secondary school teachers of English from Nairobi County. Simple random and purposive sampling techniques were used. Data was collected using an interview schedule and a teacher questionnaire. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics: frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations and presented in tables and short descriptions and content analysis procedures and presented in narrations based on thematic areas derived from the study variables. The findings revealed among other things that, 75% of the teachers of English sampled lacked TPACK to effectively integrate ICT in their teaching, the training required by teachers of English to integrate ICT in their teaching and the resources needed to deliver this were inadequate in many schools under study. The study concluded that: teachers of English needed sufficient technological pedagogical knowledge and adequate ICT skills to effectively integrate ICTs in their teaching, the aspirations of national educational authorities because of establishing ICT competencies does not automatically result in changes in classroom practices. The study recommended that teachers be provided with professional development as a continuous process on the integration of ICT in teaching; underscoring the importance of the continued teacher development in ICTs to enhance English language teaching. The study further challenges policymakers in the secondary school context to develop ....