Published

2017-07-01

Identifying Pre-Service Teachers’ Beliefs About Teaching EFL and Their Potential Changes

Identificación de creencias de docentes en formación sobre la enseñanza de inglés como lengua extranjera y sus posibles cambios

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v19n2.59675

Keywords:

Beliefs, English as a foreign language, pre-service teachers, teaching practicum (en)
creencias, docentes en formación, inglés como lengua extranjera, práctica docente (es)

Downloads

Authors

  • Sergio Andrés Suárez Flórez Universidad de Pamplona
  • Edwin Arley Basto Basto Universidad de Pamplona
This study aims at identifying pre-service teachers’ beliefs about teaching English as a foreign language and tracking their potential changes throughout the teaching practicum. Participants were two pre-service teachers in their fifth year of their Bachelor of Arts in Foreign Languages program in a public university in Colombia. Data were gathered through a modified version of Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory before the practicum, eight weekly journal entries administered during ten weeks, and two semi-structured interviews at the end of the teaching practicum. The findings revealed that most of the pre-service teachers’ beliefs changed once they faced the reality of the classroom.
Este estudio tiene como objetivo identificar las creencias de los practicantes sobre la enseñanza del inglés como lengua extranjera y hacer un seguimiento a sus posibles cambios durante la práctica docente. Los participantes se encontraban en quinto año del programa de licenciatura en lenguas extranjeras en una universidad pública en Colombia. Los datos fueron recolectados a través de una versión modificada del cuestionario sobre las creencias en el aprendizaje de una lengua antes de la práctica, ocho diarios de reflexión durante diez semanas y dos entrevistas semiestructuradas al final de la práctica docente. Los hallazgos revelaron que la mayoría de las creencias de los participantes cambiaron una vez enfrentaron la realidad del salón de clases.

References

Abdullah, S., & Majid, F. A. (2012). Reflection on language teaching practice in polytechnic: Identifying sources of teachers’ beliefs. Procedia: Social and Behavioral Sciences, 90, 813-822. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.07.156.

Ahmed, E. W., & Al-Khalili, K. Y. (2013). The impact of using [a] reflective teaching approach on developing teaching skills of primary science student teachers. The Online Journal of New Horizons in Education, 3(2), 58-64.

Alqahtani, M. (2015). The importance of vocabulary in language learning and how to be taught. International Journal of Teaching and Education, 3(3), 21-34. http://doi.org/10.20472/TE.2015.3.3.002.

Borg, M. (2001). Teachers’ beliefs. ELT Journal, 55(2), 186-188.

Borg, S. (2006). Teacher cognition and language education: Research and practice. London, UK: Continuum.

Calderhead, J., & Robson, M. (1991). Images of teaching: Student teachers’ early conceptions of classroom practice. Teaching and Teacher Education, 7(1), 1-8. http://doi.org/10.1016/0742-051X(91)90053-R.

Camacho, D. Z., Durán, L., Albarracin, J. C., Arciniegas, M. V., Martínez, M., & Cote, G. E. (2012). How can a process of reflection enhance teacher-trainees’ practicum experience? HOW, 19, 48-60.

Castellanos, J. (2013). The role of English pre-service teachers’ beliefs about teaching in teacher education programs. PROFILE Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 15(1), 195-206.

Clark-Goff, K. (2008). Exploring change in pre-service teachers’ beliefs about English language learning and teaching (Doctoral dissertation). Texas A&M University, USA.

Cole, A. L., & Knowles, J. G. (1993). Teacher development partnership research: A focus on methods and issues. American Educational Research Journal, 30(3),473-495. http://doi.org/10.3102/00028312030003473.

Congreso de la República de Colombia. (1994). Ley 115 de febrero 8 de 1994. Retrieved from http://www.mineducacion.gov.co/1621/articles-85906_archivo_pdf.pdf.

Cote, G. (2012). The role of reflection during the first teaching experience of foreign language pre-service teachers: An exploratory-case study. Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal, 14(2), 24-34. http://doi.org/10.14483/udistrital.jour.calj.2012.2.a02.

Creswell, J. W. (2007) Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches. Thousand Oaks, US: Sage Publications.

Debreli, E. (2012). Change in beliefs of pre-service teachers about teaching and learning English as a foreign language throughout an undergraduate pre-service teacher training program. Procedia: Social and Behavioral Sciences, 46, 367-373. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2012.05.124.

Dewey, J. (1933). How we think: A restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the educative process. Washington D.C.: Heath and Company.

Fajardo, J. A. (2014). Learning to teach and professional identity: Images of personal and professional recognition. PROFILE Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 16(2), 49-65. http://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v16n2.38075.

Farrell, T. S. C. (1999). The reflective assignment: Unlocking pre-service teachers’ beliefs on grammar teaching. RELC Journal, 30(2), 1-17. http://doi.org/10.1177/003368829903000201.

Gilakjani, A. P., & Ahmadi, M. R. (2011). Why is pronunciation so difficult to learn? English Language Teaching, 4(3), 74-83. http://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v4n3p74.

Gutiérrez, C. P. (2015). Beliefs, attitudes, and reflections of EFL pre-service teachers while exploring critical literacy theories to prepare and implement critical lessons. Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal, 17(2), 179-192. http://doi.org/10.14483/udistrital.jour.calj.2015.2.a01.

Hatch, J. A. (2002). Doing qualitative research in education settings. Albany, US: State University of New York Press.

Horwitz, E. K. (1985). Using student beliefs about language learning and teaching in the foreign language methods course. Foreign Language Annals, 18(4), 333-340. http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944-9720.1985.tb01811.x.

Horwitz, E. K. (1987). Surveying student beliefs about language learning. In A. L. Wenden & J. Rubin (Eds.), Learner strategies in language learning (pp. 119-129). London, UK: Prentice-Hall.

Kagan, D. M. (1992). Implications of research on teacher belief. Educational Psychologist, 27(1), 65-90. http://doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep2701_6.

Lengeling, M. M., & Mora Pablo, I. (2016). Reflections on critical incidents of EFL teachers during career entry in Central Mexico. HOW, 23(2), 75-88. http://dx.doi.org/10.19183/how.23.2.158.

Mattheoudakis, M. (2007). Tracking changes in pre-service EFL Teacher beliefs in Greece: A longitudinal study. Teaching and Teacher Education, 23(8), 1272-1288. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2006.06.001.

McLean, J. (2007). Reflecting on your teaching. In E. Friesen (Ed.), Teaching at the University of Manitoba: A handbook (pp. 5.9-5.12). Winnipeg, CA: University Teaching Services.

Peacock, M. (2001). Pre-service ESL teachers’ beliefs about second language learning: A longitudinal study. System, 29(2), 177-195. http://doi.org/10.1016/S0346-251X(01)00010-0.

Richards, J. C., & Lockhart, C. (1996). Reflective teaching in second language classrooms. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Seymen, S. (2012). Beliefs and expectations of student teachers about their self and role as teacher during teaching practice course. Procedia: Social and Behavioral Sciences, 46, 1042-1046. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2012.05.245.

Sikka, H., & Timoštšuk, I. (2008). The role of reflection in understanding teaching practice. Problems of Education in the 21st Century, 7, 147-152.

Yuan, R., & Lee, I. (2014). Pre-service teachers’ changing beliefs in the teaching practicum: Three cases in an EFL context. System, 44, 1-12. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2014.02.002.

Dimensions

PlumX

Article abstract page views

4041

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

How to Cite

Identifying Pre-Service Teachers’ Beliefs About Teaching EFL and Their Potential Changes. (2017). Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 19(2), 167-184. https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v19n2.59675