Novice efl teachers participation in professional development in their community of practice

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES *********************** BÙI THỊ KHÁNH HUYỀN NOVICE EFL TEACHERS’ PARTICIPATION IN PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN THEIR COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE Sự tham gia vào hoạt động phát triển chuyên môn giáo viên tiếng Anh vào nghề cộng đồng thực hành M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 HANOI - 2017 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES BÙI THỊ KHÁNH HUYỀN NOVICE EFL TEACHERS’ PARTICIPATION IN PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN THEIR COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE Sự tham gia vào hoạt động phát triển chuyên môn giáo viên tiếng Anh vào nghề cộng đồng thực hành M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 Supervisor: Assoc Prof Dr Lê Văn Canh HANOI - 2017 DECLARATION I hereby declare that this thesis is a presentation of my original research work submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Art degree at the Faculty of Postgraduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies, VNU The material in the research has not been submitted anywhere for any formal course assessment or any award Wherever contributions of other researchers are involved, every effort is made to indicate this clearly, with due reference to the literature, and acknowledgement of collaborative research and discussion The work was done under the guidance of Associated Professor Lê Văn Canh, at the University of Languages and International Studies In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan or reproduction of the paper Hanoi, 2017 Bùi Thị Khánh Huyền i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis would not have been possible without the contributions and supports of many people, to whom I would like to send my heartfelt thanks My deep gratitude goes first to my beloved lecturer and my supervisor, Dr Lê Văn Canh for his valuable supports and instructions I owe a debt gratitude to his constant advices and guidance right from the beginning of this journey But for his supervision, this thesis would not have been completed I also wishto take this opportunity to record my thankfulness to my friends and my colleagues for their timely assistance and effective cooperation in collecting data for completing this study Their enthusiastic participation was indispensable to my research Above all, I would like to express my heart full indebtedness to my family and especially my husband who have always supported, encouraged and inspired me to move on and finish the work I‟m strongly in debited to their unconditional love and cares They have been always my strongest motivation to move on ii ABSTRACT The efficiency of professional development for novice EFL teachers has largely been validated to possess intensive influence on the quality of English teaching so far In Vietnam, the Decision number 1400/QĐ-TTG approving the National Project 2020 by the Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan (2008) has pointed out vital purposes of teaching English as a foreign language and set a goal to shift the foreign language as the strength of Vietnamese people This decision has obliquely emphasized the necessity of skillful English teachers and especially the significance of professional development programs to train novice ones However, the topic is still under-investigated as too little work related to the field could be found in the country This study employed qualitative research approach to conduct in-depth interviews with six Vietnamese novice EFL teachers, exploring under-surface problems Collected data revealed that although these teachers were thirsty for professionalizing their major, their professional development faced not a small number of challenges Indeed, their self-initiated learning appeared to be more beneficial than those training activities held at their community of practice iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS COP: Community of practice EFL: English as a Foreign Language PD: Professional development iv TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii LIST OF FIGURES & TABLES vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale 1.2 Aims and objectives of the study 1.3 Research questions 1.4 Significance of the Study 1.5 Scope of the study 1.6 Organization CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Definition of terminologies 2.1.1 Novice teachers 2.1.2 Professional development (PD) 2.1.3 Community of Practice (COP) 2.2 Role of community of practice in professional development 11 2.3 Factors affecting teachers‟ participation in PD in their COP 12 2.4 Related studies on novice teachers‟ PD in their COP 14 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 16 3.1 Research design 16 3.2 Selection of research participants 17 3.2.1 Method of sampling 17 v 3.2.2 Research participants 17 3.3 Data collection instruments 19 3.4 Data collection procedure 20 3.5 Data analysis methods 21 CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 22 4.1 Access to PD activities 22 4.2 Motivating factors behind novice EFL teachers‟ participation in PD 28 4.2.1 Personal Characteristic 29 4.2.2 Internal factors – Perceptions of PD 31 4.2.3 External (Environmental) factors 32 4.3 Contextual factors inhibiting novice teachers‟ participation in PD within their COP 34 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 38 5.1 Summary of findings and conclusion 38 5.2 Implications and applications 41 5.3 Limitations of the research and suggestions for further study 41 REFERENCES 43 APPENDIX I APPENDIX - Invitation Email II APPENDIX - Consent form IV APPENDIX - List of interview questions V vi LIST OF FIGURES& TABLES Figure 1: Forms of professional development in language teaching Figure 2: The three elements of COP 10 Figure 3: Factors affecting teachers' participation in PD in their COP 14 Table 1: Participants‟ backgrounds 18 Table Teachers' PD activities in their COP 23 vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION This chapter provides information about the research problem and the reason why the problems need to be researched In addition, the aims, research questions together with scope of the study are presented The chapter concludes with an overview of the chapters that follow in the thesis 1.1 Rationale “Master teachers are not born, they become They become primarily by developing a habit of mind, a way of looking critically at the work they do; by developing the courage to recognize faults, and by struggling to improve.” (Kane, 2004) Recent decades, along with the rapid growth of globalization, has witnessed the dramatic increase in the popularity of English as an International language As an official language of more than 67 countries and being spoken by over 840 million people around the world, this language is regarded as the third most commonly spoken language on this Earth, besides Mandarin Chinese and Spanish English words can be heard in every field, from economy, business to technology, entertainment and a great number of cultural and social activities In Vietnam, due to the high requirements for communicating, studying and working, the importance of studying English has been incredibly considered these days The Decision number 1400/QĐ-TTG approving the Project2020 by the Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan (2008) has pointed out vital purposes of studying English as a foreign language and set a goal to shift the foreign language as the strength of Vietnamese people This decision has resulted in the necessity to enhance both the quantity and quality of teaching English, as a student is badly in need of being exposed to qualified teachers to be successful More seriously, they may geton the verge of “being set back one to three grade levels” in case they are“exposed to an ineffective teacher” (Teacher Induction, 2008) Based on theories developed by Bayar (2013) and the findings about factors affecting teachers‟ participation in PD in their COP, recommendations for novice EFL teachers, principals and educationalists can be made as follow: 1) For novice teachers: - They should be well-qualified and have well preparation before beginning their teaching career It will enables them to be more confident in their teaching - Since novice teachers need more training and PD than experienced teachers, they should improve their daily time-allotment, have applicable working schedules and reduce extra work to spend more time developing their teaching profession - Novice teachers should feel free to ask for helps or advices from their experienced colleagues whenever they face difficulties or problems in teaching, which enables them to learn and improve efficiently 2) For other expert teachers, principals, educationalists and educational authorities: - It would be better if novice teachers‟ problems, needs and expectations could be noticed It will facilitate principals and educationalists organizing more effective PD activities to enhance teaching quality Meanwhile, various updated forms of PD should be developed and enforced to make it appropriate for modern teaching - Not only teaching skills but also English proficiency should be focused when organizing PD activities Novice teachers are badly in need of practicing and improving those skills - More incentive policies should be approved to encourage novice teachers to participate in PD Workload at schools should be reduced and more scholarship or sponsorship for potential teachers should be offered 40 5.2 Implications and applications The conclusions of this research provide an insight into the common difficulties and problems faced by Vietnamese EFL teachers when beginning their teaching career These findings will be valuable for researchers studying educational fields, especially teacher training and PD Moreover, principals in COP in particular and authorities in Ministry of Education and Training in general can make use of these findings as references to propose applicable policies to facilitate their employees to develop their profession effectively, which will consequently enhance the quality of students learning Besides, the results of this study are proposed to facilitate bridging the professional gap between novice teachers and authorities in Educational fields It can probably be the suggestions for educational policy-maker to have appropriate solutions to train their novice teachers According to the findings, peer-observation, presentations, workshops or supporting groups will be advantageous Also, the study can be used as a reference for undergraduates who are supposed to become English teachers in Vietnam 5.3 Limitations of the research and suggestions for further study Although receiving perfect supports from the supervisor, family and friends, due to the limited time and the scope of a graduation paper, the researcher had limitations in recruiting participants It would be much better if the greater number of Vietnamese novice EFL teachers were interviewed Additionally, the researcher failed to recruit participants with various educational backgrounds All interviewees in this research graduated from advanced classes in University of Languages and International Studies As a result, it is impossible for the researcher to make a comparison and compare the differences in influential factors related education level Also, the study would bring out more comprehensive knowledge if the researcher could manage to get more diversity in participants‟ genders, age groups as well as years of teaching experiences 41 Therefore, further studies on the participation in PD of novice teachers under the influences of age, gender, education level and years of teaching experienced are highly recommended Interestingly, a specific investigation to compare and contrast between PD of novice teachers with local educational background and the 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Teachers College Record, 109(3), 699-739 48 APPENDIX I APPENDIX - Invitation Email Dear potential participants, My name is Bui Thi Khanh Huyen and I am a MA candidate in the Faculty of Post– graduate studies at ULIS, VNU I am conducting a research study as part of the requirement of my degree in the major: Theory & Methodology in Teaching English and I would like to invite you to participate in a research study: Novice EFL teachers’ participation in professional development in their community of practice I am studying the extent that novice EFL teachers participate in professional development activities in their community of practice and the influential factors behind their participation, both the motivating and the inhibiting ones If you decide to participate, you will be asked to meet with me for an interview about your experience in professional development in your working community The meeting will take place at a mutually agreed upon time and place, and should last about one hour The interview will be recorded so that I can accurately reflect on what is discussed The recording will be transcribed and checked by the researcher only No one else will have access to the collected data In addition, all the names will be removed and replaced by a pseudonym in order for participants not to be identified Identifiable data will probably be protected by being kept in password, and any further analysis or re-use of the data will be properly referenced You may feel uncomfortable answering some of the questions You not have to answer any questions that you not wish to Participation is confidential Study information will be kept in a secure location at the University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National II University The results of the study may be published or presented at professional meetings, but your identity will not be revealed Taking part in the study is entirely your decision You not have to be in this study if you not want to You may also quit being in the study at any time or decide not to answer any question you are not comfortable answering We will be happy to answer any questions you have about the study You may contact me at email khanhhuyen818@gmail.com or phone number: +84 948-514818 Thank you for your consideration If you would like to participate, please fill in this attached consent form below and send back to me latest on 14/03/2016 Sincerely, Bùi Thị Khánh Huyền MA candidate Faculty of Post-graduate studies University of Languages and International Studies (ULIS) Vietnam National University, Hanoi III APPENDIX - Consent form Vietnam National University Bùi Thị Khánh Huyền Hanoi, Vietnam MA candidate Telephone (84-4) 37547269 Tel: +84 948-514-818 Email: dhnn@vnu.edu.vn Email: Website: http://ulis.vnu.edu.vn/ English/ khanhhuyen818@gmail.com CONSENT FORM Novice EFL teachers’ participation in professional development in their community of practice The Researcher Bùi Thị Khánh Huyền, MA candidate of ULIS Vietnam National University I have read the information contained in the letter about the above titled study, which describes what I will be asked to if I decide to participate I agree to participate in the above research project and give my consent freely I have had the opportunity to have questions answered to my satisfaction Full Name: Signature: (not essential if sent electronically) _ Date: IV APPENDIX - List of interview questions In order to answer the three research question above, the researcher intend to collect data from novice EFL teachers based on these following questions A Questions about participants’ background Which University did you graduate from? How long have you worked as an EFL teacher? Why did you decide to become an EFL teacher over other jobs? How did you see yourself as a teacher when you first started teaching? Are there any differences between the way you saw yourself as a teacher then and the way you see yourself as a teacher now? If yes, why is there such a difference? B Questions about participants’ profession Are you satisfied with your English proficiency? What areas of English you think you need to improve? Why you think you need to improve those areas? What have you done to improve them? How does your improved English proficiency influence the way you teach in the classroom? And students learning? What can you say about your teaching skills? What problems you often have in teaching your students? How did you resolve those problems? Are you satisfied with your solutions? Why/ why not? Do you have any problems with your students? If yes how did you overcome them? Can you give one example? Do you continue to learn to improve your English? If yes what you learn and how you learn it? Do you continue to learn to improve your teaching skills? V How you learn? 10 Are there any other aspects of teaching you think you need to improve? How does it affect your teaching? And students learning? Can you give one example? 11 What activities you participate in at your school to improve your teaching skills? Who organize those activities? How often are those activities held? To what extent are those activities beneficial to you as a novice teacher? 12 What you learn from other experienced teachers in your school? How you learn from them? C Questions about participants’ influential factors behind their participation 13 Do you have any difficulties working and communicating with other teachers in the school? If yes what are the difficulties? How can you overcome the difficulties? Can you give one example? 14 What other difficulties you have professionally, financially and socially (i.e in relations with others) in learning to become a better teacher? 15 Do you have any extra work beside teaching in your school? If yes, what are they? 16 What is your plan in the next five years? 17 How you perceive the importance of professional development activities for novice EFL teachers in Vietnam? VI ... master in the field Teachers who have just finished their studying and training in teaching field are the new comers in their community of practice (COP) where they continue learning for their professional. .. Definition of terminologies 2.1.1 Novice teachers 2.1.2 Professional development (PD) 2.1.3 Community of Practice (COP) 2.2 Role of community of practice in. .. UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES BÙI THỊ KHÁNH HUYỀN NOVICE EFL TEACHERS’ PARTICIPATION IN PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN THEIR COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE