2.6. Evaluative studies on teacher training for teaching English to young
2.6.1. Evaluative studies on teacher training for teaching English
of the world in an effort to unveil the strengths and weaknesses of the Saudi teacher education program in Saudi Arabia through examining the perceptions of students and graduates. That survey questioned from the teaching methods to the difficulty of expressing of the members in the English department and the difficulty in their teaching environment. The author found that the training program was rated positively by both the learners and the trainers who had mastered the facets of teaching practice, teaching methods, faculty quality, and language courses. However, they learn that preparation for English speaking skills and the opportunity to communicate in English are not enough and literary courses are not really worth the preparation for them.
Barkhuizen (1997) delves into the elements that make up the student's shyness. This is an important issue for the future teacher when they are in front of their students. In order to restructure the curriculum and eliminate the factors that cause such shyness, the 120 final-year students of the three English teacher training programs in southern Africa are surveyed with one open question series. This research shows that the participants mainly focus on the following reasons: weak English skills, learning attitudes, mother tongue interventions, their English acquisition and influence from their teachers.
There are not many studies on teacher training programs in Turkey.
Except for some studies, not much researched, written on the evaluation of the curriculum. ệgeyik (2009) seems to address only the improvement of recent language courses in the English language curriculum for elementary schools in Turkey. By conducting a survey of final year students at a university in Turkey, she found a program deemed fit for purpose and the criteria set out to
be achieved. However, the program is almost considered to be eligible, one of the weaknesses of the program is that there are no separate courses in culture.
Erozan (2005) evaluated language improvement courses in a pedagogical program at a university in Turkey. By using a series of student survey questions, student and teachers in the faculty interviews, classroom observation, and a review of materials such as course policies, the course materials, the test methods used in the course, she pointed out that language improvement courses are really effective. She listed a number of points that the participants mentioned: need more practical elements, more diversity of life-related materials, diversification of methods and activities. Also, there should be needed a strong connection between coherence and continuity in and between courses. The students involved in her research wanted more practical micro-activities in the courses. In addition, the use of some methods is not reasonable and teaching is not appropriate, so the course is criticized by the students.
Focusing on the practical elements of the training program, Seferoğlu (2006) conducted a quantitative study and explored end-of-course views on teaching methods and practice components. Research has shown that most students expressed greater need for micro teaching and more small details to look more at different aspects of different teachers at different levels in the skills courses.
Şallı-Çopur (2008) discovered that English-speaking teachers at a university in Turkey from 2002 to 2006 were perceived themselves as good and qualified ones. They find the ingredients that help them succeed in learning to gain high energy. Through survey questions and interviews, she found that students who graduated from self-awareness were competent in most areas. This was assessed by the educational association in addressing the
need for improved language skills, use of spoken English, classroom management, assessment methods and classroom instruction. In addition, most participants think that there are some unnecessary duplicates between courses and some of them believe that the practical components of the program should be focused more.
Uysal (2012) conducted a study evaluating a retraining program for language teachers in Turkey. The researcher interviewed three teachers who taught in the program and six teachers did not teach in the program. 72 teachers participated in the survey responded to the questions. The main questions focus on teacher satisfaction, motivation, basic knowledge, and classroom practice. The researcher concluded that top-down reforms cannot guarantee good reception in educational reform. In order to successfully train English teachers, there should be close links and cooperation between competent persons, trainers and trainees through educational reform programs. In addition, managers should focus on input methods, resources and types of materials. Participant feedback should be collected and their participation should be evaluated and monitored.
Huong and Yeo (2016) conducted a study to evaluate the retraining of English language teachers in a Vietnamese center. Sixty teachers participated in answering survey questions with sixteen sentences in a similar scale and fifteen of them were interviewed randomly. Evaluation focuses on content, materials, methods and management. New findings have indicated that most respondents generally appreciate with the training program they have been experiencing. They also focus on a number of key issues. First, the content should focus more on reality. Secondly, the participants wanted more time to practice and discuss. Finally, teachers should have equal opportunities to be trained.
Nguyen (2012) conducted CEFR research in rural areas of Vietnam. 64 principals and 47 English teachers were invited to participate in the study.
Based on the author's conclusions, most of the goals set are not fully achieved. It is recommended that the government should focus more on in- service training so that teachers can achieve teaching quality in teaching methods, content and materials. One of those approaches will be continuous professional development for teachers via the internet for those who cannot attend the training.
2.6.2. Evaluative studies on teacher training for teaching English to