The Effect of Online Participation in Collaborative, Professional and Critical Discussion Circles on Self-efficacy Component of Language Teachers’ Professional Development
Subject Areas : Psychology (with literary and artistic features)
Azadeh Zakeri
1
(
Ph.D. student, Department of Language Education, Science and Research Unit, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
)
Parviz Maftoon
2
(
Associate Professor, Department of Language Education, Science and Research Unit, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
)
Parviz Birjandi
3
(
Professor, Department of Language Education, Science and Research Unit, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
)
Masood Siyyari
4
(
Assistant Professor, Department of Language Education, Science and Research Unit, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
)
Keywords: online participation circles, Experience, employment status, Professional Development, Self-efficacy,
Abstract :
Following postmethod pedagogy, the spotlight has turned on language teachers. This means that their beliefs, experiences, and knowledge have been valued because it is the language teacher who knows both her learners and her classroom contexts best and can also fulfill postmethod promises. However, how can the field of language teaching come up with much-needed professional development, self-efficacious teachers who can have their own contextualized praxis? As such, and as a possible contribution to the field of TESOL, the purpose of the present study is to provide insights into the promotion of professional development for teachers. Online social networks provide new opportunities for language teachers' life-long development through participation in collaborative, professional and critical discussions. The purpose of the study was to see whether participation in collaborative, professional and critical discussion circles enhance self-efficacy component of language teachers’ professional development, and whether language teachers’ experience as a teacher and employment status affect this development. A professional development questionnaire was devised quantitatively and qualitatively through the delineation of the essential components of teachers’ self-efficacy. Then, language teachers underwent a quasi-experimental design consisting of three phases of a pretest, an educational treatment phase, and a posttest. The findings showed significant changes in the self-efficacy component of professional development.
Latin References
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84, 191-215. doi:10.1037/0033-295X.84.2.191.
Bandura, A. (1993). Perceived self-efficacy in cognitive development and functioning. Educational psychologist, 28(2), 117-148. doi:10.1207/s15326985ep2802_3.
Bandura, A. (1995). Self-efficacy in changing societies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511527692.
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: Freeman.
Bandura, A. (2001). Social cognitive theory: An agentic perspective. Annual Psychological Review, 52, 1-26. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.1.
Borg, M. (2005). A case study of the development in pedagogic thinking of a pre-service teacher. TESL-EJ, 9, 1-30. Retrieved from http://tesl-ej.org/ej34/a5.pdf.
Cooper, C., Boyd, J. (1998). Creating sustained professional growth through collaborative reflection. In C. M. Brody & N. Davidson (Eds.), Professional development for cooperative learning: Issues and approaches (pp. 26–49). Albany: State University of New York Press.
Dewey, J. (1933). How we think: A restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the educative process (2nd ed.). D.C. Health and Co.
Dörnyei, Z. (2003). Questionnaires in second language research: Construction, administration, and processing. Lawrence Erlbaum Associations: Mahwah.
Dornyei, Z. (2010). Questionnaires in second language research: Construction, administration, and processing (2nd ed.). Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780203864739 Edge, J. (1992). Cooperative development. ELT Journal, 46(1), 62-70.
Farrell, T. S. C., Lim, P. C. P. (2005). Conceptions of grammar teaching: A case study of teachers’ beliefs and classroom practices. TESL-EJ, 9(2), 1-13.
Freeman, D. (1989). Teacher training, development, and decision making: A model of teaching and related strategies for language teacher education. TESOL, 23(1), 27-45. doi:10.2307/3587506.
Freire, P. (1998). Pedagogy of freedom: Ethics, democracy, and civic courage. New York: Rowman & Littlefield.
Grant, C. A., Zeichner, K. M. (1984). On becoming a reflective teacher. In Grant, C. A. (Ed.), Preparing for reflective teaching (pp. 54–68). Allyn and Bacon.
Hawkins, M., Norton, B. (2009). Critical language teacher education. In A. Burns & J. Richards (Eds.), Cambridge guide to second language teacher education (pp. 30-39). Cambridge: CUP.
Heider, F. (1958). The psychology of interpersonal relations. New York: Wiley. doi:10.1037/10628-000 Johnson, K. E.,
Golombek, P. R. (2003). "Seeing" teaching learning. TESOL Quarterly, 37(4), 729–737.
Kagan, D. (1992). Implications of research on teacher beliefs. Educational Psychologist, 27(1), 65-90. doi: 10.3102/00346543060003419.
Mann, S. (2005). The language teacher's development. Language Teaching, 38, 103–118. doi:10.1017/S0261444805002867.
Markova, A. K. (1996). Psychology of Professionalism. International Humanity Fund Knowledge, 312-322.
Richards, J. C. (1998). Beyond training. Cambridge University Press.
Richards, J. C., Farrell, T. S. C. (2005). Professional development for language teachers: Strategies for teacher learning. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511667237.
Rotter, J. B. (1966). Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. Psychological Monographs, 80(1), 1-28. doi:10.1037/h0092976
Shor, I. (1993). Education is politics: Paulo Freire's critical pedagogy. In P. McLaren & P. Leonard (Eds.), Paulo Freire: A critical encounter (pp. 25-35). New York: Routledge.
Song, S. Y. (2015). Teachers’ beliefs about language learning and teaching. In M. Bigelow, J. Ennser-Kananen (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of educational linguistics (pp. 263-275). New York: Taylor & Francis.
Tschannen-Moran, M., Woolfolk Hoy, A. (2002). The influence of resources and support on teachers’ efficacy beliefs. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association. New Orleans, LA.
Tschannen-Moran, M., Woolfolk Hoy, A. (2007). The differential antecedents of self-efficacy beliefs of novice and experienced teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education Journal, 23, 944-956. doi:10.1016/j.tate.2006.05.003.
Tsui, A. B. M. (2003). Understanding expertise in teaching: Case studies of ESL teachers. New York: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO97811395246 98.
_||_Latin References
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84, 191-215. doi:10.1037/0033-295X.84.2.191.
Bandura, A. (1993). Perceived self-efficacy in cognitive development and functioning. Educational psychologist, 28(2), 117-148. doi:10.1207/s15326985ep2802_3.
Bandura, A. (1995). Self-efficacy in changing societies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511527692.
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: Freeman.
Bandura, A. (2001). Social cognitive theory: An agentic perspective. Annual Psychological Review, 52, 1-26. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.1.
Borg, M. (2005). A case study of the development in pedagogic thinking of a pre-service teacher. TESL-EJ, 9, 1-30. Retrieved from http://tesl-ej.org/ej34/a5.pdf.
Cooper, C., Boyd, J. (1998). Creating sustained professional growth through collaborative reflection. In C. M. Brody & N. Davidson (Eds.), Professional development for cooperative learning: Issues and approaches (pp. 26–49). Albany: State University of New York Press.
Dewey, J. (1933). How we think: A restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the educative process (2nd ed.). D.C. Health and Co.
Dörnyei, Z. (2003). Questionnaires in second language research: Construction, administration, and processing. Lawrence Erlbaum Associations: Mahwah.
Dornyei, Z. (2010). Questionnaires in second language research: Construction, administration, and processing (2nd ed.). Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780203864739
Edge, J. (1992). Cooperative development. ELT Journal, 46(1), 62-70.
Farrell, T. S. C., Lim, P. C. P. (2005). Conceptions of grammar teaching: A case study of teachers’ beliefs and classroom practices. TESL-EJ, 9(2), 1-13.
Freeman, D. (1989). Teacher training, development, and decision making: A model of teaching and related strategies for language teacher education. TESOL, 23(1), 27-45. doi:10.2307/3587506
Freire, P. (1998). Pedagogy of freedom: Ethics, democracy, and civic courage. New York: Rowman & Littlefield.
Grant, C. A., Zeichner, K. M. (1984). On becoming a reflective teacher. In Grant, C. A. (Ed.), Preparing for reflective teaching (pp. 54–68). Allyn and Bacon.
Hawkins, M., Norton, B. (2009). Critical language teacher education. In A. Burns & J. Richards (Eds.), Cambridge guide to second language teacher education (pp. 30-39). Cambridge: CUP.
Heider, F. (1958). The psychology of interpersonal relations. New York: Wiley. doi:10.1037/10628-000
Johnson, K. E., Golombek, P. R. (2003). "Seeing" teaching learning. TESOL Quarterly, 37(4), 729–737.
Kagan, D. (1992). Implications of research on teacher beliefs. Educational Psychologist, 27(1), 65-90. doi: 10.3102/00346543060003419.
Mann, S. (2005). The language teacher's development. Language Teaching, 38, 103–118. doi:10.1017/S0261444805002867.
Markova, A. K. (1996). Psychology of Professionalism. International Humanity Fund Knowledge, 312-322.
Richards, J. C. (1998). Beyond training. Cambridge University Press.
Richards, J. C., Farrell, T. S. C. (2005). Professional development for language teachers: Strategies for teacher learning. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511667237.
Rotter, J. B. (1966). Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. Psychological Monographs, 80(1), 1-28. doi:10.1037/h0092976
Shor, I. (1993). Education is politics: Paulo Freire's critical pedagogy. In P. McLaren & P. Leonard (Eds.), Paulo Freire: A critical encounter (pp. 25-35). New York: Routledge.
Song, S. Y. (2015). Teachers’ beliefs about language learning and teaching. In M. Bigelow, J. Ennser-Kananen (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of educational linguistics (pp. 263-275). New York: Taylor & Francis.
Tschannen-Moran, M., Woolfolk Hoy, A. (2002). The influence of resources and support on teachers’ efficacy beliefs. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association. New Orleans, LA.
Tschannen-Moran, M., Woolfolk Hoy, A. (2007). The differential antecedents of self-efficacy beliefs of novice and experienced teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education Journal, 23, 944-956. doi:10.1016/j.tate.2006.05.003.
Tsui, A. B. M. (2003). Understanding expertise in teaching: Case studies of ESL teachers. New York: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO97811395246 98.
