Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 157-161).

Thesis (PhD)--Macquarie University, Division of Linguistics & Psychology, Department of Linguistics, 2006. / Bibliography: p. 372-438.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 157-161). Also available in print.

A língua inglesa na formação do estudante do ensino médio integrado à Educação Profissional Técnica (EMIEPT) é uma área que tem suscitado pesquisas em várias vertentes. A compreensão desse contexto, mais especificamente localizado no Instituto Federal do Paraná (IFPR), é a preocupação principal desta pesquisa pela complexidade e diversidade das questões que compõem esse cenário. Para tanto, desenvolvemos uma pesquisa de natureza descritivo-interpretativa, dividida em duas fases: indexação de pesquisas realizadas em contextos semelhantes e coleta de dados em campo no IFPR. O desenho da pesquisa viabilizou o afunilamento das tendências que caracterizam o EMIEPT, de forma mais geral, para a compreensão do contexto mais específico por meio do levantamento de concepções e práticas dos professores do IFPR, identificadas em planos de ensino, questionários e entrevistas. No total foram analisados os dados obtidos a partir de 22 planos de ensino, 18 questionários e seis entrevistas, os quais tiveram como informantes os professores de LI do IFPR. Os resultados da primeira fase evidenciam um movimento crescente de pesquisas realizadas no EMIEPT por professores que atuam no contexto. Essa evidência evoca tanto a necessidade de busca de soluções para conflitos inerentes ao contexto como a necessidade de formação continuada, apontada em várias pesquisas. A análise dos dados da segunda fase aponta, entre outros, que os profissionais que ensinam LI no IFPR recebem pouca formação continuada sobre os fundamentos filosóficos e epistemológicos da modalidade de ensino na qual atuam. O resultado das análises das entrevistas corrobora os dados levantados nos questionários, mostrando as tendências no trabalho do professor de LI do IFPR, suas preocupações e dificuldades. Os resultados obtidos por meio da análise dos planos de ensino bem como a construção das relações entre os dados das duas fases da pesquisa permitiram o levantamento das contradições, sobreposições e convergências presentes no multifacetado cenário do ensino de LI no EMIEPT do IFPR. Os resultados apontam, também, que nesse contexto de ensino prioriza-se a formação geral do estudante, e a integração com a formação profissional fica restrita a aspectos superficiais. Conclui-se que o cenário demanda dois tipos de ações que podem contribuir para o ensino de LI: formação continuada em serviço e engajamento político dos profissionais que atuam na área. / English language education within Vocational Secondary School Education (Ensino Médio Integrado à Educação Profissional Técnica EMIEPT) is a prolific area that has generated research in various angles. Understanding this context, more specifically placed at the Federal Institute of Paraná (IFPR) is the main concern of this research due to the complexity and diversity of the issues that make up this scenario. We develop a descriptive-interpretative research organized in two phases: research indexation in literature and field work. The research design enables us to narrow down the tendencies from the broader ones that characterize the EMIEPT towards the ones that are context-related within the IFPR by identifying concepts and practices of IFPR teachers through the analysis of twenty-two teaching plans, eighteen questionnaires and six interviews. The results of the literature indexation show a growing research movement in EMIEPT carried out by teacher-researchers who work in this context. This evidence evokes both the need for finding solutions to conflicts inside the context and the need for continuing education. The analysis of the questionnaires shows that the professionals who teach English language at IFPR receive little continuing education on the philosophical and epistemological foundations of EMIEPT. The results of the interviews analysis corroborate the data showing tendencies in English language teaching practices at IFPR, mainly teachers concerns and difficulties. The results obtained through the analysis of teaching plans and cross-analysis between the data of the two phases of the research allows us to describe the contradictions, overlaps and similarities present in the multifaceted scenario of English Language education in the EMIEPT at IFPR. The results also show that this teaching context gives priority to student general education and the integration with vocational education is restricted to superficial aspects. In conclusion, the scenario claims for two types of actions that could contribute to the improvement of quality in English language education: continuing education for teachers and political engagement of professionals working in the area.

The overall agenda for the research reported here grew out of semi-structured interviews with senior educational managers from a tertiary educational institution in Taiwan. These managers raised a number of issues, including the changing profile of tertiary students, the changing nature of English curricula, the increasing need for English teaching staff to be adaptable, highly qualified and research-active, and the growing pressure on institutions to introduce English language proficiency benchmarking. Each of these issues can be related to the impact of globalization and, in particular, the impact of the globalization of English, on the education sector. Following a critical review of selected literature on the impact of globalization on the teaching and learning of English, each of these issues, as it affects the tertiary education sector in Taiwan, was explored. Analysis of the Taiwanese national curriculum guidelines for schools, strongly influenced by academics in the tertiary education sector, revealed a number of problems relating to a lack of proficiency benchmarking and a lack of coherence, consistency and transparency in some areas. These problems may be associated with the initial phase of transition from a grammar-based curriculum to a more communicatively-oriented, outcomes-centered one. Problems of a similar type were indicated in responses to questions relating to curriculum matters included in a questionnaire distributed to a sample of teachers of English in the tertiary sector. Among other things revealed by questionnaire responses was the fact that many survey participants had received no training in English teaching. The results of a C-test (one that was initially used in a major European study) taken by a sample of entry-level and exit-level Bachelors degree students indicated a wide variation in proficiency, with individual scores differing by as much as 64 percentage points in the case of exit-level students. Furthermore, there was a difference of almost 10 percentage points between the mean scores of students from two different institutions who had majored in English. These results indicate some of the difficulties that Taiwan faces in attempting to establish graduation proficiency benchmarking. -ii- C-test participants completed a background questionnaire, the responses indicating a generally positive attitude towards English-speaking people, a general willingness to use English in situations where there was the option of not doing so, and a strong tendency towards instrumental motivation. Although one of the factors that appeared to have a positive impact on C-test performance was time spent in an English-speaking country, fewer than 18% of respondents had done so. Although there appears to be considerable anxiety and uncertainty associated with the teaching of English at tertiary level in Taiwan, and some genuine cause for concern, there are also many positive indicators of future success. Teachers and educational managers are aware of the problems they currently face and appear determined to resolve them. Taiwanese academics are increasingly involved in language-related research and increasingly prepared to interrogate their own practices, and Taiwan, unlike some other countries in Asia, is moving towards graduation proficiency benchmarking.

The purpose of this study was to investigate perceptions of self-initiated professional development of English language teachers at English Language School of BaSkent University. Within this framework, teachers&amp / #8217 / attitudes towards their professional development, their perceptions of major professional development activities, and the factors that hinder change and growth in teachers were investigated. The data collection instrument used was a questionnaire administered to 110 English language teachers at BaSkent University. The questionnaire consisted of both open-ended and close-ended items and the data collected were analyzed descriptively to understand the general trends and differences among teachers. The data analysis revealed that the teachers agreed with most of the concepts that reflect the importance of professional development. In addition, they were aware of the importance of major professional development activities for their growth. However, peer observation and action research, which are developmental activities, were not favoured as much as the other activities. In addition, it was found that the teachers did not make use of the activities as much as they gave importance to. Furthermore, teachers showed significant differences in importance given to and making use of the activities by the background variables. Female teachers, young teachers and the teachers who do not have much experience seemed to give more importance to and actualize some of the professional development activities more than the other teachers. Meanwhile, it was also noted that the listed factors that hinder growth were all found important by the teachers. The most important impediments to growth were indicated as excessive workload, lack of self-motivation and lack of institutional support for professional development.

This study investigates the impact of CALL training on in-service language teachers&rsquo / use of CALL-based activities in their classrooms and what factors influence their use of these activities in their classroom. The participants included 35 pre-service English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers who took an undergraduate-level elective CALL course (FLE318) offered during the 2008-2009 academic year in the Department of Foreign Language Education at Middle East Technical University and 25 of these participants who started teaching English during the Fall semester in the academic year 2009-2010 at several private and state institutions. Both quantitative and qualitative research methods were applied. The journals kept by the participants during and after the training, the lesson plans of micro and macro teaching, the questionnaires given to the participants to determine their perceived computer knowledge, the interview sessions held with the participants&rsquo / on their practices showed that the training provided to the participants helped them infuse a variety of CALL-based materials and tools into their classroom practices. The analyses also indicated that the most paramount factors or issues that affect the infusion of CALL-based materials in language teaching and learning are the school environment, curriculum, and the national exams.

A língua inglesa na formação do estudante do ensino médio integrado à Educação Profissional Técnica (EMIEPT) é uma área que tem suscitado pesquisas em várias vertentes. A compreensão desse contexto, mais especificamente localizado no Instituto Federal do Paraná (IFPR), é a preocupação principal desta pesquisa pela complexidade e diversidade das questões que compõem esse cenário. Para tanto, desenvolvemos uma pesquisa de natureza descritivo-interpretativa, dividida em duas fases: indexação de pesquisas realizadas em contextos semelhantes e coleta de dados em campo no IFPR. O desenho da pesquisa viabilizou o afunilamento das tendências que caracterizam o EMIEPT, de forma mais geral, para a compreensão do contexto mais específico por meio do levantamento de concepções e práticas dos professores do IFPR, identificadas em planos de ensino, questionários e entrevistas. No total foram analisados os dados obtidos a partir de 22 planos de ensino, 18 questionários e seis entrevistas, os quais tiveram como informantes os professores de LI do IFPR. Os resultados da primeira fase evidenciam um movimento crescente de pesquisas realizadas no EMIEPT por professores que atuam no contexto. Essa evidência evoca tanto a necessidade de busca de soluções para conflitos inerentes ao contexto como a necessidade de formação continuada, apontada em várias pesquisas. A análise dos dados da segunda fase aponta, entre outros, que os profissionais que ensinam LI no IFPR recebem pouca formação continuada sobre os fundamentos filosóficos e epistemológicos da modalidade de ensino na qual atuam. O resultado das análises das entrevistas corrobora os dados levantados nos questionários, mostrando as tendências no trabalho do professor de LI do IFPR, suas preocupações e dificuldades. Os resultados obtidos por meio da análise dos planos de ensino bem como a construção das relações entre os dados das duas fases da pesquisa permitiram o levantamento das contradições, sobreposições e convergências presentes no multifacetado cenário do ensino de LI no EMIEPT do IFPR. Os resultados apontam, também, que nesse contexto de ensino prioriza-se a formação geral do estudante, e a integração com a formação profissional fica restrita a aspectos superficiais. Conclui-se que o cenário demanda dois tipos de ações que podem contribuir para o ensino de LI: formação continuada em serviço e engajamento político dos profissionais que atuam na área. / English language education within Vocational Secondary School Education (Ensino Médio Integrado à Educação Profissional Técnica EMIEPT) is a prolific area that has generated research in various angles. Understanding this context, more specifically placed at the Federal Institute of Paraná (IFPR) is the main concern of this research due to the complexity and diversity of the issues that make up this scenario. We develop a descriptive-interpretative research organized in two phases: research indexation in literature and field work. The research design enables us to narrow down the tendencies from the broader ones that characterize the EMIEPT towards the ones that are context-related within the IFPR by identifying concepts and practices of IFPR teachers through the analysis of twenty-two teaching plans, eighteen questionnaires and six interviews. The results of the literature indexation show a growing research movement in EMIEPT carried out by teacher-researchers who work in this context. This evidence evokes both the need for finding solutions to conflicts inside the context and the need for continuing education. The analysis of the questionnaires shows that the professionals who teach English language at IFPR receive little continuing education on the philosophical and epistemological foundations of EMIEPT. The results of the interviews analysis corroborate the data showing tendencies in English language teaching practices at IFPR, mainly teachers concerns and difficulties. The results obtained through the analysis of teaching plans and cross-analysis between the data of the two phases of the research allows us to describe the contradictions, overlaps and similarities present in the multifaceted scenario of English Language education in the EMIEPT at IFPR. The results also show that this teaching context gives priority to student general education and the integration with vocational education is restricted to superficial aspects. In conclusion, the scenario claims for two types of actions that could contribute to the improvement of quality in English language education: continuing education for teachers and political engagement of professionals working in the area.

No description available.

The aim of the study was to investigate the use of laptops in English language teaching, its benefits and disadvantages. Three classroom observations, six student interviews and three teacher interviews were carried out to answer the study’s research questions, namely, what are the benefits and disadvantages of using laptops in the teaching of English at schools under study? How do teachers solve technical and pedagogical problems related to the use of laptops? What kinds of IT-support and possibility to develop teaching skills required by laptops are available for teachers of English? Results of the study indicate that easy access to authentic English through laptops is a benefit when teaching English at two Swedish compulsory schools and one high school. Furthermore, the study has shown that laptops are beneficial tools when teaching writing proficiency and working with problem-solving tasks in the classroom. The results of the study have also pointed to the disadvantage in the use of laptops during classroom activities, which are caused by students who are engaged in browsing off-task websites. However, a solution to this could be to include these websites into English language learning activities. The data from the interviews with the three English language teachers have provided evidence about different possibilities for IT-support and IT-development for these teachers. This study makes it clear that a successful implementation of one-to-one laptop programs requires teachers who can invest their time and energy into learning new technology, IT-development provided by the school and municipality through courses, workshops and visits at IT-fairs and other schools with one-to-one laptop program as well as a functional IT-support.