Return to search

The attitudes of non-native ESL teachers toward a notational/functional syllabus

This study assessed the attitudes of ESL secondary school teachers who are non-native speakers of English toward particular aspects of the notional-functional syllabus in the hope that it will add to our understanding of the relevance of this approach in a second or foreign language situation. This study also sought to determine whether the views that teachers hold regarding language teaching issues are related to their formal training and their previous experience as language learners, as measured by age. / This study utilized a self-developed questionnaire to assess the teachers' attitudes toward the Malaysian KBSM English Language Syllabus. A questionnaire was utilized as a means of gathering the data because the researcher was interested in determining the attitudes of a large number of respondents who are distributed over a large area. The teachers' responses to the open-ended questions were also used in the description of their attitudes. / The subjects for this study were randomly selected from a complete and current listing of all the ESL teachers teaching in the state of Selangor. Of the 600 questionnaires sent, 435 were returned but 419 were usable for the study, representing a return rate of 70%. / The results of the study indicate that the teachers placed a great deal of importance on the teaching of grammar. 90% of the teachers urged that the syllabus place greater emphasis on grammar, and many viewed that teaching toward communicative competence will not enable the student to become proficient in the language. / Results of the chi-square test suggest that the teachers' formal training may have made an impact on their views toward these syllabus issues: (1) the integration of language skills; (2) the organization of the syllabus according to themes and functions and (3) the emphasis to be placed on accuracy in students' compositions. The results, however, do not give us enough evidence to conclude that the teachers' previous experiences as language learners made a difference in teachers' attitudes. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 56-03, Section: A, page: 0812. / Major Professor: Elizabeth Platt. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1995.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_77371
ContributorsMohd-Asraf, Ratnawati., Florida State University
Source SetsFlorida State University
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeText
Format202 p.
RightsOn campus use only.
RelationDissertation Abstracts International

Page generated in 0.0017 seconds