As initial training of EFL teachers in Jordan becomes increasingly school-based, developing a model for the effective mentor is fast becoming a pivotal one in teacher education. The study explored the way in which the training programme is viewed by the mentors in terms of attitudes and pedagogical instruction practised during training with respect to lesson planning, lesson presentation and using teaching methods effectively. The study, also, conducted limited fieldwork in England where it investigated the mentoring process, the training of mentors and the teaching of foreign languages in order to provide some important lessons and strategies for future mentor training in Jordan in light of considering recent advances in foreign language teaching methodologies when training student teachers in schools. The main subjects of the study were a sample of mentors, student teachers, teachers and a tutor in both Jordan as well as from a very limited sample in England. The study employed both quantitative and qualitative research methods so that the men to ring process of language teachers can be presented both analytically and descriptively. Questionnaires, open questions, observations and interviews were used to obtain the perceptions of the participants of the study. There was also documentary analysis of related literature and documents. From the analysis of the data, the results of investigating the role of mentors in Jordan as well as in England showed various patterns of attitudes, models, and performance. The findings of the study highlighted that EFL mentors in Jordan seem to hold negative attitudes towards their mentees and consequently they appear not to understand the complexity of their roles as mentors. The findings showed that such negative attitudes proved to be principal barrier to essential changes needed to improve the quality of mentoring in Jordanian schools. Moreover, the study described the practices of the mentors in Jordan as unapproachable and unsupportive. The study also described the teaching of the mentors as 'traditional' in the sense that they assert student teachers' stick to the lesson plan, advocating 'talk and chalk' approaches into teaching, and establishing discipline first and foremost. The findings also pointed out that EFL mentors in Jordan tend to perceive their mentees as not being knowledgeable enough, in general, in key language skills to cope with teaching in the classroom, and in the skill of speaking, in particular. Most importantly, the study revealed that EFL mentors in Jordan tend to adopt the apprenticeship model where student teachers merely copy their mentors. Although the study tried to uncover ways of 'how to mentor' EFL student teachers in Jordan later on it questioned the subject knowledge of the mentors and doubted 'what they can mentor'. On the other hand, the reference study in England reported that mentors seem to have positive attitudes towards the mentoring process where they are keen on developing the skills and competencies of their student teacher systematically. The study highlighted the mechanism of mentor training in England as integrating theoretical as well as practical aspects through workshops and modules. The results of the study indicated that the methodology of modem foreign language teaching in England is in the main commllnicative. Foreign language teachers (FL) emphasised using variolls techniques to clarify the rneaning of vocablliary items. In respect to key skills like reading and listening, the findings stressed the importance of comprehension. As to grammatical structures, the findings indicated that FL teachers encourage the pupils to learn how to use appropriate grammatical sentences in real life situations, or through interaction, and how to infer the rules of grammar from contexts and examples. In the light of the findings of this study, recommendations have been made for the improvement of the mentoring process in Jordan.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:368309 |
| Date | January 2001 |
| Creators | Al-Jamal, Dina |
| Publisher | University of Huddersfield |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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