Systematizing Teacher Development:A Review of Foreign Language Teacher Learning

Foreign language teaching practice is developing rapidly,but research on foreign language teacher learning is currently relatively fragmented and unstructured.The book Foreign Language Teacher Learning,written by Professor Kang Yan from Capital Normal University,published in September 2022,makes a systematic introduction to foreign language teacher learning,which to some extent makes up for this shortcoming.Her book presents the lineage of foreign language teacher learning research at home and abroad,analyzes both theoretical and practical aspects,reviews the cuttingedge research results,and foresees the future development trend,painting a complete research picture for researchers in the field of foreign language teaching and teacher education as well as front-line teachers interested in foreign language teacher learning.This is an important inspiration for conducting foreign language teacher learning research in the future.And this paper makes a review of the book from aspects such as its content,major characteristics,contributions and limitations.

Reading Loss in Arabic Language During COVID-19 in the UAE and Proposed Solutions:The Perspectives of Primary-Grade Arabic Language Teachers

The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruptions in the field of education worldwide,including in the United Arab Emirates.Teachers and students had to adapt to remote learning and virtual classrooms,leading to various challenges in maintaining educational standards.The sudden transition to remote teaching could have a negative impact on students’reading abilities,especially in the Arabic language.To gain insight into the unique challenges encountered by Arabic language teachers in the UAE,a survey was conducted to explore their assessment of teaching quality,student-teacher interaction,and learning outcomes amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.The results of the survey revealed a significant decline of student reading abilities and identified several major issues in online Arabic language teaching.These issues included limited interaction between students and teachers,challenges in monitoring students’class participation and performance,and challenges in effectively assessing students’reading skills.The results also demonstrated some other challenges faced by Arabic language teachers,including a lack of preparedness,a lack of subscription to relevant platforms,and a lack of resources for online learning.Several solutions to these challenges are proposed,including reevaluating the balance between depth and breadth in the curriculum,integrating language skills into the curriculum more effectively,providing more comprehensive teacher professional development,implementing student grouping strategies,utilizing retired and expert teachers in specific content areas,allocating time for interventions,and improving support from both teachers and parents to ensure the quality of online learning.

Research on the Status Quo and Improvement Needs of Foreign Language Teachers’ Teaching Competence in Curriculum-Based Ideological Education in Xinjiang Colleges and Universities

This study investigated the status quo and further improvement needs of foreign language teachers’teaching competence in curriculum-based ideological education(CIE)in Xinjiang colleges and universities.The results show that the teachers’teaching competence in CIE is generally good,with the“cultivating quality”being the highest and the“scientific research quality”the lowest;there still exist several problems,such as teachers’lack of theoretical knowledge in CIE,lack of teaching resources,and insufficient abilities in teaching design and research.It is hoped that with the support and efforts from university administrations,teachers can improve their teaching competence in CIE through various approaches adopted and multiple measures taken,thus optimizing their teaching effectiveness,promoting the construction of CIE in Xinjiang colleges and universities in the new era,and contributing to Xinjiang’s high-quality development.

Language teachers should develop students' vocabulary learning skills

It is self-evident that vocabulary work is the most essential and necessary task in foreign language accepition. English language teachers should develop students’ vocabulary learning skills.

The Perceptions of Chinese ELT Stakeholders on the Employment of Foreign English Language Teachers

This article reports on part of the findings of an investigation into the perceptions of Chinese English as a foreign language(EFL)education stakeholders on native-speakerism.Data were collected via semi-structured interviews with 26 students,14 teachers and eight EFL program administrators from six Chinese universities.The analysis of data reveals that the three groups of participants as an entirety expected their universities to hire native English speaker teachers(NESTs),particularly those from Britain and/or America and a certain proportion of them expressed preference for white native English speaker(NES)teachers.The vast majority of the students and teachers were also found to be unaware of workplace inequalities between NNESTs and local Chinese EFL teachers,contending that NESTs deserve better treatment.Although many administrators displayed critical awareness on this issue,they argued that the inequalities need tolerating for the well-being of their EFL programs.All these findings are indicative of the persistence of native-speakerism among Chinese ELT stakeholders and by extension the tenacity of this chauvinistic ideology across the terrain of EFL education in China.

The Roles of a Language Teacher

In China education is carrying on a new reform.In this essay, the author talks about the situation of language teaching and what a language teacher should know and what to teach to cope with the situation.

Foreign Language Teacher Recruitment： Theoretical Perspectives and Empirical Findings

In some contexts such as private language schools of Iran language teachers are recruited mainly on the basis of their speaking fluency and in other EFL contexts they are recruited simply because they are native speakers. Moreover, previous studies mainly focus on comparing the effectiveness of native and non-native language teachers by exploring learners＇ and teachers＇ perceptions of native and non-native language teachers. Since recruitment criteria are theoretically unjustified and the results of previous studies are subjective and inconclusive, this study aims at making a case in the opposite direction. That is, the researchers argue that there should be： （1） a shift away from recruiting language teachers on the basis of their speaking fluency and native language background towards hiring language teachers on the basis of their professional performance in the language classroom; （2） a shift away from exploring learners＇ and teachers＇ perceptions of native and non-native teachers towards studying the effect of teachers＇ native language on learners＇ proficiency, accuracy, fluency, and achievement. To pave the way for these shifts, this study first reviews the theoretical perspectives and empirical findings concerning effective language teachers and then draws conclusions and implications which help interested stakeholders, i.e., supervisors, make informed decisions when they recruit language teachers.

An Investigation Into Career Development Contexts of University Russian Language Teachers in China(1949-2019)From the Perspective of Ecological Theory

Although much research has been conducted on the interactions between the career development of foreign language teachers and their contexts around the world,a literature review reveals that there exists scanty research on the relationship between university Russian language teachers’career development and their contexts in China since 1949.Based on relevant studies on the career development of foreign language teachers and the ecological theory,this paper involves research on the impact that different ecological systems(micro-,meso-,macro-and exo-ones)have played in the career development of Russian language teachers in China.Participants are 10 Chinese Russian teachers of different ages from different universities in different parts of China.Via literature review,narration methods and semi-structured(in-depth)interviews with the help of NVivo,this research finds that Russian language teachers’career development results from multi-faceted interactions of the following contexts:ideology,Russian language educational policies and personal factors as well as college contexts.This paper concludes with some suggestions for improving Russian language teachers’career development in China.

The Forming Mechanism of Foreign language Teachers＇ Professional Development Community

Learning community is an important approach to the professional development of foreign language teachers in colleges and universities. Based on the concept of professional development community, this paper analyzes the common connotation and classification of foreign language teachers＇ professional development community, and constructs the model and forming mechanism of foreign language teachers＇ professional development community, aiming at providing enlightenment and reference for the professional development of foreign language teachers in colleges and universities

A Study of International Chinese Language Teachers’Stereotypes of International Students

Teachers’stereotypes of students affect teaching behaviour.Correctly perceiving stereotypes of international students helps teachers to understand the student population more deeply and adopt effective teaching behaviour.This study focuses on the stereotypes of international Chinese language teachers towards international students in Chinese universities and its impact on teachers’classroom management and students’classroom performance.Summarizing the findings,we conclude that international Chinese language teachers have both positive and negative stereotypes of the international student body,and that negative stereotypes account for more than positive stereotypes.On this basis,this study further discusses the importance of international Chinese language teachers being aware of the existence of stereotypes of international students,and makes suggestions to strengthen the positive influences and weaken the negative ones.

How to Be a Critically Reflective Teacher in Language Teaching and Learning

The article holds that a critically reflective teacher has an important role to play in language teaching and learning process. Several samples of critically reflective teachers are introduced in the article to show that critically reflective teachers should be enthusiastic, creative and informative in language teaching and learning.

Chinese Language Teacher Professional Growth: A Case Study

Chinese language teachers grow with certain characteristics in their professional development.Knowing these characteristics can reveal a teacher’s developmental needs which can inform the teachers and the teacher development facilitators.This case study examines the professional development of one Chinese language teacher that works in a high school in the United States.The Five-Stage Theory is employed to direct the examination of the teacher’s growing path.Findings cover the challenges,efforts to cope with the changes,successes,and failures.

Kindergarten Teachers’Language Modeling Behaviors in Daily Activities and Free Play

Teachers’language modeling behaviors,including frequent conversation,open-ended questions,repetition and extension,self-and parallel talks,and advanced language,have significantly impacted young children’s language learning and development.This study examined 60 classrooms from 20 kindergartens in Guangzhou,China,and analyzed 62 films of daily activities and 57 videos of free play.It aims to address the research gap in existing research that pays little attention to teachers’language modeling behaviors in daily activities and free play.The results indicate that the more frequent teachers’language modeling behaviors,the larger the vocabulary young children use and the better their performance in lexical richness.However,such behaviors in daily activities and free play are infrequent and superficial,failing to guide young children’s language development effectively.To optimize teachers’language modeling behaviors in daily activities and free play,they are expected to establish positive emotional bonds with young children in a kind and respectful manner and receive training.Teachers are also encouraged to frequently communicate and engage in dialogues with young children,create contexts that facilitate the use of language,increase the frequency of stimuli for vocabulary learning,and guide and encourage young children’s advanced language.

English-Only Policy and Bilingual/ESL Teacher Education in the US＂ From Insiders＇ Perspectives

This paper is based on a study that was done to explore the perspectives of teacher candidates and faculty members of teacher education programs of a university of Arizona. The purpose of the study was to look into K-12 language teacher education programs in the backdrop of globalization. The data of the study came from a sample of 200 prospective teachers/candidates and students, and 24 faculty members/program administrators of teacher education programs of a university of Arizona. The results of the study showed that the majority of teacher candidates felt underprepared to teach diverse student populations. Similarly, most participants expressed their concerns over English-only policy of Arizona and they reported it as a major barrier for the education of English language learners.

University Students＇ Perceptions of English Teachers＇ Codeswitching in Class

Foreign language teachers＇ codeswitching （CS） between Foreign Language （FL） and Mother Tongue （MT） in class has been under discussion for years. Out of the pedagogical concern, many teaching practitioners conducted various studies in different contexts aiming at describing, quantifying, and interpreting teachers＇ CS between FL and MT in class. However, up till now little attention is paid to students＇ perceptions and understandings of teachers＇ CS, which may help improve educators＇ understanding of the phenomenon in FL classrooms. This paper presents the result of two focus group interviews with groups of Chinese university students at their third and fourth year of college. Following a formal interview outline, issues on students＇ recall, understanding and evaluation of teachers＇ CS are addressed in the interview. Based on the analysis of the interviews, a better understanding on foreign language teachers＇ CS is gained, and students＇ perceptions on teachers＇ purposes and reasons for CS are drawn. A framework for investigating foreign language teachers＇ CS in Chinese universities is proposed with two hypotheses generated.

In-Service LTE Program for Chinese Private Institute English Teachers

This paper describes a half-year in-service Language Teacher Education(LTE)program,targeting the trainee teachers who work in Chinese private English institutes.This is to better prepare them at the outset of their career.Primarily intending to build the trainee teachers' professionalism and raise their awareness,an overall illustration of adopted training courses and choice of activities are introduced in this paper.Focusing on integrating instructional knowledge from ESL and English language teaching,the LTE program schedule will allow majority of readers to implement during their daily teaching and research activities.Principles underpinning this program design are illustrated one by one.A course like this may not foster all teachers to become professionals at once,but to be a reflective practitioner can be a reachable goal,as accumulation of professional expertise is based on teachers’ capability of understanding how to reflect on teaching.

On professional development of college English teachers

This paper focuses on college English teachers’ self-development.First it explains its implication and significance,describes the present condition of English teaching at colleges,and then presents methods of college English teachers’ self-development.

Technology Integration into the Language Classroom:Developmental Trajectory of Beginning Teachers

This study adds to the current literature on teacher technology integration with an investigation into five beginning teachers’technology use in the language classroom in their first two career-entry years.The longitudinal interview study reveals that these teachers went through a developmental trajectory of technology use towards using it for more diversified instructional purposes and with a greater orientation towards student learning over the years.The study also finds that the teachers’developing understanding of technology use intertwined with their growing teaching competency and identity.It further finds that school culture not only had a direct influence on their technology use but also moderated the influence of teaching competency and identity on the nature of this technology use.This study concludes with suggestions for promoting research on the support needed for beginning teachers and the school culture in technology use.

Reflectivity/Impulsivity as an Important Individual Factor and Effectiveness of Awareness Raising Activities

This paper is a summary of the studies done on the importance of the cognitive styles especially reflectivity/impulsivity on the process of language acquisition. It discusses the importance of this cognitive style as an important factor on the effectiveness of awareness raising activities. In the previous studies, the importance of awareness raising has been found as an effective and facilitating factor in the process of the L2 （second language） acquisition, but the effect of different individual factors on its being usefulness has not been focused on; therefore, this study is an attempt to review and explore the importance of one of the individual factors, i.e., being reflective/impulsive cognitive style on the effectiveness of awareness raising activities. It is gathered that learners with different cognitive styles （being reflective/impulsive） react differently to the awareness giving activities, and the study tries to emphasize the importance of this factor on the usefulness of awareness raising and emphasizes the fact that in the field of awareness giving this factor should be attached impotence and accounted for as an effective factor.

Emotions in Language Teaching: A Review of Studies on Teacher Emotions in Brazil

In this paper, we wish to respond to the call for expansion on our knowledge about teacher beliefs(Kubanyiova & Feryok, 2015) and discuss findings of studies on teacher emotions conducted in Brazil with both in-service and pre-service teachers of English. More specifically, we focus 1) on the kinds of emotions these teachers have reported feeling, and 2) on the relationship between beliefs and emotions. The results have shown: 1) the diversity of emotions teachers experience in their teacher education;and 2) how these emotions interact in dynamic and complex ways with their beliefs about teaching English in Brazil. The findings suggest that looking into the interrelationships between emotions and beliefs can shed light onto our understanding of the teachers’ thinking and practices in their contexts. Implications and questions for further research will be discussed in light of the studies reviewed.