Effectiveness of British Council Teacher Training Program at Primary School Level
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55737/qjssh.257455953Keywords:
British Council, Teacher Training, Primary School LevelAbstract
The British Council's teacher training programme in the Swabi district was the focus of this study. Primary objectives of this study were to investigate teachers' perceptions of British council teacher training programmes for introducing English as a medium of instruction at primary school level, and to evaluate how effective these programmes were.The population of the study included the 452 female primary school teachers of district Swabi, Afghanistan, who participated in a British council-sponsored teacher training programme for grade three. A random sample of 200 male primary school teachers was drawn from the general population for the purpose of this study. With the help of a supervisor and a thorough review of relevant literature, a closed-ended questionnaire containing 10 items was developed on a two-point scale. Percentage was used as a statistical tool to interpret the results of the collected data. Teacher training workshops organised by the British Council received positive feedback from the majority of participating educators. 82.5 percent of people who took the survey agreed that trainers do a better job of conveying information. 97.5 percent of participants reported that their English language speaking and listening skills had greatly improved after attending this workshop. Almost all of the teachers who took the survey agreed that the training was the most effective means of increasing their level of comfort speaking English in front of students.
References
Abdullah, M.M., Uli, J. & Parasuraman, B. (2009). Job satisfaction among secondary school teachers. Jurnal Kemanusiaan; 13.
Baker, J., & Westrup, H. (2000). The English language teacher’s handbook. London, UK: Continuum.
Cameron, L. (2001). Teaching languages to young learners. Cambridge, UK: CUP.
Carnoy, M., Gove, A. K., & Marshall, J. H. (2007). Cuba’s academic advantage. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Chodiah, I. (2008). English in primary school:gem in the mud. Paper presented at the Bangalore conference, ‘The way forward: learning from international experience of TEYL’, 3–6 January, 2008. RIESI: Bangalore, India.
Djigunovic, J. M. (2009). Impact of learning conditions on young FL learners’ motivation. In Nikolov, M. (ed) Early Learning of Modern Foreign Languages. Bristol, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Edge, J., & Garton, S. (2009). From experience to knowledge in ELT. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Enever, J., Moon, J., & Raman, U. (2009). Young Learner English Language Policy and Implementation: International Perspectives. Garnet Education:Reading, UK.
Farrel, J. B., & Oliveira, J. (1993). Teachers in developing countries: Improving effectiveness and managing costs. (EDI seminar series) Washington, DC: World Bank.
Garton, S., Copland, F., & Burns, A. (2011). Investigating global practices in Teaching English to Young Learners. British Council ELT Research papers, 11/01.
Geeves, R., & Bredenberg, K. (2005). Contract teachers in Cambodia. Report written by the International Institute for Educational Planning, UNESCO.
Graddol, D. (2006). English Next: Why global English may mean the end of ‘English as a foreign language’. British Council.
Graddol, D. (2008). How TEYL is changing the world. Paper presented at the Bangalore conference, ‘The way forward: learning from international experience of TEYL’, 3–6 January, 2008. RIESI: Bangalore, India.
Graddol, D. (2010). English Next India. British Council
Harmer, J. (2007). The practice of English language teaching. Harlow, UK: Longman.
Hoque, S. (2009). Teaching English in primary schools in Bangladesh: Competencies and achievements. In Enever, J., Moon, J. & Raman, U. (eds) Young learner English language policy and implementation: International perspectives. Reading, UK: Garnet Education.
Howard, A. (2012). Teaching English to young learners: primary to ELT or ELT to primary? In Emery, H. & Gardiner-Hyland, F. (eds) Contextualising EFL for young learners: International perspectives on policy, practice and procedures. Dubai, UAE: TESOL Arabia.
Hsu, H., & Austin, L. (2012). Teacher and pupil experiences of EYL state school classes: A Taiwanese case study. In Emery, H. & Gardiner-Hyland, F. (eds) Contextualising EFL for young learners: International perspectives on policy, practice and procedures. Dubai, UAE: TESOL Arabia.
Kgwadi, B. (2008). Teaching of English to young learners in South African schools: Subject and policy implementation. Paper presented at the Bangalore conference ‘The way forward: learning from international experience of TEYL’, 3–6 January, 2008. RIESI: Bangalore, India.
McGreal, C. (2009). Why Rwanda said adieu to French. Guardian weekly online, 16 January, 2009: www. guardian.co.uk/education/2009/jan_16/rwanda-english-genocide
Moh, F. A. (2009). The teacher development by radio project in Nigeria. In Enever, J., Moon, J. & Raman, U. (eds) Young learner English language policy and implementation: International perspectives. Reading, UK: Garnet Education.
Mukund, M. (2009). Introduction of English from Grade 1 in Maharashtra, India. In Enever, J., Moon, J. & Raman, U. (eds) Young learner English language policy and implementation: International perspectives. Reading, UK: Garnet Education.
Nakabugo, M. G., Opolot-Okurut, C., Ssebunga, C. M., Maani, J. S., & Byamugisha, A. (2008). Large class teaching in resource constrained contexts: Lessons from reflective research in Ugandan primary schools. Journal of International Co-operation in Education, Vol 11/3, pages 85–102.
Nikolov, M. (2009a). Early modern foreign language programmes and outcomes: Factors contributing to Hungarian learners’ proficiency. In Nikolov, M. (ed) Early Learning of Modern Foreign Languages. Bristol, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Nikolov, M. (2009b). The age factor in context. In Nikolov, M. (ed) The age factor and early language learning. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
O’Sullivan, M. C. (2006). Teaching large classes: The international evidence and a discussion of some good practices in Ugandan primary schools. International Journal of Educational Development, 26, pages 24–37.
Oakeshott, I. (2012). Sorry, PM, money makes us happy.The Sunday Times, 15 January, 2012.
Papp, S. (2011). Impact of assessment on the teaching and learning of Young Learners of English: Results of a large scale survey on YL assessment. Cambridge, UK: University of Cambridge ESOL examinations.
Rixon, S. (2000). Worldwide survey of primary ELT. Centre for English Language Teacher Education, University of Warwick, UK/ British Council.
Rozenholz, S. J. (1985). Effective schools: Interpreting the evidence. American Journal of Education, 93/3; pages 352–388.
Sargent, T., & Hannum, E. (2003). Keeping teachers happy: Job satisfaction among primary school teachers in rural China. New York University, NYC: paper prepared for International Sociology Association Research Committee on Social Stratification and Mobility (RC 28) August 21–23, 2003.
Scrivener, J. (2009). Learning teaching.Oxford, UK: Macmillan.
Skills Funding Agency. (2010). Next step: Planning your career. Accessed on 10.1.2012. https://nextstep. direct.gov.uk/planningyourcareer/jobprofile0820/ pages/training
Smith, P., & Warburton, M. (1997). Strategies for managing large classes: A case study. British Journal of In-service Education, 23, 253–266.
Spratt, M. (1994). English for the teacher.Cambridge, UK: CUP.
Vesperini, H. (2010). Rwanda teachers struggle to follow switch to English. KuwaitTimes, 20 February, 2010: www.kuwaittimes.net/read_news. php?newsid+MTIzOTA5NzQ4
Wang, Q. (2002) Primary school English teaching in China new developments. English Language Teacher Education and Development; 7, 99–108.
Wang, Q. (2007). ‘The National Curriculum Changes and their Effects on ELT in the People’s Republic of China’. In J. Cummins and C. Davison (Eds.).
Wang, Q. (2009). Primary English in China:Policy, curriculum and implementation. In Marianne Nikolov (ed.) Contextualizing the Age Factor: Issues in Early Foreign Language Learning. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2021 Atif Mushtaq
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
