MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HUE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES ---------------- TRAN THI NGOC BICH AN EVALUATION OF THE TEACHING PRACTICUM AT SOME THAI UNIVERSITIES: A CASE STUDY OF EFL STUDENT TEACHERS AT HUE UNIVERSITY – COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES FIELD OF STUDY: THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CODE: 60.10 MA THESIS IN EDUCATION SUPERVISOR: TRAN VAN PHUOC, ASSOC. HUE, 2012 BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ ---------------- TRẦN THỊ NGỌC BÍCH ĐÁNH GIÁ VIỆC THỰC TẬP SƯ PHẠM Ở MỘT SỐ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC THÁI LAN CỦA SINH VIÊN NGÀNH TIẾNG ANH – TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ - ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ NGÀNH LÝ LUẬN VÀ PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY – HỌC MÔN TIẾNG ANH NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC : PGS. TRẦN VĂN PHƯỚC HUẾ, 2012 STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I hereby acknowledge that this study is mine. The data and findings discussed in the thesis are true, used with permission from associates and have not been published elsewhere.
Author Tran Thi Ngoc Bich ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Above all, I am sincerely grateful to my supervisor, Prof. Tran Van Phuoc who has given me much enthusiastic instructions, invaluable advice as well as encouragement since the very beginning of my thesis. I am also very much indebted to the teachers of English Department who have been willing to provide me with requisite materials and to create favorable conditions for my implementation of this study. I would like to thank all research participants for completing the questionnaires and take part in the in – depth interview that contribute an essential part to the achievement of the research.
Last but not least, I would like to thank my parents and my friends for their love, support and encouragement during the completion of this paper. Although much time and effort has been invested in this thesis, mistakes and shortcomings are inevitable due to limitations of my knowledge and experiences. Therefore, I would appreciate all critical comments and suggestions from teahers and friends. 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Statement of Authorship Acknowledgements Table of contents List of Symbols and Abbreviations List of Figures and Tables Abstract Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION .2 Aims of the study.4 Scope of the study .5 Structure of the thesis .12 Chapter 2 LITURATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL BACKGROUND .1 The review of previous studies .2 Purposes of teaching practicum .3 Benefits of teaching practicum .4 Requirements of teaching practicum .2 The student teacher .2 Requirements for student teachers in teaching practicum .3 The student teaching .2 Requirements of student teaching .2 Requirements of supervisor in teaching practicum .2 Requirements of cooperating teachers in teaching practicum .6 HUCFL‘s policies in promoting teaching practicum abroad.27 Chapter 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .1 Data collection methods .2 In – depth interview .2 Data analysis methods .33 Chapter 4 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS.
1 Student teachers‘ perceptions on teaching practicum. 1 Student teachers‘ perceptions on teaching practicum‘s importance. 2 Student teachers‘ perceptions on the teaching practicum‘s components37 4. 3 Student teachers‘ perceptions on teaching practicum‘s environment .4 Student teachers‘ perceptions on teaching practicum‘s supervisors and cooperating teachers .5 Student teachers‘ perceptions on the assessment during teaching practicum .2 Student teachers‘ evaluation on the teaching practicum at some universities in Thailand .1 Student teachers‘ self - evaluation on their own performance .1 The student teachers‘ evaluation on the own confidence and competence to become a real teacher .2 Student teachers‘ evaluation on their weak points .3 Student teachers‘ evaluation on the competence of socialization to the new environment .2 Student teachers‘ evaluation on the administrators‘ organization of the teaching practicum .1 Student teachers‘ evaluation on the administrators‘ preparation before teaching practicum .2 Student teachers‘ evaluation on the administrators‘ connection and communication during teaching practicum .3 Student teachers‘ evaluation on the cooperating teachers during teaching practicum .3 Student teachers‘ suggestions to improve teaching practice .1 For student teachers .2 For the organizers and universities .3 For cooperating teachers at Thai universities .54 Chapter 5 CONCLUSIONS & IMPLICATIONS .3 Limitations of the study .4 Recommendations for further researches .61 APPENDICES 5 LIST OF SYMBOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS No.
Abbreviations Meanings 1 EFL English as a Foreign Language 2 HUCFL Hue University – College of Foreign Languages 3 UTTC University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce 6 LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES Figures Figures Names Pages The student teachers' perception on the importance of 34 Figure 4.1 teaching practicum Student teachers' perceptions on place of teaching 37 Figure 4.2 practicum The student teachers' evaluation on their own 40 Figure 4.3 confidence to become a real teacher Student teachers' perceptions on doing teaching practice 41 Figure 4.4 again in upper - secondary schools in Vietnam Figure 4.5 The student teachers' evaluation on their weak points 43 Student teachers' evaluation on the administrators' 44 Figure 4.6 organization of teaching practicum The means of communication between student teachers 46 Figure 4.7 and organizers during teaching practice Figure 4.8 Student teachers' evaluation on supervisors' enthusiasm 48 Cooperating teachers‘ activities during teaching 49 Figure 4.9 practicum The number of cooperating teachers during teaching 50 Figure 4.10 practicum Student teachers' desire of the number of cooperating 50 Figure 4.11 teachers during teaching practicum 7 Tables Names Pages Student teachers‘ perceptions on teaching practicum‘s 36 Table 4.1 components Student teachers‘ perceptions on the role of the 38 Table 4.2 supervisors and cooperating teachers in teaching practicum The activities organized for teacher students before 45 Table 4.3 doing teaching practicum 8 ABSTRACT The role of the teacher in all formal educational settings is a vital one. Therefore, it is important to adequately prepare the teacher for the challenging task of teaching. Adequate preparation entails a solid teacher training program and pre- service activities that will equip trainees with the prerequisite skills for facing and responding to the challenges of the new job. In the context of teaching English as a foreign language (EFL), the importance of teacher education and training cannot be overstated.
The student teacher not only has to learn practical classroom skills, she or he also has to be an effective language learner. One way to examine and reflect on teacher education programs is to determine how student teachers perceive and evaluate a given program and its components. This article reports on a study conducted with HUCFL - EFL student teachers who carried out their teaching practicum at some universities in Thailand. With an attempt to investigate how student teachers perceived and evaluated the teaching practice component of their training program at some universities in Thailand, the study tried to answer three research questions.
The findings indicated that the participants perceived practicum as an important tool of learning to teach because it promoted the development of teaching experience and prepared them for the real world of work. The analysis revealed that theory practice connection, competency and confidence development and cooperating teachers‘ supports and guidance as successful experiences of the practicum program. Finally, the findings indicated that provision of adequate information, close supervision of the program, building strong partnership with the universities are what the participant thought could be improved and given due attention. The need to provide more adequate support, provide strengthening university – university partnership and close supervision are, thus, found to be the dimensions identified as points that need interventions.1 Rationale Teaching practicum or practice teaching experience is regarded as one of the most crucial aspects of teacher preparatory program in teaching training institutions in general and in Hue University – College of Foreign Languages (HUCFL) in particular.
It is the period when student teachers are aided to put into practice the theories and principles of education which they have learnt in classrooms as they teach students in the partnership schools or universities. It is also the transition from being taught to teaching in real classroom. This transition is not an easy task (Smith, 2000). Although the situation is rather artificial, it is the first real opportunity to test and develop student teachers‘ teaching skills.
During the process of teaching a class of foreign language learners and receiving feedback, the student teachers have chances to apply knowledge and skills gained or to develop strategies for handling the different dimensions of language lesson. However, according to Lugton (2000), the disconnect between theory and practice pervades the literature on pre-service teacher education. No place is this more evident than in discussions of the practicum and the articulation of that practicum in the curriculum of pre- service teacher education. During teaching practicum, student teachers have identified several concerns including the implementation of managerial and instructional, assuming the role of instructional leader, and undergoing evaluations (Kyriacou & Stephens, 1999).
Additionally, recent research has indicated that practicum teacher are concerned with expectations of university supervisors, cooperating teachers, and the professional development schools with which they are affiliated (Woods & Weasmer, 2003). Previous research also suggests that practicum experiences can be enhanced when the concerns of teacher candidates are addressed and acknowledged (Kyraicou & Stephens, 1999). Johnston (1996) emphasized the need to evaluate the 10 issues related to practicum experiences and provided suggestions for improvement of these vital, authentic learning opportunities. Moreover, as an English teacher, I myself had chance to do teaching practice at Hai Ba Trung upper - secondary school five years ago.
At that time, however, the student teachers had no opportunities to go abroad to do teaching practicum. Therefore, coming to the purpose of this study, it was to explore, understand and describe the perceptions of Hue University – College of Foreign Languages‘ EFL students on their school based practicum experience. It also aims to evaluate the issues related to teaching practicum at some universities in Thailand such as organization, supervisor, cooperating teacher, cooperating schools, as well as provide forward practical implications helping to improve the teaching practicum program so that the student teachers can have fulfilling and satisfying practicum experience in the future. 2 Aims of the study The research paper “An evaluation of the teaching practicum at some Thai universities: A case study of EFL student teachers at Hue University – College of Foreign Languages” aims at achieving the three following objectives: i.
To find out the perceptions of the student teachers on doing teaching practicum in a foreign country ii. To identify and analyze the evaluation of Hue University College of Foreign Languages EFL student teachers after their teaching practicum at some Thai universities iii. To give some advice for trainee teachers who want to have an effective and comfortable teaching practicum in some Thai Universities. The present study is expected to be significant for teacher education in HUCFL for several reasons: First, it is the only study that focuses particularly on 11 the English teaching practicum.
At the HUCFL level, there is no study conducted for evaluating English teacher training program at Thai universities. Second, the study explored all participants participating in the training program at different time, which has not been cultivated by any other study. This may help in uncovering highly objective findings that are likely to develop this field to a substantial extent. Third, the study aims at identifying potential impediments that curb professional and academic training for English specialists, which makes it a reliable source of knowledge (facts about the educational field) for educationists interested in the development of the teaching/learning process.
Fourth, the study embodies a key source of feedback for people organizing and designing practicum programs at Thai universities, and other universities interested in this field to defuse problems that may negatively influence quality of the outcomes of such programs and guarantee that student teachers gain appropriate teaching skills as planned. 3 Research questions In particular, this evolutional study aims at answering the following research questions: 1. To what extent do the EFL student teachers of HUCFL perceive the teaching practicum at some Thai universities? 2. How did the EFL student teachers evaluate the teaching practicum at some Thai universities? 3.