English Language Teachers‘ Preparation, Effectiveness and Acceptance as Perceived by the Self, English Students and English Language Department Heads: Five Teacher Education Colleges in Amhara Region in Focus

Abstract

This study focused on college English instructors’ preparation, Effectiveness and Acceptance as perceived by the self, candidate teachers and English Department Heads: Five Teacher Education Colleges in Amhara Region. The study used descriptive survey type and he employed qualitative and quantitative methods (mixed approaches) as a sampling technique for the study. The study attempted to assess the perceptions of English teachers’ adequacy of training types and preparations in higher education institutions and their professional development level while they were teaching college candidate teachers learning English as non-native English speakers (English speakers whose mother tongue is not English language) and learning English as a foreign language, an English language which learners whose mother tongue is any other language practice to learn it as an international language. The study also investigated the perceptions of English candidate teachers toward the receptivity level of English instructors among candidate teachers, colleagues and college administrators. It examined the perceptions of English candidate teachers about their English instructors’ preparations and effectiveness in developing their candidate teachers’ English competence/proficiency and assessed whether English instructors implemented their pedagogical content knowledge and other skills that demand trainees’ higher order thinking in their actual classrooms. Data collection instruments such as questionnaires, interview questions and classroom observation for English instructors, English students and interview questions for English instructors, candidate teachers, college administrators, classroom observation during the pilot study and Questionnaires and interview questions for English instructors, and questionnaires as well as focus group discussion for third year English students were employed to collect data for the main study. 42 comprehensively selected respondents participated during the pilot study and 148 third year English candidate teachers, 33 college English instructors and 23 college officials (totally, 246 respondents) were purposefully selected for gathering data during the main study and all of them participated in the study. The study was conducted at Debre Berhan, Debre-Markos, Enjibara, Finote-Selam and Gondar Teacher Education Colleges. The findings showed that English language instructors were successful in producing competent primary school English teachers. The result of the study also indicated that college English instructors implemented their pedagogical content knowledge and other skills that demand trainees’ higher order thinking and candidate teachers seemed to overrate their competency, but their instructors underrated their English students’ competency. About 25 percent of candidate teachers also disclosed areas of their weaknesses in different aspects of language skills like listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Finally, the researcher recommends that all college officials as well as regional education bureau should pay careful attention to college education, English instructors should be committed to improve their English preparations , effectiveness and acceptance in teaching English and graduating candidate teachers should accomplish their duties to be qualified and effective primary school English teachers and undertake their responsibilities by avoiding their less receptivity levels and disregards among each other