Preservice Teachers Learning to Teach English Language Learners: Knowledge, Attitudes, and Efficacy

• In Event: 21.026 - Democratizing Preparation of Teachers of English Learners: Reflective Narratives of Teachers

Abstract

Current shortage and high attrition rate among the teaching force in the U.S. indicates the need to rethink how teachers are prepared, especially for ELLs who are lagging behind academically but are increasingly being mainstreamed. More than ever before, mainstream teachers need to shoulder the responsibility of educating ELLs along with TESOL teachers. There is a need to examine how these two groups of teachers are prepared to serve their common students—ELLs. This study addresses this need by examining both TESOL and mainstream preservice teachers’ experiences of learning to teach ELLs across different programs in a major teacher education program in the U.S.

Feiman-Nemser’s (2001) professional learning continuum proposes that to effectively learn how to teach, preservice teachers must learn to change prior beliefs and form new ideas, obtain subject area knowledge for teaching, mature understandings of learners and learning, acquire a beginning repertoire of teaching techniques, skills, and approaches, and improve observation, interpretation and analysis skills for studying teaching during teachers’ initial years of preparation. Building on this continuum framework, this mixed methods study examines four of the five central tasks of learning to teach ELLs among the TESOL and mainstream preservice teachers: beliefs and attitudes toward ELLs, their language-related knowledge in teaching ELLs, their understanding of ELL learners, and their acquisition of a beginning repertoire methods and approaches to teaching ELLs.

Online Qualtrics survey and interviews with representative preservice teachers were used to collect data. The survey instrument, KASELL, adapted with permission from Durgonoglu and Hughes (2010), contains 19 questions that aimed to elicit preservice teachers’ perceptions to teach ELLs based on four task areas as well as their overall sense of efficacy in teaching ELLs. A total of 433 (70 TESOL minor and 363 mainstream) valid surveys and 44 transcribed interviews were used for analysis. Different methods were used to analyze the quantitative and qualitative data to help triangulate data from multiple perspectives and complement the findings from each analysis (Teddlie, C. & Tashakkori, 2009). Specifically, multivariate analysis of variance was used to observe the effects of variables (knowledge, beliefs and attitude toward ELLs and parents, methods, and self-efficacy) in relation to respondents’ specific programs affiliation. Thematic analysis were used to analyze qualitative interview data.

Findings revealed that the majority (61.2%) of students responded that they were not well prepared. The Wilks’ Lambda multivariate test showed significant effects for TESOL (F = 4.342, p = .002) at a .05 significance level. Participants who chose the TESOL program (M = 3.67) as their minor scored significantly higher on average of all four factors of knowledge, attitudes toward ELLs and parents, methods, and self-efficacy than those who did not (M = 3.48). In terms of language-related knowledge, the majority of preservice teachers (including TESOL minor students) reported to not feel adequately prepared in all areas asked. Qualitative analysis of interviews further confirms these findings. The findings suggest the need to develop effective frameworks for integrating ELL-related knowledge and competence across the programs.

Authors

• Guofang Li, University of British Columbia

• Youngeun Jee, University of British Columbia