Implications of professional development for ESL teachers’ career advancement

• In Event: Teacher motivation and professional development

Proposal

The provision of Professional Development (PD) initiatives for English as Second Language (ESL) teachers in the university sector in Sri Lanka has become vital for teachers’ professional growth and also for enhancing students’ learning outcomes. As career prospects are mostly open for graduates with higher levels of English language proficiency in Sri Lankan employment market, developing English language proficiency of students is a key responsibility of ESL teachers in the university sector. There is evidence in literature that teacher PD needs to be considered a vital factor if students’ learning and performance are to be enriched (Coldwell, 2017; Mohan, Lingam, & Chand, 2017; Sixel, 2013; Villegas-Reimers, 2003). Given that, policy makers and governing institutions continuously pressurize ESL teachers at the universities through diverse PD programs for reforming their knowledge and skills to make effective their teaching practices. This indicates the implications PD initiatives for ESL teachers at Sri Lankan universities and also for the government and foreign agencies that offer teacher education services in the country. However, to which extent ESL teachers have understood of the need to engage constructively in PD initiatives to enrich their career enhancement is a question. Therefore, this study aims to examine ESL teachers’ perceptions in order to identify the implications of PD for their career trajectories thus, to provide them better outcomes from the existing PD opportunities.

The theory of constructivism is largely employed to demonstrate the resilient potential of constructivist principles to empower teacher learning through PD activities (Abdal-Haqq, 1998; Cárdenas, González, & Álvarez, 2010) in research in education. Constructivism is principally grounded on two broad interpretations - psychological constructivism mostly associated with Jean Piaget (1896–1980), and social constructivism largely connected to Lev Vygotsky (1896–1934). This study employed psychological constructivism in order to explore the implication of PD activities to generate new knowledge in collaboration with teachers’ prior knowledge and understandings in which they could heighten their careers.
Sponsored and independent are the two types of PD that construct teachers’ knowledge, skills and professional quality. Sponsored PD regulated by managerialism defines “professional standards and frames the content and aims of PD programs” (Evans & Esch, 2013, p. 137). Independent PD is broadly associated with practitioner-led initiatives driven by democratic professionalism and its regulations which frequently prioritize teachers’ democratic goals, principles and needs. PD needs to be made compulsory for teachers or introduced as voluntary activities is strongly argued (Tan, Chang, & Teng, 2015). As Fischer (2000) claims practitioners should engage in PD activities without mandates of institutions in authentic learning context in order to become PD a meaningful practice. However, it can also be conceptualized that institutional contribution in terms of teacher PD could not be overlooked given the implication of such institutional inputs for producing focused PD activities for teachers (Bozat, Bozat, & Hursen, 2013; Gurney, Liyanage, & Gharachorloo, 2014). This means that, participants of PD activities must adhere to the policies and practices of institutions. Critically, conformity with these necessities would adversely impact on teacher engagement in PD (Tan et al., 2015).

This qualitative investigation employed case study approach in research design for maintaining the quality, richness, meaning and contribution (Chapelle & Duff, 2003; Patton, 2002). The study comprised ten in-service teachers of ESL serving on a full-time basis in the Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka. The purposeful sampling method was utilized to select participants in order to make in depth analysis of information-rich cases. Semi-structured interviews were administered as the main research instrument and individual respondents were interviewed for 40-60 minutes in length. The study used Braun and Clarke’s (2006) inductive approach of Thematic Analysis (TA) for recognizing, analyzing and interpreting of data. TA has extensively been applied in research in education over the last decade (Coldwell, 2017; Crowe, Inder, & Porter, 2015; Liyanage & Bartlett, 2010; Tuckett, 2005).

Findings of the study demonstrate that PD is the key for teachers’ career development which has enabled the institution to achieve its goals, sustain ongoing operation and gain optimal application of teachers’ potential. Career enhancement was also a means for developing teachers’ professional and social capital in which they may heighten their competitiveness and validity in the employment market. This phenomenon led them to establish further in the positions, secure promotions or receive other remunerations from employers. Although findings indicate that institutionally-facilitated PD sessions driven by managerialism were mostly supportive to achieve this goal providing varied opportunities for practitioners’ career advancement the provision of self-directed PD activities regulated by democratic principles in facilitating this outcome cannot also be disregarded. In examining participants’ perspectives, it is noted that computer mediated technologies and digital internet-assisted applications were largely utilised as powerful tools to achieve teachers’ individualised career development plans. This reflects their willingness and interest to take own responsibility for their career growth “as free agent learners” (Mushayikwa & Lubben, 2009, p. 376). Although research has illustrated that digital and network technologies are increasingly supportive for autonomous learning driven by democratic regulations whether ESL teachers possess adequate knowledge and self-regulatory skills to appropriately utilise such tools in order to obtain the desired outcomes is a question. Hence, providing practitioners the basic and advanced “personal knowledge management skills” (Dabbagh & Kitsantas, 2012, p. 7) through institutional intervention is vital for customising and sustaining such tools for effective engagement in self-directed PD activities that may ultimately lead to their career enhancement. Although substantial crossovers are noticed between the two types of PD in terms of the goals and learning outcomes of PD activities managerialism and democratic professionalism cannot not be accurately separated.

The role of PD in providing demonstrable evidence in terms of practitioners’ career improvement is specifically significant to ESL teachers in the university sector in Sri Lanka as they did not have opportunities to attend any specific training or teacher education program prior to the recruitment. Thus, the governing institutions need to recognise the requirements of teachers for meaningful career growth and ensure the continuation of it throughout their profession. Findings of the study have implications for providers and policy makers in terms of the design, delivery and framing of PD programs in ESL so as to harness for optimal learner outcomes through focused PD opportunities.

Author

• Kamal Rohan Abeywickrama, PhD candidate, Department of Education, Deakin University, Australia