PRE-SERVICE ELT TEACHER BELIEFS: IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHER EDUCATION

Abstract

English Language teachers (ELT), even before they embark on their teaching profession, possess rich school-based experiences that can impact the significance of learning and the quality of education as a whole. These experiences are accumulated through their interaction with peers and teachers during their school days. The experiences are worth capturing as they reveal insights into teacher beliefs and teacher identities. This study focuses on the English Language pre-service teachers’ perceptions of a typical classroom. Teachers’ perceptions are recorded through interview sessions that reveal specific conceptions and ideas related to teacher role and classroom management. These conceived notions form the pre-service teachers’ personal teaching constructs (teaching beliefs and teacher identity). The study presents three main findings: classroom climate, establishing identity and teacher personality. The data gathered provide information and raise awareness to practitioners, teacher educators and programme developers on the importance of personal constructs and its impact on teacher training with a specific focus on the teaching of English language. The study highlights the importance of establishing a positive learning climate and good teacher factors in creating an effective classroom.