Browsing by Author "Banteyerga, Hailom (Phd)"

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    High School English Language Teachers' Beliefs about Grammar Teaching and Their Actual Classroom Practices: Four High Schools in Amhara Region in Focus
    (AAU, 2008-06) Guade, Adugna; Banteyerga, Hailom (Phd)
    The main purpose of this study was to inves tig.c;rte high school English language teachers' beliefs about grammar and teaching methods, and their actual classroom practices. It was particularly targeted at revealing whether the teachers' actual classroom practices diverged from or converged with their belief s . The need for uncovering such issues sprang from the fact that teachers ' pedagogical beliefs are believed to influence their instructional judgments and educational outcomes. The required data for the study were gathered through questionnaire, classroom observation and focus group discussion from high school teachers. To analyze and interpret the data, the researcher used both the qualitative and quantitative methods. The results of the questionnaire generally indicated that teachers believe in the positive eff ects of the inductive grammar teaching approach and communicative language teaching to enhance students' language competences. The actual classroom practices, however, immensely deviated from their expressed beliefs. It was also found out that the teachers had unfavorable beliefs about tralIitional teacher-centered approach. The actual classroom did not, however, commensurate with the teachers' beliefs. These clashes are against what some scholars in the literature say about the decisive effects of teachers' beliefs to guide their clas s room practices . It was then pointed out that these discrepancies between teachers ' beliefs and their activities could affect p edagogical outcomes, and it was generally concluded that such disparities could have contributed their shares to the deterioration of high school students' English proficiency. Finally, it is recommended that the Minis try of Education, teacher educators and other concerned bodies should exert a maximum effo rt to reconcile the teachers' beliefs and their classroom practices to alleviate the negative impacts on the effectiveneSS of English language teaching.
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    An Investigation of the Nature of Trainers' Feedback Provision During Practicum IV with Reference to English Language Trainers at Jimma Teachers College
    (AAU, 2007-08) Disassa, Alemu; Banteyerga, Hailom (Phd)
    This study investigated the nature of trainers' feedback provision during Practicum IV at Jimma Teachers College. More specifically, the study explored ways of tminers' feedback . provision, the common type of feedback, the main focuses of the traillers' feedback, tile adequacy of the trainers' feedback and the extent to which the trainers' feedback provision practice is in consonance with the objectives of current teacher education program as stated in TESO national guideline. For the study, eight English Language trainers/ tutors, sixllj student teachers who were assigned to teach English Language during Practicum IV and the practicum office coordinator were included as sources of data. Twenllj four feedback sessions that the eight trainer/ tutors offered after their first round observation of their trainees' classroom were transcribed and analyzed. For the analysis, outstanding behavioral ca tegories were identified by using the thematic analysis of the trainers' feedback transcripts. These are encouragement, appreciation, criticism, directing, general comment, request for seifreflection and rhetorical questions. The feedback transcripts were analyzed by using utterances as a unit of analysis. The utterances under each categonj were counted and put in percentage for the analysis. The focuses of each categon} of feedback were also identified and analyzed. For further consolidation, interviews were held with six tu tors, seventeen student teachers and the practicum officer. The observation of twenll} four . ,. student teachers' classes was also made and the observations checklists of the college used by the trainers during supervision were checked. Besides, fifty four student teachers . answered the questionnaire used. The data collected was analyzed and discussed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The result of the study reveals that the trainers' feedback was predominantly directive or prescriptive Iljpe. The trainers usually criticized, directed and gave judgl'nents on the student teachers' classroom practice. They rarely allowed the student teachers for selfappraisal. TIre trainers gave the post observation feedback usually both orally and in written form . But most of them observed their student teachers only once and did not seem to give adequate feedback. The result also shows that most of the student teachers who were assigned to teach English Language have poor command of the language and inadequate skills of English Lmzguage Teaching metllOdologJ} and classroom management. In general, the practice of feedback provision by the target trainer/tutors doesn 't seem to be in consonance with objectives of the current teacher education program in our countnj as stated in TESO national guidelines. The recol1l J'nendatiol1s made based on the above findings includes, among others, giving training for tile tutors' on how to conduct supervision and feedback provision, revising the existing curriculUlJ'/ . ,Jar English Language teachers training, introducing the practice of peer supervision and giving incentives for the tutors during pmcticwn.