An EFL Instructor’s Study and Teach Abroad Experiences and Complementary Views from Learners

Main Article Content

Hanife Taşdemir
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4905-3501
Fatma Gümüşok
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4804-8279

Abstract

The present qualitative case study aimed to explore the influences of an EFL instructor’s study and teach abroad experiences on her classroom implementations. It additionally investigated her students’ responses to the reflections of her study and teach abroad in the classroom. The findings revealed that these experiences contributed to the instructor’s both personal development and professional learning and further had impacts on her teaching practices. An in-depth analysis of multiple data tools; a semi-structured, individual interview with the instructor, her journal entries, and an open-ended questionnaire from 43 language learners, informed that study and teach abroad experiences contributed to the instructor’s world knowledge and intellectual growth through her teaching and other academic endeavors at an abroad university. It was also found that the learners appreciated the instructor’s explicitly referring to her international contacts as a means of providing authentic input, enriching the lesson content, fostering engagement in the class, and raising learners’ intercultural awareness. This study suggests developing teacher interculturality via study and teach abroad programs should be encouraged to better address intercultural topics in the language class. The process of preparing intercultural language teachers could be aided by teacher study and/or teach abroad programs.

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How to Cite
Taşdemir, H., & Gümüşok, F. (2022). An EFL Instructor’s Study and Teach Abroad Experiences and Complementary Views from Learners. Focus on ELT Journal, 4(1), 91–104. https://doi.org/10.14744/felt.2022.4.1.7
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Author Biographies

Hanife Taşdemir, Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa

Hanife Taşdemir is a research assistant in English language teaching at İstanbul University-Cerrahpaşa. She holds MA and PhD degrees from Middle East Technical University (METU) in English Language Teaching. Her research interests include pre- and in-service teacher education, teacher identity, teacher professional development and qualitative research.

Fatma Gümüşok, Bartın University

Fatma Gümüşok has completed her PhD dissertation in English Language Teaching (ELT) at Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey. She is currently working as an assistant professor at Bartın University, School of Foreign Languages. Her research interests focus on foreign language teacher education, professional identity, teacher cognition, teacher professional development, and literature in ELT.

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