Taiwan began elementary school English education in 2001 (Ministry of Education, 2001). Elementary school English teachers must meet one of the following criteria: passed the Ministry of Education’s 1999 Elementary School English Teachers Qualification Exam, an English major or minor, taken an elementary school English teacher 20-credit course, completed a post-bachelor’s degree elementary school English teacher education program, or an English proficiency level equivalent to B2 vantage or upper intermediate of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (Liu, 2000). (The Common European Framework of Reference for Language [CERF] is a guideline used to describe achievements of learners of foreign languages across Europe. The CERF is divided into six levels from A1 beginner to C2 mastery.)

Because some elementary schools do not have qualified English teachers, they have encouraged general education teachers to take one of the elementary school English teacher 20-credit courses offered and designed jointly by the Bureau of Education and universities in various cities and counties. Each teacher education institute designs its own courses and the content can vary widely. Some of the general education teachers felt reluctant to teach English because they did not have sufficient English ability even though they had taken courses. Based on 12 teacher education institutes’ course evaluations and nine teachers’ responses, this article discusses four major issues regarding the elementary school English teacher 20-credit courses and provides suggestions to design better courses in Taiwan. The four major issues are prerequisite English proficiency, course design, teaching practicum, and theories and practice.

PREREQUISITE ENGLISH PROFICIENCY

Elementary school English teachers must have linguistic competence; this refers to their proficiency in communicating in the target language, whether they are listening, speaking, reading, or writing (Peyton, 1997). A minimum English proficiency level should be a prerequisite for teachers to enroll in the 20-credit course. Having no prerequisite level of English proficiency results in a failure to prepare teachers to teach English immediately after completing the courses. General education teachers with a bachelor’s or master’s degree usually have basic English knowledge because most of them took tertiary English courses. However, some of them have not subsequently had an opportunity to use English since their graduation, so they may have difficulties in converting English form-based knowledge into communication (Chen, 2006; Hsieh, 2004). Teacher education institutes identified teachers’ lack of basic English competence, so they offered basic English courses such as daily English which were designed to improve their English ability. After taking a look at the lists of 20-credit courses, three general education teachers surveyed stated that they registered for the courses because they considered them a chance to improve their daily English or grammar.

An elementary school English teacher 20-credit course should aim to train general education teachers in English teaching competence. English teaching methods, approaches, and techniques, rather than basic English skills, should be offered. It is recommended that only general education teachers with a minimum English proficiency level should take the courses, so it can be guaranteed that those who do take them can actually teach English immediately upon completion.

COURSE DESIGNS

In addition to linguistic competence, elementary school English teachers must have an understanding of first and second language acquisition, strategies, and approaches to help English learners process texts (Beth, 2002; Curtain, 1999). The most commonly offered among the 20-credit courses is teaching methods, approaches, and materials, followed by second language acquisition, assessment and tests, and reading and writing instruction. The course “Teaching Methods, Approaches, and Materials” is offered in all teacher education institutes. Whereas six teacher education institutes offered English teaching competence including computer-assisted language learning (CALL), instruction on picture books, and pronunciation instruction, five institutes offered listening and speaking instruction and songs and chants instruction.

McKay and Hornberger (1996) claimed that teachers need an understanding of the relationship between language and society in order to fulfill the challenging task of respecting linguistic diversity while promoting common standards. Therefore, sociocultural aspects of language teacher knowledge should also be included in the courses. One teacher complained about the appropriateness of the content in the pronunciation practice. For example, one of the topics in the pronunciation practice class was linking. Teachers had to practice [blkæt] as black cat. She said:

Linking is very important in English pronunciation. In EFL settings in Taiwan, students are taught how to accurately pronounce individual words or sounds. I do not think there is a need for teachers to learn “linking.”

This teacher could identify the importance of linking in English and considered that learning and practicing linking could help teachers sound more like native speakers. However, not all elementary school children in Taiwan can accurately pronounce individual words, let alone grasp English linking. The content of the pronunciation class did not cater to settings in Taiwan where it is first necessary to focus on methods and strategies to teach students how to pronounce the words accurately and fluently.

Johnson (2006) claimed that the focus of language teacher education should be on sociocultural and historical processes. Although Taiwan is a small island, students and educational settings in different counties and cities are socially, culturally, and economically diverse. The content of the 20-credit courses should not be the same. For example, Hsinchu City has hired more native English-speaking (NES) teachers in elementary schools than other cities in Taiwan have and the city has a strong desire to train nonnative English-speaking (NNES) teachers to work with NES teachers; therefore, team-teaching is offered as part of the 20-credit courses there. The teacher education institutes should take the sociocultural contexts into consideration and provide some elective courses that best fit the teachers in specific cities.

ENGLISH TEACHING PRACTICUM

A practicum provides teacher candidates with hands-on experience utilizing contemporary instructional methods; therefore, mentoring support from expert teachers should be included in the teacher education programs. However, only two institutes offered teaching practice. The teachers mentioned that watching and providing feedback regarding teaching demonstrations by the instructor or classmates or even simply from videos was definitely insufficient. One of the teachers said:

We worked as a group to give teaching demonstrations in front of other teachers. Each teacher was responsible for teaching for only few minutes and that was not enough practice. The rests of the teachers had to pretend to be children. It was not real. I wished I could see the real classroom instruction by experienced English teachers in my school.

These teachers lacked the chance to have teaching demonstrations among students. They could not see whether their lesson and activity designs were practical in real classrooms. In addition, they did not have the chance to see lessons taught by experienced English teachers, nor did they have the chance to teach in front of experienced English teachers and receive appropriate feedback.

Assigning an experienced English teacher as a mentor to the general education teacher should be a part of the 20-credit courses. Freeman and Johnson (1998) also suggested that English teacher education practices should include experienced teachers as mentors to novices during field experiences or school-based programs. Teachers benefit from each other’s classes and they can use the opportunity of being observed to become more aware of their own teaching.

THEORIES AND PRACTICE

A balance between theory and practice should be emphasized in 20-credit courses. Some of the language teacher trainers running the 20-credit courses failed to prepare prospective teachers for the realities of the classroom because the training was too theoretical with few chances to put the theories into practice. One teacher complained that the instructor in the computer-assisted language learning class introduced too many theories rather than demonstrating real practice.

Some courses offered in teacher education are too theoretical. Crandall (2000) suggested that there should be a focus on the development of concrete, relevant linkages between theory and practice throughout the teacher education program. Theory and practice were balanced in some courses and one teacher replied that she greatly enjoyed the class “Instruction on Songs, Chants, and Nursery Rhymes.” She said,

The teacher trainer provided hands-on materials and activities. These activities and materials are diverse and interesting. I can immediately adopt them into my own classroom.

Olivia and Pawlas (2001) mentioned that materials provided in language teacher education must be practical, because teachers as practitioners want to apply what they have learned into their classroom practice immediately. Hence, the trainers should better integrate theory and practice into the 20-credit courses, so as to be closer to the classroom realities.

CONCLUSION

Elementary school English teacher 20-credit courses are designed to equip current general education teachers with a degree of English teaching competence in order to solve the shortage of English teachers in some elementary schools. However, some teachers who took the courses are still reluctant to teach English because they still do not feel competent in both English and the teaching of English. There are several ways in which elementary school English teacher education could be improved. First, there should be a prerequisite level of English proficiency to enroll in the 20-credit courses. Second, the courses should focus on both theory and practice. Next, the sociocultural aspects of language teacher knowledge and mentoring support from expert teachers should be included in the courses.

REFERENCES

Beth, A. (2002). The preparation and professional development of teachers of English language learners (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED47724).

Chen, W. Y. (2006). Revisiting proficiency: An important requirement for elementary school English teachers in Taiwan. Journal of National Hualien University of Education, 23, 287-304.

Crandall, J. A. (2000). Language teacher education. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 20, 34–55.

Curtain, H. (1999). Early language learning in the U.S.A. (Unpublished master’s thesis). University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Freeman, D., & Johnson, K. E. (1998). Reconceptualizing the knowledge-base of language teacher education. TESOL Quarterly, 32, 397-417.

Hsieh, L. T. (2004). Elementary school English teacher education: Reflection and visions. Educational Resources and Research, 60, 46-52.

Johnson, K. E. (2006). The sociocultural turn and its challenges for second language teacher education. TESOL Quarterly, 40, 235-256.

Liu, L. F. (2000). The probe into the elementary English teacher preparation curriculum in Taiwan (Unpublished master’s thesis). National Hsinchu Teachers College, Hsinchu City, Taiwan.

McKay, S. L., & Hornberger, N. (Eds.) (1996). Sociolinguistics and language teaching. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Ministry of Education. (2001). Guidelines on English teaching activity designs and assessments in elementary and junior high school. Taipei, Taiwan: Author.

Olivia, P. F., & Pawlas, G. E. (2001). Supervision for today’s schools. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.

Peyton, J. K. (1997). Professional development of foreign language teachers. Washington, DC: ERIC Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED414768)

Grace Chin-Wen Chien graduated from the University of Washington with a doctorate in education in June 2011. She works as an elementary school English teacher and teacher-trainer in Taiwan. Her research interests are language education, language teachers’ education, and curriculum and instruction.