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1、Middle School English Teachers Professional Development1 IntroductionThe professional development of teachers is studied and presented in the relevant literature in many different ways. But the core is the understanding that professional development is about teachers learning, learning how to learn,
2、 and transforming their knowledge into practice for the benefit of their students growth. ThispaperaimsatexplainingwhatprofessionaldevelopmentmeansinELTteachersperspectivesandwhichprofessionaldevelopmentstrategiestheypreferusingintheirteachingcareer. suchaspeer-coaching,studygroups,andteamteachingTh
3、efindingsshowedthatthemajorityofELTteachersareawareofthenecessityofthetermprofessionaldevelopment;however,only%30less of themtheparticipantsgiveimportancetotheiron-goingprofessionaldevelopmentbyusingmainlysuchstrategiesasparticipatorypractitionerresearch,studygroups,andsoon.IntroductionProfessionald
4、evelopmenthasbeendefinedinvariouswayssuchas:xItisaninclusionofin-servicetrainingandworkshops.xItisaprocessinwhichteachersworkundersupervisiontogainexperiences.xItisanongoinglearningprocessinwhichteachersprimarilyaimathowtoteachinaccordancewiththeexpectationsandneedsofthestudents.Itseemsvividlythatth
5、istermdoesnotrefertoonlyoneconcept,yetitincludesmanydifferentprinciples,whichispossibletobelistedasfollowsxInvolvegroupsofteachersratherthanindividualsfromanumberofschools, xRecogniseandaddressthemanyimpedimentstoteachersgrowthattheindividual,schoolanddistrictlevel.xUsingteachersasparticipantsinclas
6、sroomactivitiesorstudentsinrealsituations,toprojectaclearervisionoftheproposedchanges.xAllowtimeandopportunitiesforplanning,reflection,andfeedbackinordertoreportsuccessesandfailurestothegroup,toshare“thewisdomofpractice,”andtodiscussproblemsandsolutionsregardingindividualstudentsandnewteachingapproa
7、ches.x Recognizethatchangeisagradual,difficultandoftenpainfulprocess, Encourageteacherstosetfurthergoalsfortheirprofessionalgrowth.2.EffectiveProfessionalDevelopmentThecomponentsofeffectiveprofessionaldevelopmenthavebeenapproachedfromdifferentperspectives.Adey(2004,p.194)proposed4factorsnecessaryfor
8、effectiveprofessionaldevelopmentasseeninthefollowing:1.TheInnovation1a.hasanadequatetheorybase1b.introducesmethodsforwhichthereisevidenceofeffectiveness1c.issupportedwithappropriatehighqualitymaterials2.ThePDprogram2a.isofsufficientlengthandintensity2b.usesmethodswhichreflecttheteachingmethodsbeingi
9、ntroduced2c.includesprovisionforin-schoolcoaching3.Seniormanagementintheschool(s)3a.arecommittedtotheinnovation3b.sharetheirvisionwiththeimplementingdepartmentleaders3c.institutenecessarystructuralchangetoensuremaintenance4.Tmunicateeffectivelyamongstthemselvesabouttheinnovation4c.aregivenanopportun
10、itytodevelopasenseofownershipoftheinnovation4d.aresupportedinquestioningtheirbeliefsaboutteachingandlearning4e.haveplentyofopportunityforpracticeandreflectionAlthoughthefactorsarevarying,whatiscertainisthatEnglishlanguageteachersareinneedofeffectiveprofessionaldevelopmenttokeeppacewiththerapidlychan
11、ginganddevelopingeducationalsetting.Peer-CoachingPeercoachingisbasedonreciprocalvisitsoftwoteacherswherebytheyprovideeachotherwithfeedbackandadviceabouttheirteaching.Inpeercoaching,eachteacheractsasboththecoachandthecoachee,Thornetal.(2007)proposesmanybenefitsofpeercoachingasfollows:xReduceisolation
12、amongleadersxEstablishcollaborativenormsxBuildasharedknowledgebasexSharesuccessfulpracticesxEncouragereflectivepracticexMorecohesiveorganizationalcultureDuetobeingaprofessionaldialogue,itsuppliessupportiveanddevelopmentalcontextfortheteachers,whichisbeneficialforespeciallylanguageteacherswhoneedtole
13、arnandusenewlanguageitemsandculturalpractices.3.2.StudyGroupsStudygroupsconsistofanumberofteachersandadministratorstendingtoexchangeideas,planlessons,analyzestudentsworksandevendiscussschoolpolicy(Murphy,1992), Thediscussionscanbeofgreatimportanceintermsofleaningaboutotherteachersteachingmethodsandstrategiesandreflectingtheeffectiveonestotheirownclassrooms.However, bepaidsomeattentionasthesizeofthegroups(ideallysixpeopleforeachgroup),thefrequencyandregularityofthemeetings,thenecessityofgroupleadersandrepresentativesharmonious (Joyce&Showers,199
