A Study and position paper for EFL programs in Turkey

Abstract

This thesis hopes to contribute practical suggestions to EFL teachers and administrators who wish to plan, carry out and evaluate in-service staff development programs within their schools. In-service education has been emphasized by administrators and foreign language educators in many institutions, especially universities in the last decades as one avenue by which an individual teacher’s professional interests and needs can be served. One of the major purposes of in-service education is to aid the schools when they attempt to improve instruction by implementing new educational programs and by helping teachers acquire skills and attitudes essential to the roles they are to play in the new programs. Another major function is to supplement the pre-service preparations of teachers and to continue their professional growth during their productive years. Graduating from a teacher training school, teachers are entitled to teach in their fields of specialization. Often, however, teachers are not provided with training in the school setting. This can lead to a deterioration of some skills. It may be particularly significant in EFL education when the standards of pre-service proficiency in the target language may not be maintained while in service. Staff development is viewed in this thesis as a possible solution to this problem.