While teaching challenges have been shown to affect teacher performance in multiple ways, little is known about the transformations occurring in language teachers' perceptions of challenges over time. Hence, this study purported to analyze EFL teachers' current and retrospective perceptions of challenges associated with language teaching tasks. Quantitative data were collected utilizing a questionnaire and processed through Friedman’s ANOVA and a Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test. A within-subjects comparison revealed a statistically significant difference between current and retrospective perceptions of challenges with a large effect size on all language teaching tasks included in the questionnaire, indicating that experience was a causing variable contributing to transformations in teachers' perceptions of task difficulty. The principal shifts in the participants' views were documented on such tasks as student engagement with language material, effective instruction for all learners, personalizing teaching, and planning and managing instruction. The teaching experience played a less decisive role in the case of teaching speaking, student motivation, teaching vocabulary, teaching reading, student assessment, and knowing students. Notably, the areas persisting as very challenging regardless of experience were teaching speaking, motivating learners, teaching writing, and listening. The study's findings hold implications for initial teacher preparation and development, highlighting areas calling for more attention. The paper presents the results of a rather small-scale investigation tackling only a few of the multiple areas of language teaching which potentially challenge language teachers. Likewise, due to a small research sample (n=208) and its limitation to the context of Ukraine, this study does not claim the generalizability of its findings. Nevertheless, the findings reveal in highlighting the tasks posing a substantial challenge to EFL teachers both at the outset of their career and following years spent in it.
Even-though teaching experience has been identified as one of the main variables affecting student academic gains, teacher cognition, and practices, research focusing on the influence of experience on language teacher challenges is still rare. Hence, the study aims to analyse comparatively the challenges encountered by EFL teachers with varying lengths of teaching experience. Quantitative data were collected utilising a questionnaire involving 208 language teachers. The respondents self-reported being especially challenged by teaching speaking, learner motivation, teaching writing and listening, learner engagement, differentiating instruction, and providing effective learning. The overall challenge rate was moderate. Notably, a statistically significant difference in the perceptions of challenges was established between groups of teachers with varying lengths of teaching experience. As expected, novice teachers reported being more challenged than their most experienced counterparts. Contrary to popular belief, challenge estimates of a group of experienced teachers (10-15 years) were higher than that of less experienced teachers (1-5 years). The principal implication of the current study is that experienced language teachers also need assistance in dealing with professional challenges arising from the complexities of language teaching. To serve well, teacher development courses should be sensitive to language teacher needs and challenges, aligned with transformations they undergo as they move along the career stages
The quality of teaching and learning heavily depend on the quality of communication taking place in the classroom. Improving communication is essential for approaching excellence in teaching and one of the discernable paths on the way to the goal is through the study of teachers' communication style as one of its key variables. The present paper is aimed at discerning approaches to the study of communication style, analyzing their theoretical propositions and empirical contribution, as well as their relevance for effective teaching research. Effective communication is a core concern in developing teaching competence, hence the study of one of its key variables is seen as a priority. The research methods applied presuppose the analysis of the comunication style construct, comparison of various research traditions of the problem and synthesis of research findings with implications for effective teaching. Analysis of literature revealed several schools of thought: 1. grounded in the behaviourist traditions; 2. oriented towards behaviourist and personality theories, including social dimensions; 3. relying on personality theories; 4. grounded on theories of activity and interaction. Communication style influences such dimensions of the teaching-learning process as learning gains, affect for the teacher, instructional content and the course, learning environment, participation of students, their motivation, trust in the teacher, credibility, positive relations between teacher and learners just to mention a few.
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