Augmenting the Teacher Effectiveness Construct: Voices of the Effective English Language Teachers From Universities in Pakistan

Abstract

Educational standards around the globe and most specifically in Pakistan are put to contest with challenging standards. There is an amounting pressure on the administrators and the policymakers to furnish the educational institutes with effective teachers. This leads to rekindle probe into the ongoing debate on the qualities that contribute to teacher effectiveness. Therefore, the present research utilized mixed methods approach with an aim to explore the effective English language teachers’ (ELTs) conception about the qualities of effective ELTs. In the first quantitative phase, the survey method was used to identify effective ELTs through Self-Assessment Test (SAT) at both public and private sector higher education institutes (HEIs) of Pakistan through convenience sampling (N = 243). Based on the results of phase one, eight ELTs were selected purposefully for semi-structured interviews which were then analyzed thematically using ATLAS.ti 9.0 software. Thematic analysis of the semistructured interviews revealed nine main categories emerging under the a priori theme of perceived effective teachers. The study adds to the inconclusive definition of teacher effectiveness and bears implications for various stakeholders of the teacher education system to provide opportunities to the ELTs in order to develop such qualities as identified through this study