scholarly journals Iranian EFL Teachers’ Challenges with the New ELT Program after the Reform: From Dream to Reality

2015 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 65-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Parvin Safari ◽  
Rahman Sahragard
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
English Language ◽  
National Level ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Modern World ◽  
Education Policies ◽  
Language Reform ◽  
Efl Teachers ◽  
The Government

There is no doubt concerning the interdependence of educational progress with human development, socio-economic growth, greater opportunities, welfare, and political stability. Hence,for further development and growth of education,transformations and reforms in curriculum are required to reflect the latest changes in theories and praxis of the modern world (Fterniati, 2006). In Iran, due to the inadequacy of the preceding ELT education policies in developing students’ communicative skills and capabilities, a reform occurred in the ELT program as new communicative based textbooks entitled as “English for School Series” and CLT pedagogywere introduced into the context of public schools. However, implementation of the innovative curriculum was associated with different feedback from English teachers. This qualitative study is, indeed, an attempt to explore concerns, problems, and constraints that EFL teachers experienced through the revolutionary reform of the ELT education. Thus, based on stratified purposive sampling, the researchers selected 35male and female teachers of English at grades one and two of junior high schools from both urban and rural regions of Tehran, Shiraz, and Yazd, Iran.The researchers usedtranscription and codification of data gathered through semi-structured interview to find the emergent themes concerning teachers’ challenges and problems in Iran. The findings also indicated that if the new English language reform and policy turn out to be successful at the national level, the government is necessarily required to take actions towards elimination of the potential impediments which block the materialization of the new curriculum.

Jordanian EFL Teachers' Perceptions of the Appropriateness of Action Pack Textbooks

2006 ◽  
Vol 151 ◽  
pp. 33-56
Author(s):  
Ali Ahmad Al-Barakat ◽  
Ruba Fahmi Bataineh ◽  
Samih Mahmoud Al-Karasneh ◽  
Rula Fahmi Bataineh
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Developmentally Appropriate ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
Textbook Series ◽  
Assessment Tasks ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Efl Teachers ◽  
Age Appropriate

This study investigates the appropriateness of the Action Pack Textbook Series (APTS) currently taught in the first four primary stage classes in Jordanian public schools. An evaluation checklist, compiled from the literature, and a semi-structured interview were used to evaluate the content, layout, assessment tasks, teacher's book and the availability of supplementary materials. The findings support the following conclusions: Poor ratings were minimal; APTS is adaptable to the needs of both teachers and pupils and provides a broad range of resources that can be selectively integrated into the curriculum; APTS contains modes of instruction that are developmentally appropriate for a wide range of learners; APTS instructional materials are interesting, engaging and effective for the target learners; the format of the teacher's book is easy to follow, the directions for implementing activities are clear, and the teacher's book itself is flexible and allows teachers to choose from a variety of activities to use with their pupils; for the most part, non-text materials are used appropriately to promote learning; and, overall, the materials for the pupils are well written, age-appropriate and compelling in content.

I. Organizing the Government for Participation in World Affairs

1944 ◽  
Vol 38 (5) ◽  
pp. 913-930 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walter H. C. Laves ◽  
Francis O. Wilcox
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Foreign Relations ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
The United States ◽  
Foreign Affairs ◽  
Modern World ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Authoritarian State ◽  
The Government ◽  
Post War

Looking at the post-war period, it seems obvious that the government of the United States will give more attention to foreign affairs than it has in any comparable period of American history. How can the machinery for conducting foreign relations best be organized to meet these increasing responsibilities?The conduct of foreign relations in the modern world is no simple matter. Technical experts, intelligence systems, ability to negotiate, national political stability, a large and loyal staff of public servants—these are but some of the national requisites for effective participation in world affairs. The mobilization and organization of the best staff resources in the country, the negotiation of national policies, and then of international agreements, constitute a formidable task under any system of government.The conduct of foreign relations is, of course, easiest in a completely authoritarian state. It is made immeasurably more difficult by any division of authority. In most non-authoritarian governments, some division of authority has been found desirable, even at the expense of occasional awkwardness of procedure, because thereby the dangers of usurpation of power are minimized. The United States has gone farther than any democratic country in dividing responsibility in foreign affairs. Not only is there the usual distinction between legislative and executive authority, but the independence of the two branches has been so far underlined that the achievement of over-all government policies (as distinct from legislative and executive policies) is extremely difficult unless the party relationships are just right between the two ends of Pennsylvania Avenue.

The Political Legacy of Lázaro Cárdenas

1983 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 383-405 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles H. Weston
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
National Level ◽  
Decisive Role ◽  
The Political ◽  
Reform Process ◽  
Industrial Workers ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Lazaro Cardenas ◽  
The Revolution

The political legacy of Lázaro Cárdenas is marked by a striking paradox. On the one hand, Cárdenas as president of Mexico from 1934 to 1940 presided over the most radical phase of the Mexican Revolution or what some historians call the “Second Revolution.” He was instrumental in organizing industrial workers and peasants at the national level and incorporating both groups into the reorganized government party, the Partido de la Revolutión Mexicana (PRM), that had as its declared purpose the establishment of a “workers' democracy” in Mexico. Under his leadership the government supported the demands of industrial workers for higher wages and improved working conditions, greatly expanded the distribution of land to the peasantry, established new welfare programs, nationalized the railroad and petroleum industries and inaugurated a program of socialist education in the public schools. The prestige of Cárdenas as the foremost leader of the radical phase of the Revolution was enhanced by the fact that he, unlike many of his contemporaries, never attempted to use political office for personal financial gain; he was not a rich man when he completed his term of office as president. At the time of his death in 1970, Cárdenas was eulogized as “the greatest figure produced by the Revolution… an authentic revolutionary who aspired to the greatness of his country, not personal aggrandizement.” On the other hand, Cárdenas was the architect of the corporatist system of interest representation, including labor, peasant and business organizations, that provided the institutional framework of what Crane Brinton has called the “Thermidor,” i.e., the conservative reaction to the radical phase of the revolutionary process, that began in Mexico in approximately 1940. The institutions developed by Cárdenas were utilized by his successors to curtail the very reforms, such as agrarian and labor reform and socialist education, that had been central to his reform program. Moreover Cárdenas facilitated the transition to a more conservative era by naming as his successor Manuel Ávila Camacho, who was known to favor a moderation of the reform process, rather than Francisco Múgica, the preferred candidate of the radicals in the government. In short, Cárdenas played a decisive role both in presiding over the radical phase of the Revolution and in launching and shaping the relatively conservative post-1940 era. The paradox of the political legacy of Cárdenas is that though the seemingly radical reforms he carried out had a lasting impact upon Mexican politics, the impact was predominantly conservative rather than radical. This essay will endeavor to explain the paradoxical political legacy of Lázaro Cárdenas by focusing upon his ideology, the institutional reforms he carried out while president, and the impact of those reforms after 1940.

scholarly journals Young Adult Literature (YAL): An Analytical Study Among Selected EFL Teachers in Jordanian Public Schools

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 278
Author(s):  
Baderaddin Yassin ◽  
Hadeel Saed
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Young Adult ◽  
Young Adult Literature ◽  
English Language ◽  
Ya Literature ◽  
Academic Benefits ◽  
Efl Teachers ◽  
Official Curriculum ◽  
Efl Students

The purpose of this study is to shed light on Young Adult literature (YAL) in Jordan. Eleven English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers and 62 EFL students in Jordanian public schools participated in this research to first measure their awareness of the YAL and to evaluate the academic benefits of integrating English YA literature into the Jordanian public school curricula. A group of EFL instructors and EFL learners were interviewed using a semi-structured guide. The instructors' interview questions focused on demographics, definitions of YA literature, age classification of YAL, benefits, and challenges of using YA novel in Jordanian English curricula. Questions for the learners centered on demographics, definition and age classification of YAL, and the use of YA novels in the EFL classroom. The study revealed that EFL teachers' reliance on the official curriculum tends to remove innovation and creativity from their teaching and limit their opportunities to adapt the curricula to the competence and interest of their EFL students. The research also revealed that EFL students who read English YA novels developed necessary competencies in both the English language and daily life experiences. The results showed that most EFL teachers in this research paper asserted that English YA novels positively affected EFL students in Jordan. This effect led to increased motivation and engagement in EFL classrooms.   Received: 27 January 2021 / Accepted: 8 April 2021 / Published: 10 May 2021

scholarly journals TEACHERS’ ATTITUDES TO SPECIAL NEEDS STUDENTS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 37-45
Author(s):  
Firman F ◽  
Friscilla Wulan Tersta ◽  
Cicyn Riantoni ◽  
Fellicia Ayu Sekonda
Keyword(s):  
Special Needs ◽  
Inclusive Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Research Subjects ◽  
Special Needs Students ◽  
Teaching Aids ◽  
The Government ◽  
Teachers Attitudes

The purpose of the study: This study aimed to investigate the teachers' attitudes to special needs students and also the contribution that will be useful in inclusive education. Methodology: This study used qualitative methods. The research subjects were five general teachers who teach students with special needs in inclusive education in Jambi, Indonesia. The sampling procedure was used for purposive sampling. The data were collected by a semi-structured interview with five teachers from different backgrounds of teaching. The recorded interview data were transcribed. The documents were then studied, labelled, and elucidated comprehensively. Main Findings: The result of the research revealed that teachers’ attitude to special need students is good. In addition, the contribution of the teachers’ attitudes is formed from this research, such as the transformation of the value of each student, the strategies of the teachers like seating arrangement, the using of the different curriculum, teaching aids and rapport. Applications of this study: To achieve education for all and education equality, the government in Indonesia increases the number of inclusive education. The findings of this research are expected to add new knowledge to the scope of inclusive education especially in EFL contexts. Theoretically, the results of this study are expected to provide some references and contributions for the study on special needs students in inclusive education. Novelty/Originality of this study: This issue becomes a new atmosphere for teachers, especially for EFL teachers in teaching the various students. It is essential to know teachers' attitudes to special needs students in the context of inclusive education because that aspect will be piloting to the contribution of the teaching and learning process.

scholarly journals Kuwaiti Parents’ Perceptions towards Introducing a Foreign Culture into Their Children’s EFL Textbooks in Public Elementary Schools

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 45
Author(s):  
Mohammad Almutairi
Keyword(s):  
Elementary Schools ◽  
Public Schools ◽  
English Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Depth Information ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Public Elementary Schools ◽  
Cultural Content ◽  
The Government

This study aims to investigate Kuwaiti parents' views and opinions towards introducing native speakers' and international cultures into their children's' EFL textbooks in public schools in the light of recent debates that discuss the relationship between culture and English language teaching. It also intends to explore and discover their perceptions towards the current cultural content being taught in Kuwait public elementary schools. For this purpose, questionnaires were distributed among Kuwaiti parents whom their children study in the government public schools followed by semi-structured interviews to get more detailed and in-depth information about the topic discussed. The findings of this study show that the vast majority had negative opinions and views towards exposing their children to native speaker's cultures for social and religious reasons. One of which is their underlying concern about the negative impacts of native speakers' content on their children's cultural and national identity. However, most of them agreed their children learn EFL through the prism of the international multicultural cultural content to prepare them use the language in different cultural contexts when they grow up. The results also showed that most of them preferred to keep the current ELT syllabus which uses the host cultural content rather than replacing it with the native speakers' one for the same reasons and also in view of growing awareness of the role played by culture in the EFL classroom which propound the nature of the Kuwaiti society of being conservative and cautious.

scholarly journals Civic Education Teachers’ Response to The Establishment of Pancasila Ideology Agency (BPIP)

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-20
Author(s):  
Agus Anjar ◽  
Panggih Nur Adi ◽  
Marlina Siregar ◽  
Zunaidy Abdullah Siregar ◽  
Yusmaidar Sepriani
Keyword(s):  
Civic Education ◽  
Citizenship Education ◽  
National Level ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
Problem Formulation ◽  
Research Subjects ◽  
Social Disintegration ◽  
Qualitative Descriptive ◽  
The Government ◽  
Descriptive Method

The rejection of potential leaders who are not from the same group can affect national-level political stability. To avoid that, the government formed BPIP or Agency of Pancasila Ideology Education with the task of protecting the ideology of Pancasila. This research aims to analyze the formation of BPIP with research subjects of 7 teachers who teach PPKn at 7 Madrasyah Aliyah (Islamic Senior High Schools) of Bagan Sinembah subdistrict. In order to answer the problem formulation, the researchers use a qualitative descriptive method with research instruments using interviews, observation, and questionnaires and then analyze it using the Liker scale to reach conclusions. The results of data analysis conclude that teachers who teach Pancasila and Citizenship Education subject support the formation of BPIP initiated by the government that continue to improve its performance to maintain the Pancasila ideology. Or otherwise, it can have a major impact on social disintegration.

Japan’s Education Policies in Korea in the 1910s: “Thankful and Obedient”

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-145
Author(s):  
Andrew Hall
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Elementary Education ◽  
Private Schools ◽  
National Language ◽  
Japanese Education ◽  
Education Policies ◽  
Korean Education ◽  
Japanese Colonial ◽  
The Government ◽  
Gradual Approach

Abstract In the 1910s, Japanese colonial officials worked to legitimize their recently acquired rule of Korea by providing public elementary education, gradually expanding from an initially limited offering. Their public schools existed in tension with Korean-run private schools, which the Japanese barely tolerated. There was also a tension within the Japanese camp over the proper curriculum for the public elementary schools. The Korean Education Ordinance of August 1911 was a compromise between Japanese officials in Korea, who generally favored a gradual approach to colonial rule, and Japanese educators and officials in Japan, who generally were optimistic about Japan’s ability to assimilate the Koreans through education. This article expands our understanding of the process of drafting the ordinance. It examines the Japanese “national language” and “Korean and literary Sinitic” textbooks published during the 1910s, and finds that the compromise resulted in messages of thankfulness and obedience, stressing Japanese superiority and Korean backwardness. Finally, it reviews the Japanese attempts to control Korean-run private schools. This article explicates the creation and implementation of colonial education policy by examining internal and external documents published by the Government-General of Korea and its employees, the textbooks the government published, and Japanese education journals.

scholarly journals English in Public Schools Located in Metropolitan Lima, Peru: An Analysis of Eleventh-Grade Students’ Level and Perceptions

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 55
Author(s):  
Andrea I. Morales ◽  
Paola S. Palomeque ◽  
Valeria Paredes ◽  
Jerome Mangelinckx
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
English Language ◽  
National Policy ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Placement Test ◽  
International Context ◽  
Interview Guide ◽  
The City ◽  
Inside Out

English Language Teaching (ELT) public policies are present in most of the countries of the Americas due to the importance of said language in the international context. The objective of this research was to know the English level of eleventh-grade students in public schools located in Metropolitan Lima, Peru, as well as their perceptions of their own English learning process within the framework of the new national plan called Inglés, Puertas al Mundo (English, Doors to the World). The sample was composed of 72 students from four schools of the city. This study was conducted using a mixed-method (quantitative-qualitative) approach. The instruments used were a standardized English test (New Inside Out Quick Placement Test) and a structured interview guide. The results revealed that the students’ English level is below the level outlined in the national policy. Regarding the perception of their own learning, students have different motivations to learn English, and enjoy the blended model introduced by the national English plan. However, they agree that their English level is very basic and that they would not be able to reach the established communication objectives after graduating from high school.

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