Gharbavi, A. , & Jafarigohar, M. (2014). Perspective of Iranian English Teachers on the Role of...

The 11th

TELLSI International Conference

October 30 – November 1, 2013, Mashhad – Iran, Tabaran Institute of Higher Education

Perspective of Iranian English student teachers on the Role of

Microteaching

Abdullah Gharbavi

English Department, Payame Noor University

Email: [email protected]

Manoochehr Jafarigohar

English Department, Payame Noor University

Emil: [email protected]

Abstract

Micro-teaching is an opportunity for new teachers to put into practice

theoretical issues they hear in theoretical classes. In order to provide novice

teachers with efficient and effective teaching strategies, many ELT programs

use microteaching. Understanding the perceptions and concerns of student

teachers is crucial for promoting teacher education programs‟ outcomes. The

aim of this article was to investigate the views of sixty one freshly-employed

English teachers in one province in Iran regarding the microteaching

component offered in two courses of English language teaching methods. A

combination of quantitative and qualitative techniques was employed for the

purpose of gathering the data. Mainly, a questionnaire and a focus group

interview were used as the main tools for data collection. The findings

indicated that prospective teachers had positive attitude toward the

utilization of microteaching and it helped them improve their language

proficiency, discover their strengths and weaknesses, enhance their

confidence in teaching and develop their awareness of their teaching

competence. In light of the study results, it was recommended that

microteaching programs should be given due attention in Iranian education

system and different teacher training centers and universities should consider

incorporating microteaching programs in their curriculum. Key words: EFL, new teachers, microteaching, teacher training in Iran, teacher education

1. Introduction The readers who encounter the term microteaching for the first time or

those who look for precise definition of microteaching might ask what

microteaching is. Thus the definition of this term seems in order at the very

beginning of this paper. Microteaching has been defined differently by

different educationists. Some of its definitions are as follows: microteaching

has defined as training technique whereby the teacher reviews a videotape of

the lesson after each session, in order to conduct a post-teaching feedback.

Teachers can discover what part of the lesson has worked well and which

part is problematic and needs to be fixed in order to enhance their teaching

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

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technique (Allen & Ryan, 1969). It was Invented and named so in the mid-

1960s at Stanford University by Dr. Dwight Allen (Ogeyik, 2009; Allen &

Ryan, 1969). Microteaching has been used with success for several decades

now, as a way to help teachers acquire new skills. In the original process, a

teacher is asked to prepare a short lesson (usually 20 minutes) for a small

group of learners who may not have been her own students. This is

videotaped, using VHS (Yeany, 1978). Sometimes, however, microteaching

is done without videotaping but the teaching performance has to be

evaluated immediately after finishing the teaching stage (Benton-Kupper,

2001). The teacher, teaching colleagues, a master teacher and the students

together view the videotape and comment on what they see happening,

referencing the teacher's learning objectives.

According to Allen & Ryan (1969), microteaching is a laboratory

technique of teacher training in which the complexities of normal class room

teaching are simplified. It is described as a scaled down teaching encounter

in class size and class time (Allen & Ryan, 1969). The scaling down been

done in three directions:

The duration of a microteaching session is only from five to fifteen

minutes.

The size of the class ranges from four to ten students.

The whole process of „Student Teaching‟ is broken up into a number

of skills; and training in the skills of teaching is provided separately

in micro- lesson sessions.

During a microteaching session, each participant go through the following

process:

Presentation and videotaping (5 mins).

Viewing with facilitator (5 mins).

Feedback (10 mins).

1.1 Possibilities and challenges of microteaching

Popovich and Katz (2009) believe that microteaching technique not

only helps students to „„think on their feet‟‟ and be reflective, but it also

provides an opportunity to get a constructive feedback. To Vare (1994 ),

microteaching offers the advantages of both realistic practical experiences

and controlled laboratory environment. It also offers immediate and

continuous feedback; close supervision and objectives that can be manage

according to the needs and abilities of the individual trainee.

On the negative side, microteaching doesn't take into consideration the

content of the lesson because it is skill-oriented. It is a time-consuming

technique, and many trainees may not have the opportunity to practice the

re-plan and re-teaching steps. It may also raise administrative problems

because it requires special setting conditions and professional equipment.

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The setting of a microteaching session has a particular arrangement and

appearance and the place and focus of the camera it is believed to affect the

performance of the student teachers (Eley & Hess, 1992). A regular setting

looks like the bellow figure.

1.2 Statement of the problem

This study had been designed to explore the views of prospective

student teachers on the effectiveness of microteaching sessions on the

different aspects of their teaching performance. To be more precise, the

present study is an attempt to evaluate the effect of student teachers'

feedback in developing teaching skills and thereby teaching competence

among student teachers. Specific objectives of the study were to explore the

perceptions of teacher trainees on the effects of microteaching on their

management of the class, lesson planning, development of autonomy and

confidence in teaching.

1.3 Questions of the study

This study is guided by two questions:

1. What kind of attitude or feeling do student teachers hold about the

practice of microteaching?

2. How does microteaching impact student teachers' views about language

improvement and course satisfaction?

1.4 Need for this study

This study is significant for two reasons. First, several innovations have

been designed to strengthen the programs of student teaching. Micro-

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teaching is one of the recent ones. It is relatively a new departure in teacher

training. It employs analytical approach to teaching and training.

Unfortunately, this important aspect of teacher-training program has not

been given due attention in Iranian education system and we could not spot

any research project conducted in Iranian context. Therefore, this is the first

project on effectiveness of microteaching in Iranian context and we hope this

research leads to more quantitative and qualitative research in Iran teacher

training centers and universities. Second, it is necessary for every teacher

trainee to have adequate preparation before going off to their practical

teaching. This is to avoid them from feeling depressed if they are not able to

handle their students well. Thus, it is essential for those who are going for

practical teaching to undergo microteaching course.

2. Review of the literature

A considerable number of studies has been conducted on the role of

microteaching in different university disciplines in last three decades (Clifford & Edwards, 1975;Yeany, 1978; Beton-Kupper, 2001; Amobi,

2005; Amobi & Arwin, 2009; Ogeyik, 2009; Popovich & Katz, 2009).

However, due to the scope of this study and space limitation, the most

recently conducted ones are reviewed and summarized in this section as

follows:

Benton-Kupper (2001) looked at prospective teachers' perceptions

about the application of a microteaching component in a methodology

course. After completing the microteaching sessions, student teachers in

three sections of a general secondary methods course reflected on their

practical experiences and provided quantitative and qualitative feedback on

the use of microteaching. The findings of the study indicated that the

microteaching practice is very beneficial for prospective teachers to learn

about the craft of teaching. Trainee teachers indicated that they found

microteaching experiences helpful in enabling them to recognize and

identify strengths and weaknesses in their mini lessons. The study provided

evidence that the microteaching component is an effective training tool in

teachers' preparation programs.

Amobi (2005) examined the reflective outputs of 31 secondary

education pre-service teachers during a second microteaching session. The

study focused on the recurrent themes of reflectivity of self- and peer-

evaluations. The study featured mini lessons taught to colleagues, a

videotape used to record lessons, a ready-made form used for writing

feedback and oral reports on the experience. All trainees were expected to

submit between one to two pages of self-reflection focusing on what they

initially intended to do, what they did and how they would do it differently.

During the discussion sessions, students were invited to confront their peers‟

feedback and comments on their mini lessons. The overall findings of the

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study demonstrated more defensive and passive patterns than affirmative

patterns. The researcher concluded that student teachers considered

microteaching as a favorable and meaningful learning experience. Evidence

for their satisfaction about the usefulness of microteaching can be extracted

from their recurrent detailed recollection and the comparison they tried to

make between the two mini sessions.

Fernandez and Robinson (2007) investigated the perceptions of 74

student teachers at Florida State University about MLS. Four different

sections of teacher trainees in an initial course of mathematics teaching

methods participated in the study. Similar to the above-mentioned study, the

students in this research overwhelmingly expressed that the opportunity to

apply in practice the pedagogical theories they learned in the course was

extremely beneficial. They indicated that they had spent a lot of time talking

about theories while they needed the chance to try the theories and get

feedback on their actual performance. Within the MLS lessons, trainee

teachers had an opportunity to plan lessons and try the different teaching

strategies that they had been exposed to in their study in the program. At the

end, student teachers appreciated other people‟s views and feedback about

their teaching performance and they acknowledged the great benefits of

reflection in learning the art of teaching.

Ogeyik (2009) conducted a research on 57 fourth year students

attending the ELT Department at Trakya University, in Turkey. The data of

that study were collected via a Likert type scale that was developed by the

researcher. The research results were evaluated regarding the benefits and

disadvantages of microteaching. The findings revealed that the ELT students

at Trakya University in general held positive attitudes towards microteaching

applications with regard to its effectiveness for professional development,

self-assessment, self-confidence, material production, and teaching

experiences in various courses in which students are of different ages and

linguistic levels.

Fernandez (2010) investigated how and what teacher trainees learn

about teaching from microteaching lesson study (MLS). The researcher

carried out a case study of MLS with 18 student teachers in a course of math

teaching methods. Different research tools were used to collect extensive

data. These multiple data sources helped in triangulating the findings.

During the different phases of the study, videotape and audiotape were used

to record the MLS lessons and the group discussion respectively. During the

MLS experiences, students were able to explore, analyze, plan and revise

their lessons; additionally they participated as learners in other students‟

lessons. After being exposed to the MLS, prospective teachers were able to

explore patterns and develop effective strategies for teaching mathematics.

The MLS was found to be an effective teaching approach because it offers

prospective teachers valuable opportunities to practice and learn teaching

during their initial coursework. It was indicted that student teachers were

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able to identify general teaching patterns and classroom management issues

during the MLS lessons though they were teaching their colleagues and were

acting in a “fake” situation.

Using quantitative and qualitative approaches, Sadiq Abdulwahed

Ahmed Ismail (2011) investigated the attitudes of two groups of ESL teacher

trainees who were taking two different courses in teaching methods of

English. The overall findings of his study showed that the inclusion of

microteaching in teacher training programs is viewed to have positive impact

on ESL student teachers' awareness and views regarding their language and

teaching competencies.

3. Methodology

3.1 Participants

The sample of this study consisted of 65 pre-service teachers who

enrolled in two different courses entitled 'Methods of English Teaching'.

However, the study later conducted and tested on 61 trainees at Payame

Noor University. The classes met two times a week for one and one-half

hour periods and each student in the section taught one ten minute

microteaching lesson.

3.2 Instruments

To achieve the purposes of this research, a questionnaire and focus-

group interview questions were developed and used to collect the required

data. The questionnaire included 18 items organized into two themes in

accordance with the purpose and research questions of the study. The

questionnaire used a five-point Likert scale extending from five (strongly

agree) to one (strongly disagree).

3.3 Data collection

Data needed for the study was collected from student teachers in two

courses of 'Principles and Teaching Methods of Foreign Languages' in two

centers of Payame Noor University, that is, Payame Noor University of

Ahwaz and Khoramshahr. The participants including 30 student teachers

from Course A at payame Noor university of Ahwaz and 31 student teachers

from Course B at Payame Noor university of Khoramshar. After conducting

the questionnaire, focus-group interview sessions were organized and

conducted by the researcher with the help of some students in each section.

3.4 Data analysis

In order to analyze the data, both quantitative and qualitative data

analyses were performed. To analyze the quantitative data collected by the

five-point Likert scale questionnaire, the SPSS program was utilized to

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obtain different types of descriptive statistics and independent sample t-tests.

We used qualitative analysis or content analysis to analyze the data and

categorize it into themes and patterns.

4. Results and discussion

The main objectives of the study were to find answers to two guiding

questions: (1).What kind of attitude or feeling do student teachers hold about

the practice of microteaching? (2). How does microteaching impact ESL

student teachers' views about language improvement and course

satisfaction?). Looking at Table 1 bellow, you can see that the overall mean

scores ranged from 4.08 to 5. 78 on a 5-point scale. The results of question 1

(What kind of attitude or feeling do teacher trainees hold about the practice

of microteaching? revealed that the teacher trainees at Payame Noor

University in general held positive attitudes towards microteaching

applications with regard to its effectiveness for professional development,

improvement of language, autonomy, self-confidence, and reduction of

anxiety originating from teaching. Data collected from the interview sessions

provided evidence that students in the methods of teaching English courses

possessed positive attitudes towards microteaching applications. A large

number of students in both groups indicated that they appreciated the

beneficial experiences that they gained from microteaching. Students from

both groups asserted, “Microteaching was wonderful practical experience

that enabled us to solve our problems in real classroom we found the

possibility to practice what we learned from textbooks during the previous

terms. Now we feel mre confident to enter real classrooms to teach the

language skills to the students”. Others said, " It was stressful to compress

the topic into 10 mins and it is very hard to finish in the specified time. As a

non -native English speaker I think these circumstances affected my ability

to choose the appropriate vocabulary."

Ogeyik's (2009) findings were similar to this result as they highlighted

the positive views of student teachers towards microteaching applications.

Students in Ogeyik's (ibid) study asserted that they appreciate microteaching

experiences because they helped them develop professional skills, self-

reflection, self-confidence and material selection criteria. Other studies also

reached the same findings regarding the positive views of prospective

teachers towards the benefits of microteaching (Fernandez & Robinson,

2007; Benton-Kupper, 2001). These two studies concluded that

incorporating microteaching into pre-service teacher training programs is

highly appreciated by prospective teachers. Student teachers in both studies

indicated that the hands-on experience opportunities enabled them to

develop self-reflective skills, gain knowledge and promote effective teaching

strategies.

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Table 1. attitude and personal feeling

Overall Course A Course B T-test Sig

Mean ( mean) (mean)

Microteaching: was carried out in an artificial environment. 5.78 5.74 5.79 .259 .932 resulted in neglecting key activities in the

methods course. 5.22 5.49 5.11 2.219 .327

consumed a lot of my time 5.37 5.34 5.38 -.298 .959 made me feel bored 4.08 3.97 4.19 - .893 .564

forced me to do difficult tasks. 4.95 4.68 5.34 -2.915 .084

was time limited and controlled. 5.72 5.48 5.95 -2.793 .218 made me feel embarrassed when

teaching my colleagues 4.83 4.58 3.24 -2.667 .243 forced me to think of the evaluation

criteria while planning. 5.62 5.18 4 -3.783 .013 forced me to think of the evaluation

criteria while teaching. 5.42 4.81 5.97 -4. 894 .000 Note. *p< 0.05

Analysis to the answers of question 1 (How does microteaching impact

ESL student teachers' views about language improvement and course

satisfaction?) showed that student teachers held positive about the effect of

microteaching practices on their language and on their increasing enthusiasm

towards the teaching methods courses (see table 2). This result showed that

both groups felt that microteaching experience helped them improve their

language proficiency and that they appreciated the usefulness of the methods

courses. Nearly half of the teacher students in the first group (Course A)

thought that microteaching offered opportunities to refine their language

especially the jargon used for giving classroom instruction and/or direction.

When students were interviewed during focus-group interview, students

from both groups stated that, “microteaching was great experience and we

feel that we can run a real class now because the microteaching sessions

acquainted us the rules and the language we need whenever we face real

students in real classrooms. One student teacher said "that I will attend

microteaching through the whole of my life if you allow me to attend the next

ones. She stated that now I know how to talk with my prospective students

and how to sequence a reading or grammar lesson."

Other students stated, "The idea of the presentations was good as we

were able to use the theory in a practical way and gave us experience as

teachers. "The feedback was insightful and contained many thought-

provoking ideas. I would like continued access to the feedback from my

classmates"

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Table 2. Language improvement and course satisfaction

Overall Course A Course B T-test Sig

mean (mean) ( mean)

Microteaching: helped me develop awareness of my

teaching competence. 5.78 5.74 5.79 .259 .932 helped me develop the actual teaching skills I‟ll need later. 6.72 5.78 5.64 .876 .521 helped me learn to speak clearly. 6. 59 6.71 6.47 2.48 .193 encouraged me to develop my vocabulary. 6.39 6.54 6.24 1. 61 .147 allowed me to apply ideas I learned from

different courses. 6.45 6.34 6.56 -1. 07 .398 encouraged me to work harder. 6.78 6.84 6.72 .851 .558 raised my motivation in the present

methods course. 6.57 6.54 6.59 -.37 .897 helped me to better understand different

teaching methods. 6.57 6.58 6.56 .o851 .937 helped me discover and fix my 6.54 6.38 6.69 -2. 74 .097 language problems.

Note. *p< 0.05

5. Conclusion

Micro-teaching has proved to have a positive effect on the teaching

quality of trainees. In other words, this study indicated that the inclusion of

microteaching in teacher training programs is viewed to have positive impact

on student teachers' teaching skills satisfaction and enhancement of the

teachers' confidence and language needed for running the class and

explanation. We hope that the findings of this research help teacher

educators decide whether they wish to use microteaching and, if so, how best

to complete the various microteaching elements to effectively prepare

competent teachers

With regard to the findings of this study, it would be of interest if a

follow up study would be carried out to see how much of those qualities

would really help student teachers during their student teaching in a regular

teaching situation. As micro-teaching has greatly benefited teacher trainees it

will continue to be an important and crucial component of teacher training.

References

Abdulwahed Ahmed Ismail, S. (2011). Student teachers' microteaching

experiences in a preservice English teacher education program.

Journal of Language Teaching and Research 2(5), 1043-1051.

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Allen, D.W. & Ryan, K.A. (1969). Micro teaching readings, Mass Addision

Wesley, California.

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Vare, J. W. (1994). Partnership contrasts: Microteaching activity as two

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Authors' Bio information

Abdullah Gharbavi is a faculty member of Payme Noor University of

Ahwaz, Khoramshahr and Abadan in Iran. His main areas of interest are (1)

Second Language Acquisition, (2) ESP, (3) Discourse Analysis and (4)

Syllabus Design.

Manoochehr Jafarigohar: Ph.D. in TEFL, MA in TEFL, BA in English

translation; he is the author of thirteen academic textbooks; presentation in

more than 20 international conferences; published papers in various journals;

25 year experience of teaching English; 20 years of teaching and research in

distance education; advisor and reader to over 100 post-graduate theses and

dissertations.

Gharbavi, A. , & Jafarigohar, M. (2014). Perspective of Iranian English Teachers on the Role of...

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