| This research project explores the shared learning that took place over one year among non-native English graduate students engaged in a voluntary teacher inquiry group formed to encourage the professional development of EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teachers. The study aims to illuminate the most salient issues involved in transferring teaching theories and practices originating in Western cultures to the Asian contexts to which these EFL teachers will return for their professional careers. It also examines how the group interaction patterns fostered professional development. From the findings there emerged a model of group inquiry that could be used to plan professional development programs for all teachers.; The primary data consists of audio-recorded group meetings, which lasted two to five hours on a weekly basis. Supplementary interviews were conducted to explore each participant's English teaching beliefs and expectations for the group. Interviews conducted at the end of each semester reviewed each individual's experience of engaging in the teacher inquiry group. Other data includes ongoing e-mail dialogues among group members, reflective writing, other information shared in the group, and reflective journals from both the participants and the researcher. The researcher has analyzed the data using hermeneutic-reconstructive analysis, which involves the articulation of implicit features of meaning, such as meaning fields and validity claims, into explicit forms.; During the initial data analysis, a cyclical pattern was discovered that characterized the group dynamics. This pattern, which was very close in form to what has been published as "the inquiry cycle" (Harste, Short, and Burke, 1988), led to a modified version of the inquiry cycle, formalized in the second part of the analysis as a new model diagramming the recurring themes and emerging patterns in an intertwining fashion. This new model, a triangular pillar, featuring six components represented by its bottom, sides, top, and interior spiral, characterizes the complexity of professional development in this group. The result of the study can be adapted to language teacher education programs to better support teacher learners. The results also demonstrate how teaching philosophies and practices can best be reshaped in cross-cultural EFL teaching. |
