Examining The Impact Of The Oral English Course On Pre-service English Teachers' Self-efficacy In Classroom English

In the field of foreign language teaching and learning,classroom English plays an important part in English teachers' professional development and the success of teaching and learning events.Self-efficacy,as an important individual variable,has attracted great attention in the field of foreign language teaching and learning.A substantial body of research has investigated self-efficacy with regard to foreign language learning in general and listening,speaking,reading,writing,and strategy use in particular,while research on self-efficacy in relation to classroom English is lacking.Furthermore,quite a few research has been carried out on the impact of teacher training courses on pre-service teachers' self-efficacy.However,research on the impact of teacher training courses on pre-service English teachers' self-efficacy in classroom English is scarce.In view of this,the present study,taking an oral English course in Central China Normal University(CCNU)as an example,attempts to examine the impact of the oral English course on pre-service English teachers' self-efficacy in classroom English with the aim of filling some of the hiatus in the research field of the impact of teacher training courses on pre-service English teachers' self-efficacy in classroom English.The oral English course aims to enhance pre-service English teachers' pronunciation and classroom English,and thus covers two components practised in each unit,i.e.pronunciation practice and speaking practice of classroom English.The study was guided by the following three research questions:(1)Before taking the oral English course,how is the strength of the pre-service English teachers' self-efficacy in classroom English?Are there any gender and undergraduate major differences in their self-efficacy in classroom English?(2)After completing the course,what changes have occurred in the pre-service English teachers' self-efficacy in classroom English?(3)What possible causes have contributed to the changes?In order to answer the above research questions,this study selected all the first-year M.Ed.students(Master Degree in English Education)in CCNU as research participants(n=55),who were enrolled in the compulsory oral English course during the first semester of 2018/2019 academic year,and employed the research instruments of questionnaire and interview to probe into the impact of the oral English course on the pre-service English teachers' self-efficacy in classroom English.It was found that the overall strength of the pre-service English teachers' self-efficacy in classroom English was at a relatively high level before they took the oral English course.After one-semester course learning,the teachers had significantly stronger self-efficacy in classroom English,which was caused by their acclimatization to the course and the group they were in,positive feedback from their teacher and classmates,mastery experiences,vicarious experiences they obtained and positive physiological and emotional states they experienced in the course.Based on the major findings,some implications were put forward:specialized training in pre-service English teachers' classroom English language proficiency should be on the agenda for English teacher education programs.On the other hand,English teacher educators need to create a relaxing and supportive classroom atmosphere,provide pre-service English teachers with adequate opportunities to practice classroom English and obtain positive and specific feedback.At last,pre-service English teachers should understand the training goals of oral English courses,figure out what their shortcomings are,and strive for improved classroom English language proficiency.