Preservice EFL Teacher Belief:Conceptual Change In Internship

With the publication of College English Teaching Guidelines by Ministry of Education in China,our college English teaching is facing a critical phase.As we are making national efforts to construct world top universities and disciplines,English teaching is facing a challenge that teachers' teaching faces with a gap with students' needs.On the other hand,it is found that EFL teachers' teaching practice has a close relationship with their beliefs.Besides,the transitional identity of preservice EFL teachers makes it more meaningful to look into the real problems happened in teaching and to find out the inconsistency and imbalance of their original belief and reality.Present study investigated beliefs about learning English,teaching English,and teacher roles of sixteen preservice English teachers(graduate students from English majors)from a public university in China,and the extent to which their beliefs have changed in their first term of teaching internship.Data was collected via BALLI questionnaire,SMQ questionnaire,Credo,interviews and journals over a term-long period.It is found that prior learning experience and education program play a critical role in shaping preservice teacher belief.With similarities in their previous experience,they also share some common beliefs about EFL teaching and learning.After the internship,change in the content of their beliefs are limited.However,with some changes and further strengthening of some beliefs,it can be seen that preservice teachers' beliefs are dynamic and evolving,consciously or subconsciously.This study also found that there is inconsistency between preservice teachers' beliefs and the real classroom practice,which is one of the reasons that they change some of their beliefs after the internship.Implications of the findings are discussed in relation to teacher education programs and suggestions are made for further research.