A Case Study On College English Teachers' Beliefs About Their Roles And Teaching Practices In Blended Instruction Context

Based on the activity theory,a 16-week longitudinal study was conducted on two university English teachers who are faculty members from the same maritime university in China.Interviews and classroom observations were carried out to find out teachers'beliefs about their roles,teaching practices,and the relationship between them.The major findings are as follows.(1)Teachers in online instruction mainly act as managers,supervisors,assessors,technical consultants,and information providers while in the face-to-face instruction they play the roles of course designers,organizers,managers,assessors,facilitators,and knowledge transmitters.(2)Teachers' beliefs about their roles change in teaching practices.And there are many factors that affect teachers' beliefs about their roles and teaching practices in blended instruction,such as teachers'self-reflection,students' feedback,communication with peers,school policies,and teaching assistants' feedback.(3)There is a complicated and developmental relationship between teachers' beliefs about their roles and teaching practices.Teachers' beliefs about their roles and teaching practices in online instruction and the face-to-face instruction are not exactly the same.Teachers' beliefs about their roles determine teaching practices while teaching practices also influence teachers' beliefs about their roles.Teachers' beliefs about their roles and practices have gradually developed in a positive direction,which means they are mutually promoted.From the theoretical perspective,the present research offers empirical data for studies into teachers' belief,expands the scope of teachers' belief research,and provides a new perspective for further research as well.From the pedagogical perspective,the current study casts light on MOOC-based instruction,face-to-face instruction and blended instruction respectively.It also provides cases for references for teacher development.