Understanding the process of learning to teach English in the context of Hong Kong: Three case studies (China)

In this thesis, I explore the professional development of three Chinese teachers in Hong Kong and the processes they underwent in becoming English language teachers in secondary schools. A purposeful selection was made of one teacher from each of the following categories: (a) teachers who had neither a post-secondary concentration in English nor received specific teacher education prior to teaching, (b) teachers who had a post-secondary English concentration as well as pre-service English language teacher education and (c) teachers who graduated in English studies, had no pre-service teacher education but eventually had in-service training.; Using qualitative case study methodology, I sought to understand how English language teachers in Hong Kong have developed and learned to accomplish more successful teaching, especially in the light of their larger educational and socio-political context. Research on the area of second language teacher learning is scant. Through the present study, I hope to contribute to a systematic programme of research in this area—an organised inquiry into what teachers need to know in order to learn to do what they do as language teachers in classrooms such as those in Hong Kong.; As in other contexts, the three case studies revealed that language teachers brought to teaching their past learning experiences, which included their educational and personal life experiences and their memories of teachers who left deep impressions—both salutary and otherwise. In Hong Kong at the time of this study, individual teachers themselves decided whether or not they needed English language teacher education. Where teacher education was believed desirable, pre-service education was considered more beneficial than in-service training. Among factors found to affect the development of language teachers, the personal, the technical and the socio-political proved vital in teachers' learning processes.; This inquiry contributes to a better understanding of how English teachers in Hong Kong learn to teach the language, develop themselves and face the challenges brought by socio-political changes and new language education policies. It thus has implications for many other settings where rapid educational, political and social changes are taking place.