This research examined the lived experiences of public school teachers in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. A qualitative design was performed using interpretative phenomenological ...analysis. Twenty public school teachers in the United States formed the sample, with the inclusion criterion being a minimum of three years’ teaching experience, including the pandemic. To meet the safety measure protocols set by the U.S. government, the data gathering was conducted online using Microsoft Forms. The semi-structured interviews comprised two sections: the first ascertained the respondents’ profiling and the second revealed their first-hand experiences. The thematic analysis approach was utilized to analyze the data. The findings disclosed five emerging themes: 1) low student engagement; 2) unstable internet connection; 3) professional development as school district support; 4) utilization of online engagement tools to leverage classroom engagement; and 5) evident parental support. School districts, teachers, parents, students, and potential researchers were provided with recommendations for improving online and hybrid instruction. In addition to implementing socio-emotional learning programs and addressing slow internet connections, it is advised that school districts train teachers on how to use the tools, software, and techniques for online and hybrid instruction. Teachers who are having difficulty in adjusting to online learning should think about developing their capabilities for helping students while finding a healthy balance in terms of stress management. The use of technology to support students should be adequately taught to parents. Future studies on the pandemic's effects on education should continue.
This phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of elementary English Language Arts (ELA) teachers in the United States of America concerning the distance learning barriers they faced in ...conducting standard assessments. Seven (7) participants were personally interviewed to gather the data using open-ended questions. Utilizing a cellular phone, all responses were recorded for transcription. Colaizzi's method for data analysis was employed. After a rigorous analysis of the transcripts, the following twelve (12) themes arose to capture the teachers’ lived experiences: Frequent Absenteeism, Poor Sense of Accountability, Distracting Workspace, Insufficient Knowledge of Technology, Dearth of Motivation and Support, Glitches of Technology, Disparity in Data, Need for Backup, Perpetual Communication to Parents, Call to Differentiate Instruction, Workload Exhaustion, and Deficient Training Ground. The study concluded that the lived experiences of elementary ELA teachers are distinct and compelling. Some distance learning barriers are student absenteeism, parents' non-participation, and the reliability of scores. The teachers were only partially convinced that scores were authentic, so they adopted creative ways to gather data to determine learning goals that needed to be addressed. Teachers faced barriers and bottlenecks, causing stress. ELA teachers remained hopeful, believing in overcoming barriers with passion. Administrators should support teachers in addressing online test challenges and emphasize parental involvement. Clear communication and reminders to students are crucial, while parents should minimize distractions and encourage focus during online assessments. Future research should focus on analyzing and addressing the setbacks that teachers experience when converting from on-site to online assessments.
This study about academic essay writing strategies was conducted in order to propose teachers' lesson guide based on the effective strategies that were ascertained after the investigation. The study ...used the descriptive-quantitative method of research. The University-approved questionnaire was used to identify the frequency of use of the strategies utilized in students' essay writing activities. There were 126 students and 20 English teachers in Cebu City, Philippines, used as the respondents of the study. It was discovered that the three academic essay writing strategies investigated in the study were always used in both argumentative and informative essay writing, as perceived by the respondents. The first two strategies, traffic light color coding, and planning using informal outline, were found to be very effective in both writing the argumentative and informative essays, while the third strategy, framed paragraph, was also effective to use in both writing the two types of essays. The strategies used, and the students' performance showed a significant relationship. The top barriers in teaching academic essay writing were as follows: teaching essay writing to second language learners, lack of time for explicit instruction, no strategies in place for the part of the students, lack of parental support, and lack of essay structures on the part of the teachers. It was concluded that there were various effective pedagogical strategies that teachers could utilize in teaching academic essay writing. Based on the findings, this study further presents its recommendations.
The preparation of English language teachers to become beacons of global competitiveness necessitates teacher education institutions in the world to put emphasis on the mentoring process. The goal of ...this research was to assess the average degree of self-efficacy among English language preservice teachers and the variables that influence it. Over the course of the study, 150 third- and fourth-year English language student teachers (N=80/70; 90% females) were asked to fill out a self-report questionnaire about their perspectives and attitudes on the teaching profession. This information was gathered using the Mentoring for Effective Primary Teaching instrument and the Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale. Findings suggest that English language student teachers who have a mentor during their practicum experience are more likely to become effective English language educators. It was determined that there was a statistically significant correlation between the two variables. According to the findings, students had a much more positive view of their own teaching abilities in the fourth year compared to the third. The findings of this research suggest that the average level of confidence among English language preservice teachers varies considerably depending on whether or not one or both of their parents are also teachers. Multiple regression analysis shows that aspects of mentor teachers' teaching styles are the most reliable predictor of student teachers' evaluations of their own teaching abilities.
The advantages of collaborative writing on students' writing correctness have received much attention from researchers, but the benefits of this method on students' writing fluency have not been ...shown. Not only that, but no research up until now has looked at how students might work together to write argumentative essays. This essay aims to address such knowledge gaps. A total of 62 college sophomores with an English major participated in the research. One area where the two groups were treated differently was during the writing phase. While the 25 students in the control group worked together on an outline and developed ideas for an essay, the thirty-five students in the experimental group wrote their papers as a group. The pre-tests, post-tests of both individually and jointly produced papers, and the semi-structured interviews administered to the students provided the data for this study. The research finds that students' writing fluency improved significantly in group and individual writing tasks after engaging in collaborative writing. In addition, the research developed a helpful framework for collaborative writing tasks that may be used in writing schools.
Utilizing technology to enhance students' writing skills at the higher education level is now the focus of scholars. One of the most effective nontraditional approaches to enhancing pupils' writing ...abilities is vlog-assisted language learning (VALL). The university professors who instruct pupils on writing skills never use this VALL. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to compare the academic writing skills of first-year university students taught utilizing the methodology of Bog-Assisted Language Learning (VALL) with those who were not. In addition, this research analyzes how students react to using VALL in teaching and learning writing skills. Thirty university English majors in their third year participated in the research. The research took a quantitative approach to data collection by administering pre- and post-writing examinations and a series of questionnaires to both the experimental and control groups. Evaluation of the gathered data was carried out with the use of descriptive statistics. The findings indicated that pupils who were taught writing utilizing VALL improved substantially more than those that were not. In addition, most student responses on using VALL to teach writing skills were favorable. Since this is the case, the English Department at a university might benefit from implementing VALL into their teaching and learning of writing.
