EFL TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF ENGLISH PROFICIENCY: CURRENT PRACTICES AT A CENTER OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES IN VIETNAM

Luu Nguyen Quoc Hung

Abstract


Teachers with a high level of target language proficiency are believed to be more self-efficacious and more competent to provide good models of language usage and to undertake various teaching tasks in the target language effectively. Having a good command of English is a necessary qualification for successful teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL). In the Vietnamese teaching and learning context, EFL teachers are required to have proper professional qualifications, and English proficiency is an important quality for teaching effectiveness. With the aim to examine teachers’ perceptions towards English proficiency, this descriptive study was conducted with 33 EFL teachers at a center of foreign languages through an online survey. The results showed that teachers recognized the necessity of having English qualifications and had positive perceptions towards the English proficiency requirements. The study is beneficial for both teachers and educational administrators to have an insight into the importance of language proficiency for teaching quality. Important recommendations for successful proficiency development were also discussed.

 

Article visualizations:

Hit counter


Keywords


proficiency, competence, EFL teachers, quality, standardized tests

Full Text:

PDF

References


Coniam, D., Falvey, P., & Xiao, Y. (2017). An Investigation of the impact on Hong Kong’s English language teaching profession of the language proficiency assessment for teachers of English (LPATE). RELC Journal, 48(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/00336882166874

Fan, J., & Yan, X. (2017). From test performance to language use: Using self-assessment to validate a high-stakes English proficiency test. Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 26(1), 61-73. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-017-0327-4

Franz, J., & Teo, A. (2018). ‘A2 is Normal’ – Thai secondary school English teachers’ encounters with the CEFR. RELC Journal, 49(3). https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688217738816

Goodwin, R. (2018). Language proficiency and students’ behavior in the classroom: A comparative study. Modern Journal of Language Teaching Methods, 8(1), 83-95. https://mjltm.org/article-1-208-en.pdf

Ilhan, M., Guler, N., & Teker, G. T. (2021). Views of teachers on the potential negative effects of high stake tests. International Journal of Assessment Tools in Education, 8(2), 394-408. https://doi.org/10.21449/ijate.735232

Irdiyansyah, I., & Rizki, T. (2018). Teachers’ perspective on standardized test. Journal of Humanities and Social Studies, 2(1), 18-21.

Kasumi, H. (2015). Teacher’s proficiency, and the communicative approach in enhancing students’ performance in English language learning. European Journal of Language and Literature Studies, 1(3), 53-59. https://revistia.org/files/articles/ejls_v1_i3_15/Hysen.pdf

Le, V. C., & Renandya, W. A. (2017). Teachers’ English proficiency and classroom language use: A conversation analysis study. RELC Journal, 48(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688217690935

Le, X. M., & Le, T. T. (2022). English language teaching pedagogical reforms in Vietnam: External factors in light of teachers’ backgrounds.

Cogent Education, 9(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2022.2087457

Ly, T. B. P., & Le T. T. (2022). English teachers’ satisfaction with the quality of general English proficiency training program: The case of the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. European Journal of English Language Teaching, 7(6), 100-112. http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejel.v7i6.4576

Masduki, A., Poedjiastutie, D., & Prabowo, C. G. (2022). Teachers' English level proficiency: Do students perceive it as a threat or a chance? Arab World English Journal, 13(1), 72-86. https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol13no1.5

Nugroho, H. A. (2018). EFL teachers’ need of language proficiency professional development: When policy and practice collide. International Journal of language Education, 2(2), 74-82. https://doi.org/10.26858.v2i2.6373

Pham, T. H. N. (2018). General English proficiency or English for teaching? The preferences of in-service teachers. RELC Journal, 49(3), 339-352. https://doi.org/10.1177/00336882176914

Rachmawati, D, L., & Purwati, O. (2021). Linking language proficiency to teaching competence: A case study of EFL teachers in Indonesia. Journal of English Language Studies, 3(3), 163-173. https://journal.unilak.ac.id/index.php/elsya/article/download/6693/3124/

Renandya, W. A., Hamied, F. A., & Nurkamto, J. (2018). English language proficiency in Indonesia: Issues and prospects. The Journal of Asia TEFL, 15(3), 618-629. http://dx.doi.org/10.18823/asiatefl.2018.15.3.4.618

Richards, J. C. (2017). Teaching English through English: Proficiency, pedagogy and performance. RELC Journal, 48(1), 7–30. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688217690059

Suzuki, S., & Kormos, J. (2019). Linguistic dimensions of comprehensibility and perceived fluency: An investigation of complexity, accuracy, and fluency in second language argumentative speech. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 42(1), 1-27. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263119000421

Vu, H. H. (2017). Using English to teach English: Classroom English competence of English language teachers in Vietnam. VNU Journal of Science: Education Research, 33(4), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.25073/2588-1159/vnuer.4115

Wang, C. (2021). The relationship between teachers' classroom English proficiency and their teaching self-efficacy in an English medium instruction context. Frontiers Psychology, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.611743

Wulyani, A. N., Elgort, I., & Coxhead, A. (2019). Exploring EFL teachers’ English language proficiency: Lessons from Indonesia. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 9(2), 263-274. https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v9i2.20217




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejel.v8i2.4801

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright © 2015 - 2023. European Journal of English Language Teaching (ISSN 2501-7136) is a registered trademark of Open Access Publishing Group. All rights reserved.

This journal is a serial publication uniquely identified by an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) serial number certificate issued by Romanian National Library (Biblioteca Nationala a Romaniei). All the research works are uniquely identified by a CrossRef DOI digital object identifier supplied by indexing and repository platforms.

All the research works published on this journal are meeting the Open Access Publishing requirements and can be freely accessed, shared, modified, distributed and used in educational, commercial and non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).