The impact of in-service teacher training: A case study of four novice teachers' beliefs and classroom practices

This study investigates the potential impact of in-service teacher training (ISTT) on trainees' beliefs and classroom practices immediately after and 6 months after the training. A case study was carried out that involved four-week training based on theoretical knowledge about markedness theory. First, the trainees were observed to identify their existing grammar teaching practices. Second, they participated voluntarily in the training. Thirdly, they were interviewed and observed to reveal the impact both at cognitive and practical level. Finally, six months later they were interviewed and observed again to see the extent of the impact of the training. The observations after the training provided insights into how the trainees transferred what they learnt from the ISTT into their grammar teaching practices. The interviews revealed a number of themes that could account for the motives of the teacher change and development. The observations provided concrete evidence for the pedagogical changes the trainees experienced, particularly in their instructions, materials, and approaches to grammar instruction. By contrast, the interviews revealed the various dimensions of change and development in the trainees after the ISTT. The study mainly found that knowledge-based training has the potential to deeply influence the trainees and enable concurrent cognitive and practical changes after the training identified in the observed lessons. Secondly, it was found that the trainees implemented what they learnt in the courses observed, while in the unobserved ones they reported that they were inhibited by the contextual constraints, which led to failure to reflect the cognitive change. Thirdly, it was revealed that the trainees maintained the changed beliefs and grammar teaching practices even in six months observed in practices and clearly verbalized in the interviews. Finally, the theoretical knowledge acquired made it possible for the trainees to experience pedagogical changes in their grammar instruction of marked structures, which they can generalize to the other courses. The study presents a number of critical implications for in-service language teacher training: (i) knowledge-based training supported by hands-on language awareness activities could lead to conceptual change in in-service trainees, which can also be extended to pre-service teacher training where language awareness and practicum can be integrated, (ii) the delivery mode of the trainings should inspire trainees to teach in a new way rather than prescribe them for a particular way of teaching, (iii) trainees should engage in relevant language teaching activities using the new knowledge acquired to create pedagogical connections to their own teaching, (iv) for a conceptual change in trainees, pre- and post- training monitoring activities should be designed, and follow-up support should be provided for changes in six months.