An Adaptive Methodological Inquiry: Exploring a TESOL Teacher Education Program's Affordances and Constraints in Libya as a Conflict Zone

Date

2017-5

Type

PhD Thesis

Thesis title

Author(s)

Entisar ALi Hadi Elsherif

Abstract

This adaptive methodological inquiry explored the affordances and constraints of one TESOL teacher education program in Libya as a conflict zone. Data was collected through seven documents and 33 questionnaires. Questionnaires were gathered from the investigated program's teacher-educators, student-teachers, and graduates, who were in-service teachers. Interviews were not conducted because all participants who agreed to be interviewed withdrew as a result of prolonged electrical blackouts in Libya during the data collection period. The findings revealed that even though the participants were positively satisfied with their program's basic components, they showed dissatisfaction toward a number of issues. Participants' perceived affordances of their program included offering teacher preparation and training courses, offering language development courses, and offering school-based teaching practices. the program's constraints, as perceived by the participants, were the following: the program did not meet the Libyan ministry's ELT objectives; the program only had one curriculum that prepared student-teachers for three educational levels; the program had unachieved curricular objectives; the program had curricular difficiencies; the program relied too heavily on one form of assessment; the program offered short teaching practice periods; the program gad graduation project challenges; the program lacked quality assurance; and the program did not offer professional development opportunities. Findings also revealed that the participants regarded critical language teacher education as an effective approach for program reform due to the current political and social chaos that is mounting Libya. The current status of the program shows that it does not prepare student-teachers to teach English in a conflict zone. Thus, participants recommended peace, social justice, and environmental education into the curriculum to help raise student-teachers' awareness and to work towards positive change in Libyan educational and social culture.