Strategies and Supports for More Effective English Teaching

Abstract

Vietnamese English teachers (VETs), especially those working in high schools, are under public pressure because of their poor performances in national English proficiency assessments. As Le suggests, this is widely seen as the main reason why Vietnamese English learners have poor learning outcomes. Research shows, however, that it is the effectiveness of instruction that plays a crucial role in determining the success of language students. Given this dilemma, it is necessary to investigate what VETs think can help improve their teaching. Little is known about this in the Vietnamese context. To bridge this gap, this study investigates perspectives of a range of pre-service and in-service VETs on issues related strategies and supports for more effective English language teaching. Data were collected through questionnaires, individual interviews, and focus group interviews, and were analyzed thematically. The findings are expected to be of great benefit not only to pre-service and in-service VETs but also to other stakeholders.