A Case Study of English Language Teacher Training during Emergencies: Critical Junctures

Abstract

Teacher training was carried onto the online platforms during the Covid-19 outbreak. Although it was a novel experience for the whole field, this period stands as a beneficial source for language teacher training in emergencies. This study, therefore, was conducted to document the experiences of pre-service language teachers, teacher mentors, and university lecturers. The study was conducted between February and June 2021 at a university in the Black Sea region of Turkey. Following the data analysis procedures of grounded theory and the inquiry traditions of the case study, semi-structured interviews with 22 pre-service language teachers during the 2020 – 2021 fall semester were conducted. Additionally, qualitative online surveys were conducted with six university lecturers and three teacher mentors. The data analysis indicated that the critical junctures, which are constituted of antecedents, impacts, and consequences, present implications for effective language teacher training on online platforms. Taking these junctures into account while designing online teacher training could help prevent potential problems.