EVOLVING CPD IN THE

TUNISIAN CONTEXT

Mehrez Aounallah

ELT Inspector

Ben Arous

Tunisia TESOL 2013

EXTENT OF CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN TUNISIA

Preparatory & secondary cycles

Primary cycle joining recently, but…

Vocational training?

No CPD for the tertiary cycle!!!

THE CONVENTIONAL WAY

Trainer-centered Teachers follow the expert’s instructions Teaching the textbook Mainly based in training centers

(CREFOCs) Not usually based on analysis of

teachers’ needs/ school needs. Little or no concern about the context

DETAILS

Basic training for novice teachers Training day (journée pédagogique) Demonstration lessons Workshops Seminars (international experts) Magazines (Forum, Crossroads)

WINDS OF CHANGE?

Changing practices/ Hands-on (workshops/ micro-teaching)

More teacher-centered Innovation & initiative By teachers Civil society / Teacher associations Internet (FB groups, blogs, journals,

websites, etc.)

Reflective practice (done more systematically)

Peer observation?

Teacher portfolio?

Peer teaching?

Action researches

A specific example:Project Work: a strategy to develop the spirit of inquiry within schools

STAGE ONE: OBSERVATION

Plagiarism Little or no follow-up by teachers Lack of training on the topic Little or no learning: (evidenced by a

field research conducted in different areas in Tunisia)

STAGE 2: FORMAL TRAINING

Theoretical background

Groups of teachers (same school) decide on a topic: relevant to them and their students.

Each group plan to implement their research/ inquiry according to a negotiated schedule

STAGE 3: FIELD WORK

Field work: task division, data collection tools, collecting data, etc.

Workshops: data analysis, drawing conclusions [work supervised/ checked by « inspector »]

Exchange/ questionnaires, interviews, etc.

STAGE 4: PRESENTATION & DISSEMINATION

Setting up an evaluation panel: evaluation grid

Group presentations All teachers’ efforts valued Friendly gathering Evaluation of all the stages

« When is our next project? »

REFLECTING ON THE EXPERIENCE Strengths:

Motivation is contagious

We have potential!

More computer-literate teachers

Easy access to information and knowledge

Team work/ collaboration valued

Collaborative work: Such a challenge!

Experience what the students experience

Better handling of PW with their students

Weaknesses: future focus areas

Data collection tools: interviews and questionnaires:

Data analysis : Academics, please help!

Lack of presentation skills: It’s NOT like teaching!

Opportunities:

Teachers as researchers

Publishing researches?

There’s much more to internet than FB!

Teacher autonomy?

Threats:

Deficient teachers’ background knowledge

Risk of resistance

Inspectors may become a thing of the past

…

CPD SHOULD BE

Evolving Hands-on Relevant to teachers’ needs Field work/ in schools Done by teachers Fosters reflective practice &teacher

autonomy

STILL, TEACHERS NEED-

A solid knowledge basis Basic formal training, yet hands-on Openness to new trends Creativeness Adaptability Professionalism Teacher community The love of the profession

Teachers cannot be developed (passively). They develop (actively). It is vital, therefore, that they are centrally involved in decisions concerning the direction and processes of their own learning (Day 1999: 2)

REFERENCES: Professional Development: Rewards and

Challenges, Hammamet, 14-16 February 2013: Professor Simon Borg, University of Leeds/ s.borg@education.leeds.ac.uk

L’apport de la pédagogie de projet dans l’apprentissage de l’anglais au cycle secondaire (Fatma Guerfel, Mehrez Aounallah and Naima Charfi, CENAFFE 2010)

Thank you!