Teachers of English in Taiwanese primary schools reflect on their in-service training

Abstract

We report here on the responses of a sample of ten teachers in primary/ elementary schools in Taiwan to that part of a survey (based on a written questionnaire and semi-structured interview) that related to their experiences of in-service training provision in the teaching of English. Most of the in-service training that this sample of teachers had been exposed to was in the form of one-off workshops (offered by textbook publishers, local government and cram schools). Responses to these workshops were mixed. The most negative responses related to workshops provided by publishers and those provided by local government that focused on policy issues. The most positive responses related to workshops taught by practicing teachers, workshops that sometimes covered areas that appear to have been neglected in pre-service training.