Speaker
Description
Teaching practicum plays a significant role in preparing pre-service teachers for professional teaching contexts. However, the transition from practicum experience to full-time teaching remains challenging for many early-career ESOL teachers in Vietnam. This presentation explores how novice teachers perceive the influence of teaching practicum on their professional development during the early stages of their careers.
Using a qualitative approach, the study collected data through semi-structured interviews with early-career ESOL teachers who had recently entered the teaching profession. The findings indicate that teaching practicum provided valuable opportunities for classroom observation, lesson planning, classroom management, and interaction with learners in authentic educational settings. Participants reported that these experiences contributed positively to their teaching confidence and professional identity formation.
However, the study also reveals several difficulties encountered during the transition into professional teaching, including workload pressure, classroom realities, institutional expectations, and gaps between university training and actual teaching practice. The presentation discusses implications for teacher education programs and highlights the importance of mentoring, reflective practice, and practical support for novice teachers in Vietnam’s evolving ESOL context.
Biography
Nguyen Thanh Tam is a lecturer at the Faculty of Foreign Language Teacher Education, University of Foreign Language Studies, The University of Danang, Vietnam. With more than 10 years of experience teaching English to learners of various age groups and proficiency levels, his professional interests have evolved from classroom teaching to teacher education and professional development. He is particularly interested in supporting pre-service and early-career teachers in developing their pedagogical knowledge, teaching skills, and professional identity. He completed a Master’s degree in TESOL at Nottingham Trent University with distinction, where he achieved outstanding performance in teaching practicum and teacher education modules. His current interests include TESOL, teacher training, and reflective practice in English language education.
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