The impact of study abroad experience on EFL teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching

Teacher beliefs play a key role in shaping classroom practices and professional decision-making. While many studies have explored belief development, most focus on pre-service teachers. Less is known about how experienced EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teachers revise their beliefs through st...

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Main Author: WANG, XIAOYING
Other Authors: Kasvatustieteiden ja psykologian tiedekunta, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Kasvatustieteiden laitos, Department of Education, Jyväskylän yliopisto, University of Jyväskylä
Format: Master's thesis
Language:eng
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access: https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/102721
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author WANG, XIAOYING
author2 Kasvatustieteiden ja psykologian tiedekunta Faculty of Education and Psychology Kasvatustieteiden laitos Department of Education Jyväskylän yliopisto University of Jyväskylä
author_facet WANG, XIAOYING Kasvatustieteiden ja psykologian tiedekunta Faculty of Education and Psychology Kasvatustieteiden laitos Department of Education Jyväskylän yliopisto University of Jyväskylä WANG, XIAOYING Kasvatustieteiden ja psykologian tiedekunta Faculty of Education and Psychology Kasvatustieteiden laitos Department of Education Jyväskylän yliopisto University of Jyväskylä
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description Teacher beliefs play a key role in shaping classroom practices and professional decision-making. While many studies have explored belief development, most focus on pre-service teachers. Less is known about how experienced EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teachers revise their beliefs through study abroad, especially in general education programs not directly focused on language education. This study explores how such experiences influence the beliefs of experienced EFL teachers. The research was conducted with experienced EFL teachers enrolled in master’s-level general education programs in Finland. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews. By employing thematic analysis, the study examined participants’ pre-existing beliefs, sources of influence on their beliefs and their respective belief change processes. The findings show that while participants entered the programs with established beliefs, study abroad experiences encouraged varied degree of change, such as confirmation, elaboration, modification, reversal, addition and no change. Sources of influence such as learning a new foreign language, engagement with academic coursework, and observation of Finnish education in practice contributed to shifts in how participants viewed foreign language teaching and learning. The implications are also discussed for teacher education and professional development for in-service teachers, and for researchers who are interested in how experienced or in-service teachers’ beliefs change.
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While many studies have explored belief development, most focus on pre-service teachers. Less is known about how experienced EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teachers revise their beliefs through study abroad, especially in general education programs not directly focused on language education. This study explores how such experiences influence the beliefs of experienced EFL teachers. The research was conducted with experienced EFL teachers enrolled in master\u2019s-level general education programs in Finland. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews. By employing thematic analysis, the study examined participants\u2019 pre-existing beliefs, sources of influence on their beliefs and their respective belief change processes. The findings show that while participants entered the programs with established beliefs, study abroad experiences encouraged varied degree of change, such as confirmation, elaboration, modification, reversal, addition and no change. 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spellingShingle WANG, XIAOYING The impact of study abroad experience on EFL teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching teacher beliefs EFL teachers foreign language learning and teaching general education program Master's Degree Programme in Education kieltenopetus opettajat opiskelu ulkomailla
title The impact of study abroad experience on EFL teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching
title_full The impact of study abroad experience on EFL teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching
title_fullStr The impact of study abroad experience on EFL teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching The impact of study abroad experience on EFL teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching
title_full_unstemmed The impact of study abroad experience on EFL teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching The impact of study abroad experience on EFL teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching
title_short The impact of study abroad experience on EFL teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching
title_sort impact of study abroad experience on efl teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching
title_txtP The impact of study abroad experience on EFL teacher beliefs about foreign language learning and teaching
topic teacher beliefs EFL teachers foreign language learning and teaching general education program Master's Degree Programme in Education kieltenopetus opettajat opiskelu ulkomailla
topic_facet EFL teachers Master's Degree Programme in Education foreign language learning and teaching general education program kieltenopetus opettajat opiskelu ulkomailla teacher beliefs
url https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/102721 http://www.urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:jyu-202505234556
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