Forough Jannati Jahromi, Dr. Fatemeh Nemati & Mohammad Reza Shamsaddini
Persian Gulf University, Iran
Teacher knowledge assessment is a critical factor in predicting and preventing students’ failure in their first stages of becoming literate. The aim of the present study was to explore EFL teachers’ knowledge of basic language constructs which is an underrepresented topic in EFL context and has been particularly neglected in the research on the EFL context of Iran. To collect the data, an adapted version of Basic Language Constructs Survey was administered to thirty phonics teachers (mean age: 25.5) from five English institutions in Shiraz. The survey consisted of knowledge and ability items in three areas: phonics, phonological, and phonemic awareness. The results revealed that phonics teachers’ overall performance on basic language construct items were below an acceptable standard, with the highest score being 23 out of a possible 35 on the questionnaire. The participants’ major weakness was found in phonics questions, although they showed limited knowledge in the other two areas as well. The results of this study suggest that phonics teachers need to be more knowledgeable in early reading instruction as their instruction will affect the academic life of their students and their further achievements. The findings can benefit educational stakeholders’ decisions in the process of teacher selection and preparation programs.
The above abstract is a part of the article which was accepted at The International Conference on Current Issues of Languages, Dialects and Linguistics (WWW.TLLL.IR), 2-3 February 2017, Ahwaz.
