Professional development programmes for English language public school teachers : a comparative study in Palestine

Abstract

This study aimed at comparing and contrasting the currently available professional development (PD) programmes for English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers working in public schools in Palestine. The design of this study was exploratory in nature utilizing a qualitative approach. The research participants consisted of twelve EFL teachers and eleven teacher trainers and programme designers. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews. To ensure validity of the study, triangulation was used where data was obtained from the teachers and trainers. Inter-rater reliability was checked giving an 82% of agreement. Thematic analysis was used to analyse data. From the analysis, teachers and teacher trainers identified the areas of differences and similarities between the programmes. The study concluded with a set of recommendations for practice and future research. There was a consideration of possible implications of these findings for teacher education in Palestine, and for policy making bodies in Palestine.