Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran.
2 Department of English Language and Literature; Faculty of Literature; Alzahra University; Tehran; Iran
3 Department of English Language Teaching, Farhangian University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Foreign language (FL) teacher agency, as a significant part of teachers’ professional development, encompasses self-organized efforts to augment professional growth. This study aimed to develop an ecological FL teacher agency model through a sequential exploratory mixed methods design based on which an assessment scale measuring FL teachers' agency value was developed. In the qualitative phase, developing and validating the FL teacher agency model, firstly, an interview guide was developed and piloted in a group of 10 TEFL teacher educators from Farhangian Teacher Education University in Tehran. Then, 30 in-service EFL teachers were interviewed. The data were analyzed through MAXQDA to find the components of the tentative conceptual model of teacher agency. Based on the interview analysis, the preliminary draft of the EFL teacher agency scale was developed. The refined EFL teacher agency questionnaire encompassing the three components of Autonomy, Freedom, and Choice was administered to 354 randomly selected EFL teachers and data were analyzed through SPSS. The scale's reliability was gained through Cronbach's alpha, and its construct validity through Exploratory Factor Analysis. The study findings could be used by foreign language teachers, teacher educators, and TEFL teacher agency researchers.
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