University teacher-training in change : the English and Iranian experience, English language teaching in the two systems with ESL/ESP as a case study.

This study critically examines teacher education in the English system and in
Iran so as to compare the two systems with the aim of identifying effective
English language teaching strategies that are applicable to the Iranian system. -
The reason for examining this topic was the problem that I faced for many years
during my teaching in Iranian universities. The main problem was the lack of the
use of spoken English by the Iranian university students and graduates. In
addition, the context of ESL/ESP in Iranian universities was investigated
because little research in Iran has been conducted to explore the influence of oral
discourse analysis to improve fluency. The reason is that I believe teacher
education, teaching approaches and related issues, such as textbooks and
teacher-student relationships, are not separate issues and can be studied as one
package. This study includes a critical literature review on methodological
elements so as to reach a more practical and effective English language teaching
approach in Iran, in particular for the use of English. I was able to identify the
central problems of the study, in particular the improvement of speaking skills
through, oral discourse analysis. The study has shown how university students
can make use of effective strategies through oral discourse analysis introduced to
improve their English speaking. The students' needs, the English textbooks,
context of situation and the relationships between the students and teachers as
well as a critical literature review are studied.
Issues such as the need for a more fluent discourse and exchanging views,
building on teaching experience, preventing past mistakes, and utilising fully the
available resources and the provision of required educational aids are introduced.
In this study I shall also present the barriers to innovation and offer suitable
solutions.
To facilitate the research I employed two types of questionnaires: an English
teachers' and students' questionnaire. Twelve interviews were also carried out as
a supplementary research instrument to the nine sessions of teaching. The critical
literature review, interviews, and the analyses of questionnaires and the teaching
sessions supported my initial subjective experience regarding how to resolve the
problems of Iranian English Language Teaching. This also resulted in significant
improvement of fluency of the participant students. The general discussions,
conclusion and recommendations are provided at the end of the study.