A Study of Iranian Novice vs. Experienced EFL Teachers’ Perceptions of Teaching Grammar: Searching for Professional Development

The present study aimed at comparing the perceptions of two groups of Iranian EFL teachers’- novice vs. experienced- of their Professional Development (PD) regarding teaching grammar. Ten EFL teachers were selected as novice teachers with less than five years of teaching experience and ten teachers were selected as experienced teachers with more than twenty years of teaching experience. A structured interview was applied to determine and compare the novice and experienced teachers’ attitudes toward PD based on the issue of teaching grammar. Content analysis was used to analyze the collected data. The results indicated that most novice teachers believed that their views concerning teaching grammar have changed as they became more experienced. They mentioned some examples of such changes in their teaching practice such as using L1 when necessary, taking several English classes to enhance their experience, reading different books, learning from more experienced teachers, revising errors with the help of knowledgeable teachers, etc. Based on the ideas of the experienced teachers, adhering to a fixed old method cannot answer the complexity of teaching to different learners at different points of time. Therefore, most of them mentioned that through reflection on their teaching practice and reading articles, and consulting other teachers, they try to keep up-to-date. The study presented a number of implications for language teachers and curriculum designers on the issue of PD.