Teacher Training in English for Academic Purposes (EAP)

at Brawijaya University, Indonesia

 

 

Indah Winarni

 

 

Teacher training is the soul of language teaching curriculum development. While teacher training is intended for both pre-service and in-service teachers, the essence of teacher training activities is necessarily on-going professional development. Activities of professional development may send teachers to seminars,w orkshops, or courses taking place outside the language teaching institutions or it may draw on the language teaching institution’s resources pertaining to the needs of the institution. This paper presents a report on an activity of professional development of the second type mentioned. This concerns teacher training in the teaching of EAP at Brawijaya University. The report involves the description of the specific need of the English Language Program in the university as the organizational context of EAP in a tertiary education institution in Indonesia and the specific position and function of the EAP teachers. Participatory decision-making and problem-based learning characterize the undertaking of the professional development activity being reported. Participants did not only gain essential knowledge on the underlying philosophy of EAP but they also gain a significant incerase in their awareness of the need for collaboration among the EAP teachers functioning in the same academic culture in running EAP programs and between EAP teachers and discipline subject teachers functioning in different academic cultures in the attempts of upgrading the English mastery of the students.

 

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Winarni, I (2006, April). Teacher training in English for academic purposes (EAP) at Brawijaya University, Indonesia. Paper presented at the 41st RELC International Seminar, Singapore.

 

 

 

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