The Impact of In-Service Education and Training on Teachers’ Learning: Perspectives from English Foreign Language Teachers in Tanzania

Abstract

This study evaluates the impact of in-service education and training on Tanzanian foreign language teachers learning. The in-service training focused on equipping teachers with knowledge and skills in competency-based language teaching. The qualitative research approach and the Most Significant Change (MSC) technique were used to guide the research process. The data were collected from Manyara and Kilimanjaro Regions. Twenty-one respondents were purposely selected and interviewed in a one-to-one unstructured interview. Information from the interview was managed using ATLAS.ti and thematically analyzed using a thematic approach. The finding indicated that the in-service training effectively impacted teachers learning on subject knowledge, general knowledge, and pedagogical content knowledge relating to competency-based language teaching. Therefore, the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training and other education stakeholders need to sustain the knowledge gained to reflect it in English language teachers’ classroom practice by providing follow-up and support. Moreover, the discrepancy in some facets of knowledge gained and limited change stories related to the planning, teaching, and assessing grammar call for more in-service training so that teachers gain the correct information and appropriately teach and assess grammar by associating it with functional usage.