Málfríður - 15.10.2007, Blaðsíða 27

MÁLFRÍÐUR 
The teachers were asked to give examples of how
they used English in their teaching. The following
items were most frequently mentioned:
•  for giving instructions
•  for singing
•  for greetings and introducing oneself
•  for general interaction with pupils
•  for pronunciation practice
How are teachers prepared?
So who has taken on the task of teaching English
in these grades (1­ 4)? The results of this study
show that in most cases it is the home­room teacher
who takes on the English teaching. There are cer­
tain advantages with this arrangement; the teacher
knows the pupils well and is likely to have more
flexibility in fitting English into the daily teaching
and integrating it with other subjects. However, the
arrangement is only beneficial if the teachers have
the skills and training necessary for teaching English
to young learners.
In a survey done by the Ministry of Education in
2006 it was found that only 29% of the teachers who
taught English in grades 5 ­ 7 that year had any spe­
cial training in English (Menntun dönsku­, ensku­,
og íslenskukennara í grunnskólum 2005­2006, 2006).
A similar percentage was found in this survey, as
can be seen in Figure 2.
Almost 2/3 of the teachers who answered the
questionnaire had received no special training in
teaching English. About 1/4 of the teachers had a
BA degree in English or a B Ed degree with English
as their chosen subject. Three of the teachers had
university level training in language teaching meth­
odology.
Only 4 teachers had received training in teaching
English to young learners in the form of in­service
workshops. Most teachers were not aware of these
types of workshops but were interested in hearing
more about them. The teachers were asked what
kinds of education or training would best help them
to improve their English teaching. They listed the
following items:
•   English teaching methods for young learners
•   demonstrations of practical teaching approach­
es
•  demonstration of teaching materials
•  language assessment methods
•  English skills training
The teachers expressed the need for learning how to
use various approaches that best suit young learners
such as songs, games and stories in English. They
also wanted to know what should be emphasized
in English teaching at this age level. Many of them
wanted the opportunity to learn from other teachers
and share their own experiences.
What is needed to improve the current
situation?
Many children in Iceland have already learned a
surprising amount of English before they begin for­
mal English study in school. In a study of children in
grades 4 and 5 who had received no English instruc­
tion, the participants scored on average over 70% on
a set of English listening tasks which were geared
to a level corresponding to completion of 100­175
hours of instruction (Auður Torfadóttir, Brynhildur
Ragnarsdóttir, and Samúel Lefever, 2006). This can
be seen as a product of children’s motivation to learn
English and the plentiful access they have to English
in their daily surroundings.
This interest in language learning is supported by
parents who recognize the increasing importance of
English as an international language. They want to
guarantee their children’s access to opportunities
and resources that knowledge of English provides.
School policy makers share these goals with parents
and are placing added emphasis on English in their
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
0-20 20 -40 40 -60 60 -80 80 -100
How much English do you speak in the classroom?
Percentage (%) of the lesson
N
um
b
er
o
f
te
ac
he
rs
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Inservice workshops
EFL degree
BEd or BA degree
None
Training in English
Percentage of teachers