Affective-Strategy-Oriented Training and Language Teacher Immunity: The Case of In-Service Novice EFL vs. Non-EFL Major Teachers

In the SLA context, Immunity is considered a defense mechanism against stressful situations. Some researchers have claimed that the maladaptive immunity of teachers can be transformed into productive immunity through pre-and in-service training of teachers. This study aimed to examine the effect of in-service training on teachers’ immunity levels and to determine whether the pre-service training has any effect on the immunity development among teachers. Participants of this study (N=۴۶) were selected by convenience sampling from private institutes in Zanjan, Tabriz, and Urmia, Iran. They were divided into two groups, non-EFL teachers (۱۰ Male, ۱۰ Female) and EFL teachers (۱۳ Male, ۱۳ Female), receiving ۵ training sessions on affective strategies, preceded and followed by the Language Teacher Immunity Questionnaire developed by Hiver (۲۰۱۷). The results showed a significant development of the immunity level among both groups of participants. Moreover, it was stated that pre-service training had no impact on the in-service training that EFL teachers received. As a result, in-service training programs have to pay more attention to teacher immunity and strategies to deal with stressful situations that teachers normally face, regardless of teachers’ background knowledge about the field.

کلیدواژه ها:

Language teacher immunity ، in-service Training ، Pre-service training ، non-EFL teachers ، EFL teachers