Teaching English in 21st Century; Opportunities and Challenges

The argument throughout this study is that English has become the global language for communication in industry, business, scholarship, entertainment, advertising, and diplomacy and, more recently, the Internet. It is taughtin different settings with learners of different sociocultural backgrounds, different aspirations, and of different ages. Ithas now been established that learning to teach is a complex process and teaching in the twenty-first century is one ofthe controversial and thought-provoking questions the author poses in this article. As educational leaders, classroomteachers, students and parents will agree, 21st century teaching carries with it a complicated mix of challenges and opportunities. The challenges facing the world are huge and the answers lie in teachers hands. Challenges include theissues of teacher turnover, accountability, changing student populations and student expectations, mounting budgetpressures, and intense demand to build students’ 21st century skills. On the opportunity side of the equation, thegrowing capacity, capability, and power of technology-based tools and resources give the education community theability to address these challenges successfully. With strategic use of 21st century learning tools, educational institutions can provide the supportive productive environment educators need to reach, teach, and support eachstudent’s learning needs and potential. The significant change in world warrants a response in how we prepareteachers. This article is an effort to share the contributors’ knowledge, experience, and ideas with colleagues, particularly with novice language teacher educators, but many can be adapted to professional teacher development programs.

کلیدواژه ها:

English teachers ، education ، 21st century ، opportunities ، challenges