Assessment Of Teachers’ Beliefs And Practices In Teaching Reading Skills In Grade 10 Efl Classes: The Case Of English Language Teachers At Bantu Secondary Scho

Abstract

The aim of the study was to assess the beliefs and practices of English language teachers in teaching reading skills to grade 10 students at Bantu Secondary School. The study included a total of 5 EFL teachers and 190 grade 10 students, (5 EFL teachers and 38 students) who were selected using a comprehensive and a systematic sampling method. A descriptive research design with qualitative and quantitative data collection methods was used in this study. The data that was collected from the respondents through interviews and classroom observation by using note-taking, audio recordings and checklist were interpreted qualitatively. On the other hand, the data that was gathered through questionnaires from students was interpreted quantitatively by using a statistical package for social science (SPSS) version 27. These were done in the form of tables using the tabular method and analyzed and interpreted numerically using frequency and percentage. The results of the study indicated that although the teachers had strong beliefs about teaching reading skills, they did not implement them in practice. The teachers also lacked awareness of the necessary reading phases. The classroom observation results further revealed that the teachers were unable to put their beliefs into practice. The study suggests that it is not enough for teachers to have strong beliefs about teaching reading skills, but they also need to implement them ef ectively. Furthermore, the study recommends that teaching reading skills should be given more attention, and teachers should support their students by providing them with various reading strategies.