Abstract
Drawing on our collective professional experiences and on the research to date, this chapter offers suggestions to understand and address the needs of our professional and scholarly discipline in teaching English to speakers of other languages by focussing on the realities and potential of English Language Teacher Associations (ELTAs). In order to do this, the chapter provides a broad and inclusive definition of ELTAs. The chapter recognises the differences in the contexts and compositions of ELTAs and identifies factors that need to be considered in reviewing and/or guiding the development of ELTAs. The chapter considers how these factors impact the robustness (range of products and services offered by an ELTA) and vitality (frequency and availability of these products and services) of ELTAs worldwide. It includes examples from ELTAs from different parts of the world and highlights ways in which these organizations have addressed a range of challenges. In doing so, the chapter provides a way to understand the realities of each ELTA as well as ways of extending its potential—including the potential role that ELTAs can play in supporting the learning, teaching, and growth of local, minority and Indigenous languages.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Aubrey J., & Coombe, C. (2010). The TESOL Arabia conference and its role in the professional development of teachers at institutions of higher education in the United Arab Emirates. Academic Leadership Journal, 8(3), n.p.
Barfield, A. (2016). Collaboration. English Language Teaching Journal, 70(2), 222–224.
Borg, S. (2015). The benefits of attending ELT conferences. ELT Journal, 69(1), 35–46.
Coombe, C., England, L., & Schmidt, J. (2012). Reigniting, retooling and retiring in English language teaching. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.
Dahrendorf, R. (1958). Toward a theory of social conflict. The Journal of Social Conflict Resolution, 2(2), 170–183.
England, L. (2018). Communities of practice. In J. I. Liontas (Ed.), The TESOL encyclopedia of english language teaching. New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell Publishers.
Gnawali, L. (2016). English language teacher development through teacher associations: the case of NELTA. English Language Teaching Journal, 70(2), 170–179.
Herrero, C. (2016). The film in language teaching association (FILTA): A multilingual community of practice. English Language Teaching Journal, 70(2), 190–199.
Johnstone, D. B. (2010). Financing higher education worldwide: Who pays? Who should pay? Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Kamhi-Stein, L. (2016). The non-native English speaker teachers in TESOL movement. English Language Teaching Journal, 70(2), 180–189.
Kryszewska, H. (2017). Teaching students with special needs in inclusive classrooms special educational needs. English Language Teaching Journal, 71(4), 525–528.
Lamb, T. (2012). Language associations and collaborative support: language teacher associations as empowering spaces for professional networks. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 6(3), 287–308.
Lessing, A., & De Witt, M. (2007). The value of continuous professional development: Teachers’ perceptions. South African Journal of Education, 27(1), 53–67.
Motteram, G. (2016). Membership, belonging, and identity in the twenty-first century. English Language Teaching Journal, 70(2), 150–159.
Moore, C., Fisher, T., & Baber, E. (2016). Virtually unknown: teacher engagement in an online conference. English Language Teaching Journal, 70(2), 200–211.
Mahboob, A., & Golden, R. (2013). Looking for native speakers of English: Discrimination in English language teaching job advertisements. Voices in Asia Journal, 1(1), 72–81.
Mahboob, A. (2018). Beyond global Englishes: Teaching English as a dynamic language. RELC Journal, 1–22.
Ortactepe, D., & Ayse, A. S. (2015). The Effects of a professional development program on English as a foreign language teachers’ efficacy and classroom practice. TESOL Journal, 6(4), 680–706.
Padwad, A. (2016). The cultural roots of teacher associations: a case study from India. English Language Teaching Journal, 70(2), 160–169.
Paran, A. (2016). Language teacher associations: Key themes and future directions. English Language Teaching Journal, 70(2), 127–136.
Rimmer, W. (2016). The experience of initial management training in ELT. English Language Teaching Journal 70(1), 78–87.
Smith, R., & Kuchah, K. (2016). Researching teacher associations. English Language Teaching Journal, 70(1), 212–221.
Stewart, A., & Miyahara, M. (2016). Language teacher associations in Japan: Knowledge producers and/or knowledge disseminators. English Language Teaching Journal, 70(2), 137–149.
TESOL International. (2007). TESOL position statement on the role of teacher associations in educational policy and planning. Alexandria, VA: TESOL International Association.
Thiyagarajah, P. M. (2009). Teacher associations’ roles in sustainable professional development. In Proceedings of the 20th ASAIHL Conference (pp. 141–145).
Wong, M., & Mahboob, A. (2018). Spirituality and language teaching: Religious explorations of teacher identity, pedagogy, context, and content. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mahboob, A., England, L. (2018). Realities and Potential: English Language Teacher Associations in the 21st Century. In: Elsheikh, A., Coombe, C., Effiong, O. (eds) The Role of Language Teacher Associations in Professional Development. Second Language Learning and Teaching. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00967-0_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00967-0_3
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-00966-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-00967-0
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)