72 Ars Artium: An International Peer Reviewed-Cum-Refereed Research Journal Ars Artium: An International Peer Reviewed-Cum-Refereed Research Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences ISSN: 2319-7889 Vol. 1 January 2013 pp. 72-78 Roles and Challenges of a Language Teacher in Technical Education -Lilly Fernandes Arvind Kumar Sharma Nora Hadi Q Alsaeed Abstract This paper investigates the views of English teachers towards the implementation of texts for teaching English to technical students and also identifies the connection between their views on the students and students’ use of texts. The paper initially focuses on the context for technical learning using English language by reviewing current studies on the views of teachers as regards to technical classroom sessions using English language and finally provides the authors’ view of the challenges faced by English teachers while taking classes for engineering students. Introduction Burns (1992), Lockhart (1996), Pennington (1996) and Yim (1993), studied the views of teachers and how they influence the instructional habits. These studies have repeatedly been studied in the English Language Teaching (ELT). Lockhart (1996) studied that “the structure of educational theory is very conservative as regards to method to mastering the skills of teaching” (45-79). Investigations on the teachers’ views is regarded as thought processes during which the teachers’ views directly provide and build a unique theory which works when it comes to guide after obtaining from experiences in the professional and practical arena which when aligned with their targets, objectives, assumptions and resolving capabilities. Zeichner and Liston (1996) suggested that the voices and outlook of teachers are very crucial and are recognized by the curricular systems for adding to the information base in the areas of novel instructional systems. With regard to this research on teachers’ views based on instructional practices, a broader frame of mind needs to be implemented and views on method of teaching and learning the English language is varied based on the cultural outlook and instructional systems. Roles and Challenges of a Language Teacher in Technical Education 73 English as a second language Richard (1998) pointed out that “many of the manuals used in classrooms provide an idea about the syllabus for both students and the teachers” ( 125-141). Really the text books tend to reproduce the objective of the language programme and the kind of methods used for training. They may sometimes act as a mediator between teachers and learners. The manuals provide the guidance and reference for teachers. They also “offer an important source of language input for learners. They can help to create a great platform for teaching and learning via providing guidance (Crawford 31) and enhances the interaction between teachers and learners. Brophy’s (1982) in his research examined the usage of textbook by the lecturer in elementary universities in the United States. He found out that “the lecturers in elementary universities did not depend on their manuals because they can frame the particular syllabus which is needed for their students” (1-12). Particularly, experienced lecturers who are very knowledgeable in their respective subjects do not fully depend on the textbook, whereas the less experienced teachers may fully depend on textbooks for their guidance. In the event of English being taught as a Second Language (ESL) in Hong Kong, Richards and Mahoney (1996) explored the belief of teachers and practices in the use of manual through the survey of ESL teachers in secondary universities. Their research showed that there was an increased rate of textbook users in those universities, as the teachers believed that the use of textbooks made them take the class more efficiently. Richards and Mahoney found that none of the teachers taught the lesson exclusively from the text book and none of them devoted the entire lesson which is materialized in the book. They also found that the teachers were looking at textbooks critically and maintaining a reasonable independence from them. Moreover, the teachers used the textbook for conducting group discussions within the class and they gave more preference towards the outlook of the students. Finally, teachers believed that it is not needed to teach their students the learning approach with respect to reading and writing and the application of higher order skills advocated in the textbooks, but it is very important that these learning strategies and skills were beneficial to low-ability students. Challenges in researching English teachers At present there are numerous publications on research methods that provide valuable lessons on approaching the qualitative research design involving teachers. Sandra McKay (2006) in his book, Research Second Language Classrooms, provided a section which is devoted completely to the researching teachers and learners for the examination of hypothesis and procedures commonly used for research. Mackey and Gass (2005) in their book Second Language Research: Methodology and Design provided a chapter to class room research and its associated problem. Zoltán Dörnyei (2007) in his recent book Research Methods in Applied Linguistics: Quantitative, Qualitative and Mixed Methodologies included a chapter on classroom research and problems faced by the classroom researcher. 74 Ars Artium: An International Peer Reviewed-Cum-Refereed Research Journal Even if the publications reviewed above increase the awareness of the challenging nature of conducting qualitative research, when it comes to methods used to implement the research plans, it is out of their scope. More recently there is a hopeful attempt in both general and applied linguistics research. David Silverman (2005) in his book Doing Qualitative Research includes two chapters which are about the experience of students in research field and their associated problems. Moch and Gates (2000) in their book The Researcher Experience in Qualitative Research described the challenges faced by the researchers in their specific research. Qualitative Research a new journal entails all its compliance to have a methodological focus, servicing as an important source for the individual who is new for qualitative projects. Even though applied linguistics is arguable one on a smaller scale, it has a similar tendency of creating awareness on conducting quality research. Schachter and Gass’s (1996) article Second Language Classroom Research: Issues and Opportunities, a special issue of the Modern Language Journal, edited by Lourdes Ortega (2005), and Rossiter’s (2001), described the problems associated with researching integral classes. These are some of the examples of various publications creating awareness of different epistemological, methodological and ethical issues in applied linguistics research. According to Pasquero, Schmitt and Beaulieu (2001), the novice (Trainee) researchers find it more difficult to conduct the qualitative studies mainly due to the gap in between the research guidelines and researchers. The researchers, who have gone through lots of significant research training and consulted a number of research manuals, still face a ‘learning-by-doing’ approach. Recent attempts have been made to “provide a brief idea of research with detailed descriptions about the approaches to challenges and limitations inherent in the background of particular research” (Dörnyei 639-651). It is our duty to contribute to this discussion by specifically focusing on teacher education and developmental research. None of the research manual yet fully described the specific and unpredictable problems associated with research. On honest and open discussion of the research implementation issue, which is peculiar to teacher’s education research, we came across respective projects that can both enable and encourage researchers to further build on what we know about gaining entry to and developing within this growing field. Responding to newer technologies and changing educational paradigms In the U S, advancement in current technology drives the larger efforts in the educational system. There are two fundamental questions that arise while talking about educational changes which are the type of technology needed by the workers in information based society and the capability of current technology for the improvement of learning and teaching. Fulton (1998) described this dual function of technology as an “instructional tool”(60-63). He provided the definition for the technological fluency or technological literacy in the context of FL education and consequently for FL teachers preparation. He stated that the definition of technological fluency evolved from the Roles and Challenges of a Language Teacher in Technical Education 75 technological pull, that is nothing but the advancement in technology and its usage in the world, away from the classroom and changes in the outlook of learning reflected in the educational standards and appraisal that drive instruction. Improvement of applicable skills in English The improvement in English profession is more applicable in listening, speaking, reading, writing and translating skills of students. These improvements provide various possibilities for the students and teachers and are commonly accepted because it is an added advantage for the engineering students mainly in international communities. Good English when comes to learning with informational technology and newly developed skills creates more opportunities, which is mainly needed in the working place. The students should improve their English by reading English books in their field having expanded vocabulary in order to improve their sense of spoken English. It is easy for the students to speak English if they are speaking with native English speakers and listening skill can be improved by watching English movies and listening English songs and for writing, they can write short paragraphs at the beginning and then utilize the reading material for writing articles. By the use of reading material, the students can also improve their translation. Combination of professional knowledge Just basic training alone for students learning a foreign language is not sufficient. Students also have to be taught how to be able to use the language in a practical manner. For this, professional teaching should be strengthened and more importantly, the students have to be given exposure to the corporate world where they can actually practice what they have learnt in the classrooms by directly interaction with people. This will also benefit the students by developing their professional knowledge as well as experiencing the job they may like to do in the future. The experience they get from actual real world exposure in terms of the work environment, communicating with other likeminded people, analyzing and solving issues and team work will be invaluable to them in the future. The lack of English speaking engineers is becoming a matter of concern for organizations. Training ability of self-learning It is important for engineers to keep themselves updated regularly and renew their knowledge of current technologies. Engineering students have to be trained in sustainable development and to be more creative. As individuals, teachers and students have to gain the ability of self-learning and life-long learning. Individuals who are not willing to keep themselves updated on the current trends and technologies will often find themselves left behind. Hence it is very important to develop the latest skills and gather the latest technological information, and most importantly to understand that the learning process does not stop at the classroom. Some sources where more information can be found and learnt are professional magazines, related journals, and papers and the net. Furthermore people can ask questions, and attend in-service training Ars Artium: An International Peer Reviewed-Cum-Refereed Research Journal 76 programms; can join associations and attend conference to know the latest trends. Self learning will aid individuals to be able to understand concepts and to be quick to pick up on new things. This is useful and beneficial in the long run. The Need for Technology Training There are three points that were put forward by Global Engineering Excellence. They are: • Engineers will play a significantly important role when dealing with global issues like international safety and sustainable development. • Engineers will have to be able to co-operate with their counterparts from different parts of the world as globalization has brought the whole world closer together. • The teamwork of academy, the government and the industry along with certain engineering firms are required to train global engineers. It is important that the industry actually provides opportunities for engineering students to practice and hone their skills. Moreover, a global study on engineering education is also vital. These studies can reveal the importance of English in today’s world and in engineering students’ studies and their future careers, which results in new requirements for English teaching in outstanding engineers’ education. Requirements of English Teaching for Engineers’ Education The authors after careful review of the above views suggest that English is definitely a vital part of any good engineer’s curriculum. Furthermore English is also important for the students to be able to achieve their goals on a global stage. Another important reason for engineering students to be taught English is that students’ learning outcomes of a foreign language is in accordance with both institutional and professional criteria. This is very important as the level of English being taught has to have a common standard in order to provide all engineers to have an equal opportunity to shine on the global level. However, in order to gain a common standard, it would be necessary to explore the possibility of mutual recognition and global mobility of engineers. Thus, if prospective engineering students are taught a common standard of English at their school levels, they have the chance of becoming excellent experts in technology. It can be observed that in today’s world there is lack of knowledge among engineering teachers in terms of English skills. Similarly English teachers lack engineering knowledge and are unable to teach technical English classes to their students. This issue leads to a great deal of deficiency in the imparting of English knowledge. Today the biggest challenge which remains is to understand how to meet the needs of technical education and English education in a manner that there is a bridge between the two aspects. The best way to implement this is to have a learning session which promotes knowledge transfer between the two different faculties. A combined discussion program can be encouraged wherein young teachers of English are given some basic courses Roles and Challenges of a Language Teacher in Technical Education 77 with regards to engineering skills. Similarly teachers who are hired to teach technical aspects should be given a basic course on grammar, style and semantics to ensure that they are able to provide their student with the required knowledge. This type of bridge programme will strongly ensure that engineering education will be presented in a manner that provides quality technical education along with good English skills. Conclusion In a classroom scenario it can be observed that there is a need for teachers to develop their own theoretical practices by ensuring that there is an exploration of language awareness among the students in their classroom. This can be achieved by presenting an analysis of the different artifacts of culture and societal trends which may impact knowledge transfer of technical education. These result in teachers being considered as active members of learning promotion whose role is not a passive transfer of functional knowledge including syntax, style and semantics but ensuring that there is an active engagement of how rules of grammar need to be applied in a technical context. There can be presentation of models with regard to promoting student awareness on demonstration of different discourse features of technical reports in a manner that there is a promotion of ease of understanding while at the same time proper syntax and style of English are maintained. As a result of this there can be development of operational knowledge when compared to theoretical which may help the lecturers teach technical subjects in a manner that learners could become efficient language users. This helps in better knowledge transfer and knowledge retention. The authors would also like to highlight those issues of passivity which need to be addressed with regard to language competence of technical education lecturers. These lecturers should be presented with extended training in order to present a good command over the English language thereby ensuring that there are no barriers of language when technical education is imparted to their students. The presence of these challenges strongly presents the view that there is a need for a model which presents the possible technological and pedagogical skills among lecturers. Arriving at this model will ensure that there is an enhancement of teaching practices thereby presenting measures by which there is a facilitation of better learning experiences for students. The development of this model should be presented as an ongoing dynamic process which may present a greater degree of faculty training. This dynamic process maybe presented in a manner that teaching and learning technologies are developed to apply for diverse learner groups. This will ensure that the demands of future generation with regard to technical education needs are met. Works Cited • Brophy, JE. ‘How Teachers Influence What is Taught and Learned in Classrooms’, The Elementary School Journal, Vol. 83, No.1, 1982. Print. 78 Ars Artium: An International Peer Reviewed-Cum-Refereed Research Journal • Crawford, J. ‘The Role of Materials in the Language Classroom: Finding the Balance’, TESOL in Context, Vol. 5, No.1, 1995. Print. • Dörnyei, Z. ‘Creating a Motivating Classroom Environment’, In J. Cummins & C. Davison, Eds, The International Handbook of English Language Teaching, New York: Springer, 2007. Print. • Fulton, K. ‘Learning in the Digital Age: Insights into the Issues, The skills students need for technological fluency’, T.H.E. Journal, 1998. 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