In-service training as a form of continuing professional education (CPE) is important for social work professionals to maintain their skills and enhance their knowledge for publicly accountable practice. These goals are concerns in Mainland China, which has experienced rapid development in social work since economic reforms started in the early…

When English becomes the international language with the globalization of the world, it is not surprising that EFL teachers are pushed to the front of TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) because teacher quality is thought to be the factor that matters most for student learning. EFL teachers are expected to be more knowledgeable and…

Despite the frequent criticisms directed toward them, in-service teacher training (INSET) programmes remain one of the most commonly used approaches for enhancing teachers' professional development. This article reports on a study that examined the effects of a part-time masters of education INSET programme based in Central China. The main source…

The current nation-wide reform of Chinese primary and secondary education prompted an empirical research project, "An empirical investigation of in-service English teachers in primary and secondary schools and a study of a pre-service language teacher education program", conducted at Baoding, China. This project is considered as…

Beliefs about knowledge, learning and teaching are assumed to impact teachers' practice (Brownlee, 2004; N. Entwistle, Skinner, D. Entwistle, & Orr, 2000). A change of beliefs is an important step for teacher learning, but it is often seen as difficult if not impossible (Cooney, Shealy, & Arvold, 1998). This study investigated the impact…

This paper reports on a study that examines decisive factors for longer-term sustainability of cross-cultural teacher training initiatives in China. It focuses on teacher trainees' perspectives of a Sino-British adult education English language teaching project based in Central China. Questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were employed to…

The experiences of Chinese learners on two e-learning programmes in China were investigated, focusing particularly on the formation of learning communities. Data were collected using a range of instruments to access the learners' perspectives in depth and detail. Archer's account of reflexivity as the mediating power between structure and agency…

This article reports on a study that examines decisive factors for longer-term sustainability of cross-cultural teacher-training initiatives in China. It focuses on the Chinese project implementers' perspectives of a Sino-British adult education English-language teaching project based in central China. Semistructured individual interviews were…

Recent educational changes in China such as the decentralization policy and the marketization of education have introduced concepts such as performativity, competition and effectiveness to the education sector and they have become part of the educational lexicon. Such policy shifts force more local participation in teacher education programmes and…

This article aims to explore practical constraints that prevent teachers from participating in INSET courses for their continuing professional development. This study, from the course clients' perspectives, examines the points of view of the teacher trainees and administrators involved in a teacher-training course in China. Questionnaires and…

This paper presents the results of a formative evaluation of a young faculty development scholarship program conducted in teachers colleges in impoverished areas of China. In the paper we describe the implementation of the program, the utilization of scholarship by recipients, recipients' satisfaction, and outcome data. Based on these data we…

This paper explores curriculum evolution processes in relation to sociocultural considerations with respect to a (teacher-of-English-as-a-foreign-language) TEFL program conducted in Singapore for inservice (English-as-a-foreign-language) EFL trainee-teachers from the People's Republic of China (PRC). It reports on how curriculum evolution was…