Current technologies are changing delivery options for post-graduate teacher education. Many practicing teachers who return to school to prepare to educate English learners choose distance learning. This article explores teachers' perceived satisfaction with the quality of online courses, with the collaborative tasks required in these, and the extent to which the teachers consider the online course format effectively prepares them to work with English learners. This study reports qualitative and quantitative finding from a questionnaire administered to teachers who completed graduate level courses in an online format. Data gathered strongly support online course delivery as a viable and appropriate format for post-graduate teacher preparation. Study findings are encouraging for the effectiveness of online course formats to prepare practicing teachers. Responses on the survey questionnaire completed by participants document their perception that online courses are as rigorous as F2F coursework given effective online delivery formats that include appropriate instructor availability, timely and positive feedback, and flexible course organization.

Increasingly, mainstream U.S. classrooms include children who are English‐language learners (ELLs). As a result, teachers need to become more aware of ways to assess the literacy progress of their ELL students. The first type of assessment that teachers need to make is to determine ELLs literacy backgrounds. Teachers can use predictability logs to make these assessments. Next, teachers can use nontraditional assessments to determine ELLs' literacy strengths and needs. At times, however, teachers need to use traditional assessments to evaluate ELLs. When doing so, they should consider making modifications so that the assessment accurately reflects the ELLs' literacy knowledge. Knowledge of ways to assess ELLs' literacy development accurately can help classroom teachers determine instructional lessons and interventions so that all students make real progress toward literacy.

PurposeThe COVID-19 pandemic is a unique event that forced K-12 schools to rethink the delivery of instruction to protect the well-being of school system stakeholders. Teachers, school administrators and parents had to adapt to and embrace new ways of teaching and learning by utilizing available technology. The purpose of this study is to examine the challenges encountered by in-service teachers when moving from face-to-face to online teaching.Design/methodology/approachThis study utilized a qualitative phenomenological research methodology to examine Ecuadorian and Uruguayan teachers' perceptions and experiences transitioning from face-to-face to online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. This comparative study used convenience sampling to include 12 K-12 teachers from Ecuador and Uruguay.FindingsThe results of this study produced two themes that evidenced the demands placed on educators. The first theme was job demands, relating to teachers' perceptions about workload, preparation time and curriculum issues. The second theme related to available support provided by the school administrators and technology issues faced by teachers and students. Even though the teachers demonstrated adaptability for educating students during the pandemic, the experiences from both countries should be considered by teacher training programs and in post-graduate professional development.Originality/valueThis article examined how COVID-19 affected teachers in Uruguay and Ecuador. Data analysis documented the challenges encountered by teachers transitioning to online learning during the pandemic. The findings inform a larger audience about the needs of teachers working online.

This article presents a case study focused on the pedagogy of nine English language teachers' pedagogy in Ecuador. The significance of this study is its potential to inform practitioners, teacher educators, and policymakers in countries where teachers need to be prepared to teach in multilingual settings, such as Ecuador. Data analyses of nine observations of practicing teachers seems to suggest the curriculum used to prepare English teachers does not fully meet the educational needs of teachers or students. Observations of secondary level English teachers were conducted using the Classroom Observation Checklist (2010). This instrument is useful to analyze teachers' delivery of content, lesson organization, classroom interactions, verbal and non-verbal communication in the classroom, and integration of media during instruction. One major theme emerged from data analyses; English language teaching appears to follow teaching as a foreign language paradigm. The validation of the results of this exploratory study through the participation of a larger sample size of classroom teachers would be important to provide a more robust conclusion regarding teaching diverse student populations. No. 14 (January -June 2017) 108 ResumenEste artículo presenta una investigación exploratoria que examina la pedagogía de nueve maestros de inglés en Ecuador. Este estudio ofrece posibilidades para informar a maestros, profesores, y líderes gubernamentales en países multilingües como Ecuador. Se utilizó la Escala de Observación (2010) para observar a nueve maestros. Este instrumento facilita la observación de la pedagogía en la práctica dividiendo lo observado en cinco categorías: la forma de presentar el contenido de las lecciones, la organización de las lecciones, las interacciones en el aula, la comunicación verbal y no verbal, y el uso de la tecnología como parte integra de la instrucción. El tema principal que emerge del análisis de las observaciones es que la enseñanza del inglés en Ecuador refleja la pedagogía del aprendizaje de un idioma como lengua extranjera. En el futuro, validar los resultados de este estudio exploratorio con un mayor número de participantes sería importante para proporcionar conclusiones más sólidas sobre la enseñanza de estudiantes en Ecuador. Palabras Clave: Preparación de Maestros, Estudiantes Multilingües, Contextos Educacionales Multilingües, Enseñanza del Inglés ResumoEste artigo apresenta uma pesquisa exploratória que examina a pedagogia de nove mestres de inglês no Equador. Este estudo oferece possibilidades para informar a mestres, professores e líderes governamentais em países multilíngues, como o Equador. Foi utilizada a Escala de Observação (2010) para observar a nove mestres. Este instrumento facilita a observação da pedagogia na prática, dividindo o observado em cinco categorias: a forma de apresentar o conteúdo das lições, a organização das lições, as interações na sala de aula, a comunicação verbal e não verbal, e o uso da tecnologia como parte integral da instrução. O tema principal...

Direct instruction of Social Emotional Learning (SEL) has been suggested for improving academic performance and reducing behavioral issues in classrooms (CASEL, 2020). This exploratory study provides insight into how a group of Ecuadorian elementary school teachers define and understand SEL. It examined changes in teachers’ perspectives and beliefs about their role in SEL integration in elementary school classrooms, after a full-day workshop focused on SEL integration. Quantitative and qualitative data collected before, during and after the SEL workshop indicated a positive change in the teachers’ foundational knowledge of SEL after participation in the workshop; however, there was no observed change in the teachers’ perceptions of their role in the actual implementation of SEL. Challenges and future implications for an effective integration of SEL are discussed in this research article.