Design and evaluation of a teacher training course on videoconferencing-based EFL teaching: A case study of Syrian pre-service EFL teachers

In recent years, authentic foreign language teaching and learning opportunities offered through videoconferencing (VC) to promote the use of the four macro L2 skills have become a pressing need for EFL teachers. This urgent need prompted the researchers to prepare EFL teachers to use VC tools effectively. To date, few attempts have been made to train pre-service EFL teachers to teach via VC tools. Therefore, the current study aimed to design a needs-based teacher training course on VC-based EFL teaching for six Syrian pre-service EFL teachers. In this study, we attempted to create a five-week, practice-based teacher training course for a group of Syrian pre-service EFL teachers and implement a five-week practicum where they were encouraged to practise the pedagogical knowledge gained during the training. We evaluated the training course using a qualitative, case study approach by gathering data from a group interview with the participating teachers and a series of random in-class observations. The findings revealed that, as a result of the designed VC-based teacher training course, pre-service EFL teachers were able to adopt communicative and student-centred teaching strategies and become adept at implementing online tools in VC-based EFL classes. The findings offer new insights into student-centred and cutting-edge pedagogy through a videoconferencing-based training course for prospective EFL teachers.