The purpose of the study was to explore the reflective process of pre-service English teachers by analyzing critical incidents entered in their teaching journals during a fourweek student teaching practicum. Thirty-three student teachers were asked to report critical incidents in their journals once a week, especially focusing on „lesson breakdowns‟ or „events that deserve critical significance‟ during a lesson. 133 journal entries were collected and a total of 104 critical incidents were analyzed to see some aspect of secondary classroom teaching and the reflective processes that student teachers went through right after the incidents. From the content analysis, it was found that many critical incidents happened during the initial stage of lesson and were mostly caused by student teachers‟ lack of experiences in either time management or material preparation tailored to students‟ level. By describing and analyzing critical incidents, student teachers became more aware of their assumptions about language teaching and learning and tried to transfer knowledge into real practices. A survey administered after the practicum also revealed that self-observation of critical incidents in their own classroom helped them to generate powerful insights about teaching and to develop reflective teachers.

The study examined the 2009 overseas program of the SNU Intensive English Teacher Training Program (IETTP) to evaluate overall management and its effects for future improvements. Following an overview of the 2009 overseas program, the present study provides the results of the program survey and English proficiency tests that were conducted on 42 trainees. The results indicated that the program was successful in terms of its management and improving English teachers' English proficiency. Especially, the trainees showed strong satisfaction for school visits, culture excursions, and special lecture series which exposed them to invaluable experience of looking into an English speaking country. Three suggestions were proposed in terms of managing and evaluating the overseas program of the IETTP. First, the IETTP needs to take proaction in identifying the needs of in-service English teachers and to reflect those needs in its overseas program. Second, the IETTP needs to develop a customized overseas program which can best support main goals of its overall six-month training program. Lastly, an evaluation of the program needs to incorporate more than just a survey method to triangulate the outcome of the study.

This study investigates secondary school English teachers’ perceptions and psychological burdens involved in the implementation of the speaking and writing tests of the National English Ability Test, which is being developed by the Korean Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. The study surveyed 138 secondary school English teachers in Seoul. Although more than half of the teachers were aware of the new test, 18% of the surveyed teachers were not aware of the fact that speaking and writing skills would be assessed in the new test. Also, 22.7% of the teachers were opposed to the productive skills test. More than half (56.2%) of the teachers felt some psychological burdens toward the inclusion of the speaking/writing tests. Although the teachers admitted that serving as raters for the new test would help improve their teaching, the majority of them were reluctant to participate in the actual rating process. The teachers felt that the difficulty of subjective rating and the lack of time for the speaking and writing tests were serious problems in implementing the new test. The teachers were sensitive toward the students’ test anxiety. They also indicated that they feel a strong psychological burden when making judgments on the students' performances. Implications and suggestions are made based on the findings.

The Korean Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology has made strenuous efforts to improve the quality of English education in public sector. One such attempt is a long-term, intensive teacher training that began in 2007 to facilitate teachers' ability for teaching English in English (TEE). This initiative has expanded over the years such that the number of training institutions has increased to 22 in 2009 to serve growing numberof trainees. This development is not without problems as there is a lack ofconsistency in curriculum, course content, quality of instructors, and overseas training among these institutions. This study aims to check the current status of various teacher training programs and suggest ideas for enhancing the quality of the programs. For the purpose of the study, questionnaires were administered to 900 English teachers to have themevaluate the training programs they had participated in. The findings from 449 respondents showed that most teachers were satisfied with their training programs. These teachers felt that the training programs helped to promote both English skills and teaching skills. Yet, they expressed some concerns about unbalanced curriculum, lack of follow-up service, inefficiency ofoverseas training, etc.

This study recommends using children's literature in teacher training programs with the purpose of developing integrated language skills for primary school teachers and teaching methods for their students. First, to accomplish bifold objectives, the study develops three modules: 1) intensive listening through story books, 2) using in class dialogues through role-playing and 3) developing classroom activities. For presenting the examples of the three modules, Junie B., First Grader (at last!), Freckle Juice, and Jake Drake: Teacher's Pet are used. Next, the study presents teachers' perceptions on both using literature for improving their English skills and using literature in their teaching elementary school children. To investigate the possibility of implementing the program, the researcher surveyed 53 teachers participating in the program. The survey results showed teachers' perceptions on children's literature changed in positive ways, and they recognized that children's literature could develop their own English language skills and then would be a good teaching resource for their students. Based on the results, some suggestions were provided for the teachers, educators, and program developers.