Teacher roles and learners’ motivation – a preliminary investigation of Greek state-school EFL teachers’ viewpoints

Abstract

It is well known from recent studies that teachers’ perceptions of their professional roles have a great impact on the learning and achievement of their students. The close relationship between teachers’ perceptions of their professional profile and their appreciation of their learners’ motivation characteristics is the subject of this study which refers to the Greek ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) domain. By looking at teachers’ perspectives regarding the impact that their teaching has on their own students’ learning and achievement, we draw parallels between the teachers’ views of themselves as pedagogues and professionals, the wider EFL (English as a Foreign Language) situation in Greek state schools and the status and function of the English language in Greece in the 21st century