What English language in‐service teachers think, know, and do about writing instruction: Iranian teachers' stated attitudes vs. actual practice

Abstract

This study explored second language (L2) in‐service teachers' (ISTs') attitudes toward writing, probed any discrepancy between their attitudes and practice, and investigated the extent to which writing skill is included in L2 classrooms compared to the other three macro skills, namely listening, speaking, and reading. To conduct this mixed‐methods study, 100 Iranian L2 ISTs who teach English in language institutes filled out a validated questionnaire on teachers' attitudes toward writing. Before filling out the questionnaire, a sample of 10 L2 ISTs was randomly selected to participate in nonparticipant observation sessions throughout a semester. They were finally invited for semi‐structured interviews. The result indicated that teachers had positive attitudes toward teaching writing. However, there was a mismatch between their stated attitudes and their actual practice—less than 3% of their class time was allotted to actual writing compared to the other three macro skills (speaking = 45%; listening = 17%; reading = 13%; writing and grammar = 14%; other activities = 11%). Furthermore, teachers reported on some factors such as insufficient payment for additional writing tasks including feedback, and lack of allotted time for writing. Implications of these findings for teachers and stakeholders are discussed further.