In-service training program for newly-recruited teachers in higher education: A critical analysis of the case of Algeria

The need for in-service education of teachers, particularly newly-recruited ones, cannot be underestimated. There is a constant need for teachers to obtain new knowledge about curricula, psychology, and pedagogy, and analyze and conduct new research regarding teaching and learning. Consequently, the Algerian authorities have attempted to introduce a comprehensive in-service training program targeting novice teachers aimed at raising their efficiency in the profession. This study aims to examine and evaluate the in-service program for newly-recruited teachers at the tertiary level organized by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research between 2016 and 2020, and offers suggestions on how to remedy and improve the current program to increase teachers' professional skills in Algeria. To achieve this aim, the views and suggestions of newly recruited teachers from different faculties of the University of El-Oued Algeria regarding the issue of in-service training were investigated. The current study is descriptive, and a structured questionnaire was administered to fifty (50) teachers, the cohorts of 2016/17 and 2017/18. The results demonstrated that the current in-service training program should be subjected to successive modifications based on teachers' professional needs.