A mixed-method study of Iranian EFL teachers’ achieving resiliency: implications for teacher development

Abstract

The present study was an endeavor to investigate the differences between novice and experienced teachers’ achieving resiliency in an explanatory sequential mixed method study. Forty Iranian (i.e., 20 novice and 20 experienced) teachers, male and female, participated in the present study in quantitative study who were selected through convenience sampling method from several private language institutes in Tabriz with teaching experience between 2 and 15 years. The Connor and Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), developed by (Depression and Anxiety 18:76-82, 2003) was used to measure the novice and experienced teachers’ resiliency. The results obtained through the independent samples t-test revealed that there was a significant difference between novice and experienced teachers’ resiliency. That is to say, experienced teachers were more resilient than the novice teachers. The qualitative data were collected through in-depth interviews, focus group interviews and teachers’ stories. The qualitative data were analyzed through interpretative content analysis. The analyzed data suggest that experienced teachers have a complicated repertoire of strategies at their disposal to bounce back from adversity of teaching conditions in comparison with those of novice teachers. The results of the present study have some implications for teacher development and teacher education.