IRANIAN EFL TEACHERS’ EXPECTATIONS AND PERCEPTIONS ABOUT TEACHER CLASSROOM JUSTICE TRAINING

Abstract

This study explores language teachers’ perceptions about receiving training on the main aspects of classroom justice. A group of 77 Iranian English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers, chosen through maximum variation sampling, completed a demographic informational scale and an open-ended classroom justice questionnaire. The data were analyzed through MAXQDA software, taking an interactive (i.e., both deductive and inductive) approach to content analysis. The research results reveal that the teachers mainly (1) had no prior experience of receiving classroom justice training; (2) approved the essentiality of EFL teachers’ being trained for the rudimental elements of classroom justice; (3) expected to learn more about the different dimensions, principles, and domains of classroom justice in teacher justice training courses; and (4) had positive attitudes toward the usefulness of classroom justice training for enhancing teachers’ pedagogical knowledge, skills, and practices. These results can encourage L2 policymakers and teacher educators to inculcate training courses on theory and practice of classroom justice into L2 teacher education programs with the prospect of empowering teachers to implement justice in their classroom behaviors and ultimately, increase their professional effectiveness.