This study describes characteristics of Vietnamese IELTS teachers and the impact of IELTS on their teaching practice and lives outside the classroom.
Participants were 137 Vietnamese IELTS teachers recruited from the Central area of Vietnam. They participated in an online survey and subsequent individual in-depth interviews which focused on describing their characteristics such as their education, teaching experience, their students, and narrative accounts of the impact of IELTS at both the micro level (e.g. language teaching practice) and the macro level (e.g. professional life and life outside the classroom).
The results reveal diverse characteristics of IELTS teachers with varied teaching qualifications, education, experiences and personal goals. The results also show an overall positive impact of IELTS on the teachers in several aspects, such as language proficiency, teaching skills and knowledge, continuing professional development, finance, and life outside the classroom.
At the teaching level, IELTS affected the content being taught and the teaching approach. However, this effect was mediated by teachers’ autonomy and learners’ individual differences (e.g. goals, proficiency, age and expectations).