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Sotiria (Soti) Vogli

Discipline: Education
Research Centre/Unit: TESOL

Project Summary

During the pre-thesis stage of the EdD TESOL at Exeter University I have conducted the following research projects.

Project 1: Teacher Voice and Autonomy: A Critical Approach to Co-Teaching in a Foundation Programme

This study attempts to critically evaluate the introduction of co-teaching which was imposed in some of the English classes in a large state University in the Middle East. The main purpose of the study is to critically evaluate teachers’ views on co-teaching, question the imposed policy and its effects on teachers, and propose changes. The study will try to address the following research questions: Using critical methodology and semi-structured interviews with 8 lecturers, the study aims to gain information about teachers’ views, perceptions and feelings while coping with the change; to critically evaluate such views; and to raise teachers’ awareness on the need for raising their voice.

Project 2: The TESOL Professional in the Arabian Gulf

The purpose of this small scale exploratory study is to provide current information about employer expectations for TESOL job seekers in tertiary education in the GCC and construct the profile of the ‘new’ TESOL professional in the Gulf. 27 job advertisements for full time EFL Lecturer/Instructor positions in universities and colleges of 6 countries were collected from recruitment and institution websites over a period of 8 months and analysed using qualitative content analysis. The results indicate that employers in the Arabian Gulf seek technology savvy candidates with a higher degree who have extensive teaching and curriculum development experience. Applicants need to have strong communication and presentation skills and be able to teach all skills at different levels. Candidates who are adoptable, flexible and culturally sensitive are highly favoured. The post holders must be willing to undertake a variety of non-teaching duties and responsibilities and be involved in a series of activities ranging from continuous professional development to community service and from accreditation to recruitment.

Supervisory Team

Project 1: Dr Salah Troudi

Project 2 : Professor Vivienne Marie Baumfield

Wider Research Interests

Academic writing, Corpus Linguistics, Systemic Functional Linguistics, Language and Gender