Abstract
At the heart of this report lies a simple but fundamental question: what knowledge, skills, behaviours and attributes do teachers need now and for the future?
The past decade has witnessed unprecedented change in education, presenting equally significant opportunities and challenges. Changes in the ways that technology is used to access information, to learn and connect; changes that affect the well-being of learners and teachers; changes in beliefs about diversity and disadvantage; change around the relative positions and ownership of the languages used in classrooms; change around the role of the teacher and the kinds of skills and knowledge a teacher needs. These new realities, which were almost unimaginable just a few years ago, are revolutionising how education is accessed and experienced.
This report focuses on how the field of English language teaching has evolved over the last ten years, and explores changes in the goals, approaches and content of initial teacher preparation and in-service professional development.
It was commissioned as part of an overall review of how the British Council approaches supporting the professional development of teachers and provides the evidence-base for the revision of an important element of this approach – The CPD Framework for teachers.
The framework, which describes the knowledge, skills, behaviours and attributes that teachers can develop in relation to four stages of development, reflects the nature, impact and direction of change over the last ten years that this report articulates.
Both the framework and report make an important contribution to our long-term shared aims of ensuring access to inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning for all; to creating environments in which all children can achieve their full educational potential and in which teachers continue to grow as professionals throughout their careers.
Citation:
Motteram, G., & Dawson, S. (2025). What’s changed in English language teaching? A review of change in the teaching and learning of English and in teacher education and development from 2014–2024. British Council. https://doi.org/10.57884/FPE8-5130