Novice elementary school English teachers’ practice of critical friends as their professional learning

This case study explored 18 Taiwanese novice elementary school English teachers’ practice of critical friendship models as an avenue for professional development. Based on the thematic analysis of the interviews, documents, and observation, the following major conclusions were drawn. Participants spent most of their time with critical friends in lesson planning and professional dialogue on classroom management. However, a lack of time was regarded as the major factor that influenced participants’ implementations of critical friendships. Suggestions on effective critical friendship as novice teachers’ professional learning and development were provided.