Teacher development through Exploratory Practice at the University of Sindh, Jamshoro, Pakistan

Exploratory Practice (EP), as a framework for teacher development, is a collaborative endeavour of both teachers and learners which engages them in reflection to improve the quality of life in a language classroom. The present case study was carried out at the University of Sindh, Jamshoro (USJP) in Pakistan, where teachers in the institute of English Language and Literature participated in the project by following the principles of EP in their teaching. The project ran for a full academic year consisting of two semesters of four months each. The present study evaluates the effectiveness of the EP project carried out at the USJP which is measured from two perspectives; its significance as a form of practitioner research, and as an approach to teacher-development. The significance of EP as a form of practitioner research is measured by evaluating the impact of EP during the project to the ELT practice at the USJP. An evaluation of EP as an approach to teacher development is carried out in the light of the experiences and views of the teacher-participants presented in the post-interview results which are conducted at the end of the project. The teacher-participants had very little exposure to professional development approaches, and were unfamiliar with EP before joining the project. However, the findings show they were successful in following the principles of EP in their teaching, and the puzzles worked through by the participants who employed EP as a form of practitioner research during the project made a significant contribution towards the ELT practice at the USJP. The post-interview results show that teacher-participants found EP to be a useful approach to their professional development which did not require extra effort and time to put into practice.