Keywords
professional development
PD model
How to Cite
Abstract
This study explores professional development (PD) experiences and expectations of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) lecturers in blended learning (BL) settings of a Vietnamese university. Employing a collaborative autoethnographic approach, the study examines lecturers' challenges with institutional support that falls short of expectations, a lack of specialized training tailored to their particular needs, and policy-practice mismatches. Focus groups and self-reflections were used to gather data, which enabled participants to evaluate their PD experiences critically. The results point to the necessity of a more organized and long-lasting PD model that incorporates mentorship, technical competence, pedagogical training, and ongoing assistance. Considering this, this study suggests an integrated PD framework that prioritizes individualization, teamwork, institutional support, and an evaluation feedback loop. In the end, the framework seeks to improve lecturers' preparedness to support successful BL by reducing the gap between accessible PD provision and changing lecturer demands. The study’s findings provide practical implications for educators, institutional leaders, and policymakers seeking to optimize PD initiatives for blended learning in higher education.
References
Alamri, H. A., Watson, S., & Watson, W. (2021). Learning technology models that support personalization within blended learning environments in higher education. TechTrends, 65(1), 62-78. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-020-00530-3
Albiladi, W. S., & Alshareef, K. K. (2019). Blended learning in English teaching and learning: A review of the current literature. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 10(2), 232-238. http://dx.doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1002.03
An, Y. (2021). A response to an article entitled “Improving teacher professional development for online and blended learning: a systematic meta-aggregative review. Educational Technology Research and Development, 69(1), 39–42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-020-09844-8
Ashraf, M. A., Yang, M., Zhang, Y., Denden, M., Tlili, A., Liu, J., ... & Burgos, D. (2021). A systematic review of systematic reviews on blended learning: Trends, gaps and future directions. Psychology Research and Behavior Management, 1525-1541. https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S331741
Batac, K. I. T., Baquiran, J. A., & Agaton, C. B. (2021). Qualitative content analysis of teachers' perceptions and experiences in using blended learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 20(6), 225-243. https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.20.6.12
Bodnar, T. O. (2021). Motivational Components of a Blended Learning System for Teachers and Students. Naukovij Vìsnik Mukačìvsʹkogo Deržavnogo Unìversitetu. Serìâ, 7(1), 36–43. https://doi.org/10.52534/msu-pp.7(1).2021.36-43
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2024). Thematic analysis. In Encyclopedia of quality of life and well-being research (pp. 7187-7193). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
Bruggeman, B., Tondeur, J., Struyven, K., Pynoo, B., Garone, A., & Vanslambrouck, S. (2021). Experts speaking: Crucial teacher attributes for implementing blended learning in higher education. The Internet and higher education, 48, 100772. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2020.100772
Chang, H., Ngunjiri, F. W., & Hernandez, K.-A. C. (2012). Collaborative autoethnography (1st ed.). Left Coast Press. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315432137
Dahri, N. A., Yahaya, N., Al-Rahmi, W. M., Noman, H. A., Alblehai, F., Kamin, Y. B., Soomro, R. B., Shutaleva, A., & Al-Adwan, A. S. (2024). Investigating the motivating factors that influence the adoption of blended learning for teachers’ professional development. Heliyon, 10(15), e34900-. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e34900
Esengulova, M., Asekova, Z., & Toktogulova, N. (2024). Experience of Applying the Blended Learning Model in the System of Professional Development of Primary School Teachers in the Kyrgyz Republic. Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange, 17(1), 205–221. https://doi.org/10.18785/jetde.1701.12
Evans, J. C., Yip, H., Chan, K., Armatas, C., & Tse, A. (2020). Blended learning in higher education: professional development in a Hong Kong university. Higher Education Research and Development, 39(4), 643–656. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2019.1685943
Fahmi Dajani, M., & Yousef, M. (2014). Learning Circles: Promoting Collaborative Learning Culture for Teacher Professional Development. Arab World English Journal, 5(3).
Fairman, J. C., Smith, D. J., Pullen, P. C., & Lebel, S. J. (2022). The challenge of keeping teacher professional development relevant. In Leadership for professional learning (pp. 251-263). Routledge.
Farrell, T. S. (2022). Reflective practice in language teaching. Cambridge University Press.
Garrison, D. R., & Vaughan, N. D. (2008). Blended learning in higher education: Framework, principles, and guidelines. John Wiley & Sons.
Garone, A., Bruggeman, B., Philipsen, B., Pynoo, B., Tondeur, J., & Struyven, K. (2022). Evaluating professional development for blended learning in higher education: a synthesis of qualitative evidence. Education and Information Technologies, 27(6), 7599–7628. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-022-10928-6
Geng, S., Law, K. M., & Niu, B. (2019). Investigating self-directed learning and technology readiness in blending learning environment. International journal of educational technology in higher education, 16(1), 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-019-0147-0
Ginestié, J., & Impedovo, M. A. (2020). International teachers professional developing: Blended learning between Europe and Asia. Voprosy Obrazovaniâ, 2, 114–127. https://doi.org/10.17323/1814-9545-2020-2-114-127
González, C., Ponce, D., & Fernández, V. (2023). Teachers’ experiences of teaching online during COVID-19: implications for postpandemic professional development. Educational Technology Research and Development, 71(1), 55–78. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-023-10200-9
Hsiao, J. C., & Lin, S. S. J. (2022). How Energy Maintains Social Sustainability of Teachers’ Learning Communities: New Insights from a Blended Professional Learning Network. Sustainability, 14(6), 3636-. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14063636
Kartiwi, M., Gunawan, T. S., Mirza, Y., Shaikh Ali, S. H., Leow, M. C., Romlie, M. F. bin, & Hari, Z. B. (2024). Learning to Better Teaching Through Blended Learning Professional Development. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Advancing and Redesigning Education 2023 (pp. 668–674). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-4507-4_75
Kessler, G. (2018). Technology and the future of language teaching. Foreign language annals, 51(1), 205-218. https://doi.org/10.1111/flan.12318
Kieu, T. H., Kean Wah, L. E. E., Bishen, G. S., Singh, Vo, T. D., & Vo, D. H. Q. (2024a). Vietnamese Lecturers' Concerns about Blended Learning Implementation: Insights from Concerns-Based Adoption Model. Journal of Institutional Research Southeast Asia, 22(2).
Kieu, H. T., Lee, K. W., & Sivapalan, S. (2024b). Vietnamese EFL Lecturers’ Blended Learning Practices and Concerns: A Call for Institutional Support and Professional Development. Computer-Assisted Language Learning Electronic Journal, 25(2), 24-46. https://callej.org/index.php/journal/article/view/454
Kim, J. H. (2021). Music teachers’ understanding of blended learning in Korean elementary music classes. Music Education Research, 23(3), 311–320. https://doi.org/10.1080/14613808.2020.1862776
Kirkpatrick, D., & Kirkpatrick, J. (2006). Evaluating training programs: The four levels. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Kleinschmit, A. J., Rosenwald, A., Ryder, E. F., Donovan, S., Murdoch, B., Grandgenett, N. F., ... & Morgan, W. (2023). Accelerating STEM education reform: linked communities of practice promote creation of open educational resources and sustainable professional development. International Journal of STEM Education, 10(1), 16. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-023-00405-y
Lapadat, J. C., Giardina, M. D., & Denzin, N. K. (2024). Collaborative Autoethnography: An Ethical Approach to Inquiry that Makes a Difference 1. In Qualitative Inquiry in Transition-Pasts, Presents, & Futures (1st ed., pp. 269–283). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781032676067-24
Larrivee, B. (2000). Transforming teaching practice: Becoming the critically reflective teacher. Reflective practice, 1(3), 293-307. https://doi.org/10.1080/713693162
Le, T. N. (2024). Factors Affecting EFL Lecturers’ Implementation of Blended Learning in Vietnamese Universities. In Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching: The Case of Vietnam and Cambodia (pp. 209-234). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.
Li, D., Bliss, L., Henderson, L., & Clark, P. (2024). Professional development through collaborative action research for early career academics - a collaborative auto-ethnography during the COVID-19 pandemic. Educational Action Research, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/09650792.2024.2333911
Lockee, B. B. (2021). Shifting digital, shifting context: (re)considering teacher professional development for online and blended learning in the COVID-19 era. Educational Technology Research and Development, 69(1), 17–20. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-020-09836-8
Loughran, J. J. (2002). Effective reflective practice: In search of meaning in learning about teaching. Journal of teacher education, 53(1), 33-43. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487102053001004
Ma’rufa, I. M. U., & Mustofa, M. (2021). A Narrative Inquiry into EFL Teachers’ Professional Experiences in Blended Learning during COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Language Teaching and Education (Online), 5(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.22437/ijolte.v5i1.13772
Nguyen, T. V., & Sit, H. (2025). In-Service Teacher Professional Development: Challenges and Opportunities for Innovating the Trichronous Modality of Delivery in Vietnam’s EFL Education. Education Sciences, 15(1), 19-. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15010019
Philipsen, B., Tondeur, J., Scherer, R., Pynoo, B., & Zhu, C. (2022). Measuring institutional support for online and blended learning professional development: validating an instrument that examines teachers’ perceptions. International Journal of Research & Method in Education, 45(2), 164–179. https://doi.org/10.1080/1743727X.2021.1926973
Philipsen, B., Tondeur, J., Pareja Roblin, N., Vanslambrouck, S., & Zhu, C. (2019). Improving teacher professional development for online and blended learning: A systematic meta-aggregative review. Educational Technology Research and Development, 67, 1145-1174. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-019-09645-8
Phillips, L., Christensen-Strynø, M. B., & Frølunde, L. (2022). Thinking with autoethnography in collaborative research: A critical, reflexive approach to relational ethics. Qualitative Research : QR, 22(5), 761–776. https://doi.org/10.1177/14687941211033446
Pölzl-Stefanec, E., Barta, M., & Walter-Laager, C. (2024). Assurance and Development of Interaction Quality: The Impact of Blended-Learning Professional Development Training Programme. Early Childhood Education Journal, 52(6), 969–978. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-023-01479-7
Portillo, J., & de la Serna, A. L. (2021). An international perspective for ‘Improving teacher professional development for online and blended learning: a systematic meta-aggregative review. Educational Technology Research and Development, 69(1), 25–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-020-09851-9
Porter, W. W., & Graham, C. R. (2016). Institutional drivers and barriers to faculty adoption of blended learning in higher education. British Journal of Educational Technology, 47(4), 748-762. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12269
Porter, W. W., Graham, C. R., Bodily, R. G., & Sandberg, D. S. (2016). A qualitative analysis of institutional drivers and barriers to blended learning adoption in higher education. The internet and Higher education, 28, 17-27. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2015.08.003
Ranieri, M., Giampaolo, M., & Bruni, I. (2019). Exploring educators’ professional learning ecologies in a blended learning environment. British Journal of Educational Technology, 50(4), 1673–1686. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12793
Russell*, T. (2005). Can reflective practice be taught?. Reflective practice, 6(2), 199-204.
Sánchez-Narváez, N., & Chavarro-Vargas, S. A. (2017). EFL oral skills behaviour when implementing blended learning in a content-subject teachers’ professional development course. Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal, 19(2), 263–276. https://doi.org/10.14483/22487085.11964
Şentürk, C. (2021). Effects of the blended learning model on preservice teachers’ academic achievements and twenty-first century skills. Education and Information Technologies, 26(1), 35-48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-020-10340-y
Schön, D. A. (2017). The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action. Routledge.
Toland, S. H., & Cripps, T. (2024). Reflections from a Blended Professional Learning Network for Japanese Teachers of English. Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching, 21(2), 235–257. https://doi.org/10.56040/shtc2124
Uribe-Banda, C., Wood, E., Gottardo, A., Biddle, J., Ghaa, C., Iminza, R., Wade, A., & Korir, E. (2023). Assessing blended and online-only delivery formats for teacher professional development in Kenya. Cogent Education, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2023.2191414
van der Stap, N., van den Bogaart, T., van Ginkel, S., Rahimi, E., & Versendaal, J. (2024). Towards teaching strategies addressing online learning in blended learning courses for adult-learners. Computers and Education, 219, 105103-. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2024.105103
Vergonia, B., & Mombas, S. E. (2022). Ready to go? Profiling Philippines high school teachers’ readiness for blended learning in post-COVID-19 era. Journal Of Educational Management And Instruction (Online), 2(1), 12–23. https://doi.org/10.22515/jemin.v2i1.4961
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
psychological processes. Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Zagouras, C., Egarchou, D., Skiniotis, P., & Fountana, M. (2022). Face to face or blended learning? A case study: Teacher training in the pedagogical use of ICT. Education and Information Technologies, 27(9), 12939–12967. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-022-11144-y
Zeichner, K. M., & Liston, D. P. (2013). Reflective teaching: An introduction. Routledge.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2025 Author and CALL-EJ