The Role of Communities of Practice in Developing Yemeni EFL Teachers' Continuous Professional Development

Abstract

Communities of Practice (CoP) is one effective technique for developing innovative EFL teachers in a world that has witnessed rapid technological changes. Therefore, this investigation measured the perceptions of a group of Yemeni EFL teachers towards the role of Cop in empowering Yemeni EFL teachers' Continuous Professional Development (PCD). The study also aimed to check which component of PCD was perceived as higher among Yemeni EFL teachers. In addition, the study also gauged the impact of gender and years of experience variables on developing CPD components. A quantitative approach was obtained; a self-designed close-ended questionnaire was demonstrated with 54 CoP members who participated in the CoP program sponsored by the British Council in late 2022 and early 2023 in Yemen. The study found that CoP members expressed their high PCD improvement (M=3.90) due to their participation in the CoP program. Results also indicated that engagement received the highest level of improvement among PCD components (M=4.04). Furthermore, no significant differences between the CoP members on the PCD components were attributed to gender or teaching experience.  The study recommends the importance of activating communities of practices among EFL teachers to share their ideas and develop their performance.