Exploring Vietnamese Tertiary EFL Teachers’ Perceptions of the Effectiveness of Professional Development Activities

The urge for tertiary English as foreign language (EFL) teachers’ professional development (PD) has been remarkably intense in Vietnam, with the launch of a great number of PD programs across the country in recent years. Given the current context, this chapter aimed at unveiling frequently used PD activities for Vietnamese tertiary EFL teachers and their evaluation of the effectiveness of those activities in terms of teachers’ satisfaction and learning. In this study an adapted version of Lipowsky’s (2014) framework is employed for instrument design and data analysis. Data was collected sequentially in a mixed-methods design, including a survey questionnaire involving 202 valid responses and 15 semi-structured interviews with EFL teachers from different universities in Vietnam. The findings reveal four most frequently used PD activities, including both formal and informal types. Their frequency engagement and evaluation were perceived at different degrees as a result of the interaction among multiple influential factors related to the quality of PD activities, perception and utilisation of PD opportunities, facilitators’ characteristics, participants’ characteristics and school context in light of Lipowsky’s (2014) framework. The research findings inform tertiary EFL teachers, institution managers and program organisers about current PD practices in Vietnam and offer suggestions to further improve existing PD activities.