Pre-service EFL teachers' conceptions of language proficiency: Entry and exit level qualifications

It is clearly observed that EFL teachers' language proficiency has been great concern for researchers in recent decades. However, there seems to be few studies conducted in Turkey to conceive EFL teachers' language proficiency level. Language proficiency refers to competency of performing a language where receptive and productive awareness of language systems are highly emphasized. Any low performance in teachers' language proficiency may endanger the success of students who do not receive effective input from their teachers. Teachers' language performance that includes pragmatic and strategic competence may eventually ease any practice in classroom environment. Although Turkey, where English is a foreign language, introduced English language at an early age starting from the 2nd class of elementary schools, most EFL teachers may still not be sufficiently educated to teach the language. Based on the stated issue, this study inquires the views of pre-service EFL teachers to see their reflections on their university entry and exit levels of English language. A semi-structured interview adopted from Butler's questionnaire titled Self-reported Current and Desired Minimum English Language Proficiency was utilized for the qualitative data. The participants (N=35) were interviewed about their language proficiency based on the prompts. The findings of the study suggest that ELT departments should be more aware of the weaknesses of the new students and take precautions accordingly.