ABSTRACT
The study focused on the systematic literature review of the best practices in teaching English in Junior High School. This research used the Systematic Literature Review (SLR) method to identify, select, and appraise the best practices for teaching English in a Junior High School. The State of the Art Through Systematic Review (StART) tool was utilized specifically to facilitate the systematic review process. To choose the primary research studies, the researcher followed the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic and Meta-Analyses) guidelines proposed by Moher, Liberati, Tetzlaff, Altman, and the PRISMA Group in 2009. This involved adhering to the four key stages of identification, screening, data extraction, and the final selection of studies.
During identification, 1, 440 records were found from Elsevier Scopus, ScienceDirect, Springer Link, JSTOR, ERIC, and Google Scholar. The second phase in the SLR was the screening which involved imploring an exclusion and inclusion criteria for the literature review. After the screening, only 114 records for the review were determined. However, 77 additional articles were excluded from the review for diverse reasons, including duplication of meta-analyses, protocols, or reviews on different skills, lacking coverage of all four reciprocal teaching strategies, and providing unclear information about text types. This analysis led to identifying 20 eligible articles, which were included as a sample for this study. A review of 20 studies reveals varied global best practices in junior high school English teaching, the literature review highlights five common practices in teaching English: technology integration, gamification, student-centered approaches, differentiated instruction, and innovative strategies which reflects a global shift in English language instruction.
Keywords: best practices, teaching English, Junior High School
Introduction
English language teaching plays a vital role in equipping learners with the necessary language skills and intercultural competencies to navigate the globalized world. Teachers may design meaningful learning experiences that inspire students to become skilled English language users by embracing essential ideas and using effective methods. Educators must use optimal practices that promote efficient language acquisition as long as English remains the most widely spoken language in the world. However, given the wide variety of techniques and methods for teaching that are accessible, it is essential to recognize and comprehend the best ways to teach English at the Junior High School.
However, in the past of English language teaching, learning strategy has been a significant subject among instructors, scholars, and syllabus designers. English language acquisition and learning strategies play a major part in EFL teaching and learning (Khansir, Dehkordi, & Mirzaei, 2021). Moreover, according to Faez and Karas (2021), classroom observations have long been used in language teacher education programs to understand professional development and classroom practices. To address decontextualized teaching, many programs offer "borderless expertise" that can work across all contexts. Five best practices include engaging and meaningful activities, direct vocabulary teaching, deliberate teaching, appropriate instructional language, timely feedback, encouraging student talk time, citing information, and maintaining a good lesson flow. These best practices align with popular TESOL doctrine and have ample support in the literature.
In addition, Bernard (2010) as cited by Talido and Liu (2020), there has been a systematic and consistent recording of the learning challenges that students have when learning a foreign language using the English language as the medium of teaching. Talido and Liu (2020), who noted that Filipino students have trouble familiarizing themselves with the English language, further support this. As issues arise, teachers must be exceptionally inventive in coming up with solutions to make sure that English is not a difficult subject and that it instead allows students to easily engage in a new culture through language, stories, arts, plays, and history.
The report showed that in reading comprehension, which includes English proficiency, the Philippines placed 78th out of 79 participating nations in the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) (OECD, 2019). However, the lack of English proficiency among Filipino students has been a long-standing issue. According to the 2017 report by the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), several factors led to the low level of English proficiency of the students including insufficient language learning opportunities, unsatisfactory teaching, and limited exposure to language teaching and learning. Moreover, Tagle and Macalalag (2017) in a study revealed that the students' poor English performance was attributed to lack of motivation, inadequate exposure, and poor teaching quality. This signifies that there is a need for reforms as to the best practices in teaching the English language among students.
The education sector encourages teachers to use digital instructional materials, but Filipino teachers face limited access to technology and infrastructure, making it difficult to effectively integrate these materials (Alegria & Flores, 2021). Guevara and Tagudin (2021) emphasized that Filipino teachers lack the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively integrate digitalized instructional materials. It implies the teachers need to devise a repertoire of teaching strategies to reinforce the learning gaps of the students.
Although it has been noted that the mean percentage score for English 9 has been consistently low for the last three years, there is a lack of study on the precise cases that could be the reason for this trend. Due to the abrupt change in the learning mode in 2020, it was found that the mean percentage score for English 9 was 48.39, which is viewed as not learned. The mean percentage score (MPS) of the English 9 students dropped to 49.25 in 2021, according to the data. The mean percentage score of the students in English 9 in 2022, during the implementation of complete face-to-face lessons, was 50.45, which is also translated as not mastered. This means that there is a need for reforms in the teaching strategies, methodologies, and instructional materials that the teachers need to utilize to solve this existing problem.
With the abovementioned deficiencies, the educational system in the Philippines may reinforce sustainable development in the teaching-learning process to improve poor academic performance and devise best practices in teaching English among students. The main purpose of this study is to determine the best practices for teaching English in junior high school.
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