Less Commonly Taught Language Instructors: An Updated Look at Instructor Profiles and Needs

It has been over 20 years since Johnston and Janus (2003) conducted their survey of LCTL instructor professional development needs in higher education; there was a need to conduct another survey to understand the current landscape, taking into account the many changes in the field. The current study...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Emily Heidrich Uebel, Bethany Zulick
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: National Council of Less Commonly Taught Languages 2025-07-01
Series:Journal of the National Council of Less Commonly Taught Languages
Subjects:
Online Access:https://ncolctl.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/vol38-p1.pdf
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849429854631493632
author Emily Heidrich Uebel
Bethany Zulick
author_facet Emily Heidrich Uebel
Bethany Zulick
author_sort Emily Heidrich Uebel
collection DOAJ
description It has been over 20 years since Johnston and Janus (2003) conducted their survey of LCTL instructor professional development needs in higher education; there was a need to conduct another survey to understand the current landscape, taking into account the many changes in the field. The current study begins to fill this gap with an updated survey (conducted in 2021) that focuses on instructor profiles and pressing development needs in general as well as topics specifically related to communities of practice, instructional materials, and technology. Compared to the earlier study, results show that LCTL instructors (n=80) are now on more tenuous contracts, but may have more training in pedagogy than previous studies indicate. In addition, desire for training in technology has become less of a focus, while the need for connection and community remains high. Suggestions for new and continued areas of focus are discussed
format Article
id doaj-art-61e41d7b1deb4b42ba735d8d93b32acd
institution Kabale University
issn 1930-9031
2689-2979
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher National Council of Less Commonly Taught Languages
record_format Article
series Journal of the National Council of Less Commonly Taught Languages
spelling doaj-art-61e41d7b1deb4b42ba735d8d93b32acd2025-08-20T03:28:13ZengNational Council of Less Commonly Taught LanguagesJournal of the National Council of Less Commonly Taught Languages1930-90312689-29792025-07-0138148Less Commonly Taught Language Instructors: An Updated Look at Instructor Profiles and NeedsEmily Heidrich Uebel 0Bethany Zulick1Michigan State University University of MontanaIt has been over 20 years since Johnston and Janus (2003) conducted their survey of LCTL instructor professional development needs in higher education; there was a need to conduct another survey to understand the current landscape, taking into account the many changes in the field. The current study begins to fill this gap with an updated survey (conducted in 2021) that focuses on instructor profiles and pressing development needs in general as well as topics specifically related to communities of practice, instructional materials, and technology. Compared to the earlier study, results show that LCTL instructors (n=80) are now on more tenuous contracts, but may have more training in pedagogy than previous studies indicate. In addition, desire for training in technology has become less of a focus, while the need for connection and community remains high. Suggestions for new and continued areas of focus are discussedhttps://ncolctl.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/vol38-p1.pdfprofessional developmentlctl instructorscommunity of practicesurvey research
spellingShingle Emily Heidrich Uebel
Bethany Zulick
Less Commonly Taught Language Instructors: An Updated Look at Instructor Profiles and Needs
Journal of the National Council of Less Commonly Taught Languages
professional development
lctl instructors
community of practice
survey research
title Less Commonly Taught Language Instructors: An Updated Look at Instructor Profiles and Needs
title_full Less Commonly Taught Language Instructors: An Updated Look at Instructor Profiles and Needs
title_fullStr Less Commonly Taught Language Instructors: An Updated Look at Instructor Profiles and Needs
title_full_unstemmed Less Commonly Taught Language Instructors: An Updated Look at Instructor Profiles and Needs
title_short Less Commonly Taught Language Instructors: An Updated Look at Instructor Profiles and Needs
title_sort less commonly taught language instructors an updated look at instructor profiles and needs
topic professional development
lctl instructors
community of practice
survey research
url https://ncolctl.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/vol38-p1.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT emilyheidrichuebel lesscommonlytaughtlanguageinstructorsanupdatedlookatinstructorprofilesandneeds
AT bethanyzulick lesscommonlytaughtlanguageinstructorsanupdatedlookatinstructorprofilesandneeds