Micro-teaching and teacher professional development: Perceptions of English student teachers at UIN Raden Fatah Palembang

Abstract

Micro-teaching provides student teachers with opportunities to connect pedagogical knowledge with teaching practice before entering real classroom settings. This study explored English student teachers’ perceptions of the micro-teaching program at UIN Raden Fatah Palembang and its perceived contribution to their preparation as future English teachers. Using a descriptive survey design, the study involved 68 student teachers enrolled in a micro-teaching course during the 2025/2026 academic year. Data were collected through an online questionnaire comprising five-point Likert-scale items and open-ended questions. Survey data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, while open-ended responses were reviewed descriptively to provide contextual and illustrative support. Participants evaluated the program very positively, particularly its organization, relevance to future teaching, lecturer guidance, and supportive learning environment, and perceived positive contributions to their pedagogical understanding, teaching skills, classroom communication, use of teaching media and technology, and confidence. However, nervousness, classroom management, and time-management remained challenges, while additional teaching practice and more individualized feedback emerged as priorities for improvement. The findings provide context-specific evidence that student teachers in an underexamined Islamic higher-education setting in Indonesia perceive micro-teaching as a meaningful professional learning space connecting pedagogical knowledge with practice, reflection, and feedback, while continuing to identify areas requiring further development.