EFL Teachers’ Emotions Toward Online-Merge-Offline Teaching Mode in University

The Online-Merge-Offline (OMO) teaching mode has emerged as a prominent new approach in language education reform with the expansion of online teaching in China. Due to the emotional complexity involved in educational reforms, this study explores the emotions expressed by Chinese EFL teachers in OMO classes, investigates the situational causes, and examines emotion regulation strategies in English Language Teaching. A questionnaire was distributed to 48 Chinese EFL teachers teaching General English (GE) using OMO mode across three normal universities, followed by semi-structured interviews for deeper insights. After collecting and analyzing data from questionnaires and interviews, the findings revealed a spectrum of emotions were experienced by EFL teachers, with positive emotions prevailing, particularly in GE classes. Love, surprise, and joy were prominent across different settings. Situational triggers encompassed classroom dynamics, institutional factors and social influences; reflecting teachers’ beliefs and identities, students’ learning engagement, behavior and academic achievements, colleagues and administrators’ work support and emotional support, policy makers’ reform mandate, and the Confucian heritage cultures. To regulate positive and negative emotions, Chinese EFL teachers primarily employed appraisal, followed by situation modification and selection. This study underscores the importance of emotional awareness for both students’ learning achievement and teachers’ professional development in ELT. It encourages Chinese EFL teachers to recognize the significance of their emotions in teaching effectiveness and offers insights for educators and administrators into supporting teachers’ emotional well-being and professional growth.