Blended Learning as the New Norm: Neophyte Language Teachers’ Attitude and Perceptions

Understanding the attitudes and perceptions of neophytes teachers gives educational institutions relevant measures on how their teachers could adjust and succeed, especially during the time of the pandemic. This study aimed to explore and decipher the neophyte language teachers' experiences in adapting blended learning to the new normal. To obtain this purpose, the researcher used the qualitative-hermeneutic phenomenological method. Fifteen neophyte language teachers who handled Filipino, English, and Mother-Tongue were purposively chosen. Focus group discussions were conducted to obtain pertinent information for the study. Thematic analysis revealed five themes: apprehension of the implementation of blended learning, adaptation to the new situation, perception of flexible learning, the complication of flexible learning, and formation of values. It revealed that most neophyte language teachers were initially perplexed at the onset and slowly accepted their new situation. Despite the challenges, they saw silver-lining. One of their biggest struggles was the module submission by the students. They were optimistic that sooner or later the situation will calm down. The whole experiences of the neophyte language teachers had similarities with the researchers. The findings gave a good realization that academic institutions need to make foresight of the future so that they are prepared for unexpected events.