Researching Identity in Language Teachers – Current Challenges and Implications

Jennifer Ngan Bacquet

Abstract


Language teacher identity has been at the forefront of pedagogical research in recent years; this has become particularly important due to the demographic changes seen throughout the world since 2015; since then, there have been significant changes in the cultural landscape of schools in general and language teaching in particular, which presents unique challenges for teachers in their process of identity construction. This study aims to explore the transformative nature of language teacher identity in two settings: teaching in online classrooms in one’s home country, and teaching in online classroom abroad. The research will explore how cultural identity shapes an educators’ relationship with students, how one’s own cultural identity influences methodological and pedagogical choices, how these can improve literacy in the young adult classroom, as well touching upon the relevance of cultural identity is in a developing teacher. The findings revealed a general consensus on the need to gear pedagogigcal practices towards a student-centered approach; they further showed a general split in how teachers view the role that cultural identity plays in the classroom: while some felt that local cultures hindered their approach to teaching, others felt it helped build rapport and understanding between teachers and learners.

Keywords


Teacher Identity, Second-Language Teaching, Online Education, Cultural Identity, Second-language Culture

Full Text:

PDF

References


Akkerman, S. F., & Meijer, P. C. (2011). A dialogical approach to conceptualising teacher identity. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27(2), 308–319

Barkhuizen, G. (2017). Reflections on language teacher identity research. New York, N.Y: Routledge.

Beauchamp, C., & Thomas, L. (2009). Understanding teacher identity: an overview of issues in the literature and implications for teacher education. Cambridge Journal of Education, 39(2), pp.175-189.

Brownell, C. (2017). Language Identity in the Elementary English Language Arts Classroom. The Reading Teacher, 71(2), 225-228.

Darvin, R., & Norton, B. (2015). Identity and a model of investment in applied linguistics. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 35, 36–56.

De Costa, P., & Norton, B. (2017). Introduction: Identity, Transdisciplinarity, and the Good Language Teacher. The Modern Language Journal, 101(S1), 3-14.

Deng, L., Zhu, G., Li, G., Xu, Z., Rutter, A. and Rivera, H., 2018. Student Teachers’ Emotions, Dilemmas, and Professional Identity Formation amid the Teaching Practicums. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 27(6), pp.441-453.

Edwards, F., & Edwards, R. (2017). A story of culture and teaching: the complexity of teacher identity formation. The Curriculum Journal, 28(2), 190-211.

Fichtner, F., & Chapman, K. (2011). The Cultural Identities of Foreign Language Teachers. L2 Journal, 3(1), 1-23.

Fielding, R. (2013). Bilingual identity negotiation in practice: teacher pedagogy and classroom interaction in a bilingual programme. The Language Learning Journal, 44(2), 152-168.

Gao, F. (2012). Imagined identity of ethnic Koreans and its implication for bilingual education in china. International Journal of Bilingual Education & Bilingualism, 15(3), 1-11.

Golombek, P. (2017). Reflections on language teacher identity research. Routledge.

Golombek, P., & Klager, P. (2015). Play and Imagination in Developing Language Teacher Identity-in-Activity. Ilha do Desterro A Journal of English Language, Literatures in English and Cultural Studies, 68(1), 17.

Holland, D., & Gómez Correal, D. (2013). Assessing the transformative significance of movements & activism: Lessons from a postcapitalist politics. Outlines: Critical Practice Studies, 14(2), 130–159.

Janmohamed, A.R. (1992). Worldliness-without-world, homelessness-as-home: towards a definition of the specular border intellectual. In M. Sprinkler (Ed.), Edward Said: a cultural reader (pp. 96-120). Blackwell.

Kanno, M. (2020). Apathy, Agency, and Sociocultural Mediation in a University English Course. JALT Postconference Publication, 2019(1), p.144.

Lawrence, L., & Nagashima, Y. (2019). The Intersectionality of Gender, Sexuality, Race, and Native-speakerness: Investigating ELT Teacher Identity through Duoethnography. Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 19(1), pp.42-55.

Macías Villegas, D., Hernández Varona, W., & Gutiérrez Sánchez, A. (2020). Student teachers’ identity construction: A socially-constructed narrative in a second language teacher education program. Teaching and Teacher Education, 91, 14-25.

Miller, E., Morgan, B., & Medina, A. (2017). Exploring Language Teacher Identity Work as Ethical Self-Formation. The Modern Language Journal, 101(S1), 91-105.

Mutekwe, E. (2018). Using a Vygotskian sociocultural approach to pedagogy: Insights from some teachers in South Africa. Journal of Education, 4(71).

Pennington, M., & Richards, J. (2016). Teacher Identity in Language Teaching: Integrating Personal, Contextual, and Professional Factors. RELC Journal, 47(1), pp.5-23.

Taylor, L. (2017). How teachers become teacher researchers: Narrative as a tool for teacher identity construction. Teaching and Teacher Education, 61, 16-25.

Teng, F. (2017). Emotional Development and Construction of Teacher Identity: Narrative Interactions about the Pre-service Teachers’ Practicum Experiences. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 42(11), 117-134.

Van Lankveld, T., Schoonenboom, J., Kusurkar, R., Beishuizen, J., Croiset, G., & Volman, M. (2016). Informal teacher communities enhancing the professional development of medical teachers: A qualitative study. BMC Medical Education, 16(1), 109.

Van Lankveld, T., Schoonenboom, J., Volman, M., Croiset, G. and Beishuizen, J. (2016). Developing a teacher identity in the university context: a systematic review of the literature. Higher Education Research & Development, 36(2), pp.325-342.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.

Zhu, G., Waxman, H., Rivera, H., & Burlbaw, L. M. (2018). The micropolitics of student teachers’ professional vulnerability during teaching practicums: A Chinese perspective. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 27(2), 155–165.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.7575/aiac.ijels.v.9n.4p.174

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Bookmark and Share


Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

2013-2024 (CC-BY) Australian International Academic Centre PTY.LTD.

International Journal of Education and Literacy Studies  

You may require to add the 'aiac.org.au' domain to your e-mail 'safe list’ If you do not receive e-mail in your 'inbox'. Otherwise, you may check your 'Spam mail' or 'junk mail' folders.