Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
English Language & Literature Department, University of Ilam, Ilam, Iran
Abstract
Teachers’ professional identity has been the topic of abundant research in recent few decades. It has been defined as the knowledge a teacher has of himself/herself in teaching contexts, and relationships that manifest themselves in practical professional undertakings. This study aimed at investigating the factors that most likely influence identity construction of Iranian EFL teachers. In this convergent mixed-method study, the data in the quantitative and the qualitative phases were collected, respectively, through a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. The participants of the study were 75 English language teachers who teach in Iranian public schools. The quantitative data were analyzed by means of SPSS and the qualitative data were analyzed manually through thematic analysis. The findings showed that the majority of the participants believed that gaining experience has been the most determining factor in construction of their identities as EFL teachers. Other factors such as inspiration of previous teachers, peer learning and particularly the university programs, however, have been less effective or have had little effect in this regard. This study has implications for ELT stake-holders.
Keywords
Main Subjects
Abednia, A. (2012). Teachers’ professional identity: Contributions of a critical EFL teacher education course in Iran. Teaching and Teacher Education, 28, 706-717. doi: 10.1016/j.tate.2012.02.005
Alsup, J. (2006). Teacher identity discourses: Negotiating personal and professional spaces. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Ashforth, B. E. & Tomiuk, M. A. (2000). Emotional labor and authenticity: Views from service agents. In S. Fineman (Ed.). Emotions in Organizations (pp. 184-203). London: Sage.
Atai, M. R., & Khazaee, M. (2014). Exploring Iranian EAP teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge and their professional identity. Issues in Language Teaching, 3(1), 1-35.
Beauchamp, C., & Thomas, L. (2009). Understanding teacher identity: An overview of issues in the literature and implications for teacher education. Cambridge Journal of Education, 2, 175-189.
Beijaard, D., Meijer, P. C., & Verloop, N. (2004). Reconsidering research on teachers’ professional identity. Teaching and Teacher Education,20, 107-128.
Beijaard, D., Verloop, N., & Vermunt, J. D. (2000). Teachers’ perceptions of professional identity: An exploratory study from a personal knowledge perspective. Teaching and Teacher Education, 16(7), 749-764.
Bolivar A., & Domingo J. (2006). The professional identity of secondary school teachers in Spain: Crisis and reconstruction. Theory Res Educ, 4(3), 339-55.
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77-101. DOI: 10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Buchanan, R. (2015) Teacher identity and agency in an era of accountability. Teachers and Teaching, 21(6): 700-719.
Burn, K. (2007). Professional knowledge and identity in a contested discipline: challenges for student teachers and teacher educators. Oxford Review of Education, 33(4), 445-467.
Caihong, H. (2011). Changes and Characteristics of EFL Teachers’ Professional Identity: The Cases of Nine University Teachers. Chinese Journal of Applied Linguistics (Quarterly), 34(1), 3-21.
Cohen, J. L. (2010). Getting recognized: Teachers negotiating professional identities as learners through talk. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(3), 473-481.
Day, C., Elliot, B., & Kington, A. (2005). Reform, standards and teacher identity: Challenges of sustaining commitment. Teaching and teacher Education, 21(5), 563-577.
Day, C., Kington, A., Stobart, G. & Sammons, S. (2006). The personal and professional selves of teachers: stable and unstable identities. British Educational Research Journal, 32(4), 601-616.
Derakhshan, A., Coombe, C., Arabmofrad, A., & Taghizadeh, M. (2020). investigating the effects of English language teachers’ professional identity and autonomy in their success. Issues in Language Teaching (ILT), 9(1), 1-28. https://doi.org/10.22054/ilt.2020.52263.496
Engestrom, Y. (1987). Learning by expanding: An activity theoretical approach to developmental research. Helsinki: Orienta-Konsultit Oy.
Estaji, M., & Shafaghi, M. (2018). teacher evaluation in EFL context: development and validation of a teacher evaluation questionnaire. Issue in Language Teaching (ILT), 7(2), 147-187.
Flores, M. A., & Day, C. (2006). Contexts which shape and reshape new teachers’ identities: A multi-perspective study. Teaching and Teacher Education, 212, 219- 232.
Fogle, L.W., & Moser, K. (2017). Language Teacher Identities in the Southern United States: Transforming Rural Schools. Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 2, 65-79.
Gee, J. P. (1996). Social linguistics and literacies: Ideology in discourses (2nd ed.). London: Taylor & Francis.
Gee, J. P. (2000). Identity as an analytic lens for research in education. Review of Research in Education, 25(1), 99-125.
Gee, J. P. (2004). Language learning as a matter of learning social languages within discourses. In M. Hawkins (Ed.), Language learning and teacher education: A sociocultural approach (pp. 13-32). Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Ghanizadeh, A., & Ostad, S. A. (2016). The dynamism of teachers’ identity: The case of Iranian EFL teachers. Sino-US English Teaching, 13(11), 831-841.
Gu, M., &Benson, P. (2014). The formation of English teacher identities: A cross-cultural investigation. Language Teaching Research, 19(2), 187-206. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168814541725
Ha, P. L. (2008). Teaching English as an international language: Identity, resistance and negotiation. Journal of Language, Identity & Education,10(5), 364-367.
Han, I. (2016). Conceptualization of English Teachers’ Professional Identity and Comprehension of its Dynamics. Teachers and Teaching, 602, 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2016.1206525
Hong, J. Y. (2010). Pre-service and beginning teachers’ professional identity and its relation to dropping out of the profession. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26, 1530-1543.
Izadinia, M. (2012). Who I was and became: a critical reflection on my teacher-student self. Reflective Practice: International and Multidisciplinary Perspectives, 13(2), 183-194. DOI: 10.1080/14623943.2011.626028
Jephcote, M., & Salisbury, J. (2009). Further education teachers’ accounts of their professional identities. Teaching and Teacher Education,25(7), 966-972.
Johnson, K. (2003). Every experience is a moving force: Identity and growth through mentoring. Teaching and Teacher Education, 19, 787-800.
Joseph, D., & Heading, M. (2010). Putting theory into practice: moving from student identity to teacher identity. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 35(3), 75- 87.
Kelchtermans, G. (1993). Getting the story, understanding the lives: from career stories to teachers' professional development. Teaching and Teacher Education, 9(5), 443-456.
Labbaf, A., Moinzadeh, A., & Dabaghi, A. (2019). Professional identity and teaching quality: The case of Iranian EFL teachers. Journal of English Language Teaching and Learning, 11(24), 201-225.
Lasky, S. (2005). A sociocultural approach to understanding teacher identity, agency, and professional vulnerability in a context of secondary school reform. Teaching and Teacher Education, 21(8), 899-916.
Lee, I. (2013). Becoming a writing teacher: Using ‘‘identity’’ as an analytic lens to understand EFL writing teachers’ development. Journal of Second Language Writing, 22, 330-345. doi: 10.1016/j.jslw.2012.07.001
Leijen, Ä., Kullasepp, K., & Ots, A. (2013). The Evaluation of Internalization of Teachers’ Professional Role among Pre-Service Teachers. Estonian Journal of Education], 1, 72 - 96.
Leontiev, A. N. (1981). The problem of activity in psychology. In J. V. Wertsch (Ed.), The concept of activity in Soviet psychology: Wertsch, James V.: Books. (1981), (pp. 37-71).
Mantei, J., & Kervin, L. (2011). Turning into teachers before our eyes: the development of professional identity though professional dialogue. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 36(1). http://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2011v36n1.1
Miller, J. (2009). Teacher identity. In A. Burns & J. C. Richards (Eds.), The Cambridge guide to second language teacher education, (pp. 172-181). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Mirzaee, A., & Aliakbari, M. (2017). “They now respect me and send me to the best schools!”: identity construction of an Iranian EFL teacher. Critical Inquiry in Language Studies. doi: 10.1080/15427587.2017.1327794
Mockler, N. (2011). Beyond: ‘what works’: understanding teacher identity as a practical and political tool. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 17, 517-528.
Mora, A., Trejo, P., & Roux, R. (2014). English language teachers’ professional development and identities. Profile Issues in Teachers Professional Development, 16(1), 49-62.
Morgan, B. (2004). Teacher identity as pedagogy: Towards a field-internal conceptualization in bilingual and second language education. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 7(2-3), 172-188.
Namaghi, S. A. O. (2009). A data-driven conceptualization of language teacher identity in the context of public high schools in Iran. Teacher Education Quarterly, 36(2), 111-124.
Norton, B., & Toohey, K. (2011). Identity, language learning, and social change. Language Teaching, 44(4), 412-446.
Pavlenko, A. (2003). “I never knew I was a bilingual": Reimagining teacher identities in TESOL. Journal of Language, Identity, and Education, 2(4), 251-268.
Pennington, M. (2015). Teacher identity in TESOL: a frames perspective. Teacher identity and development in applied linguistics: Current Trends and Perspectives. London: Routledge.
Pennington, M. C., & Richards, J. C. (2016). Teacher identity in language teaching: Integrating personal, contextual, and professional factors. RELC Journal, 47(1), 5-23.
Stets, J., & Burke, P. (2000). Identity theory and social identity theory. Social Psychology Quarterly, 63(3), 224-237.
Tan, C. P., van der Molen, H. T., & Schmidt, H. G. (2017): A measure of professional identity development for professional education. Studies in Higher Education,42(8), 1504-1519. DOI:10.1080/03075079.2015.1111322
Timoštšuk, I., & Ugaste, A. (2010). Student teachers’ professional identity. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(8), 1563-1570.
Varghese, M. (2000). Bilingual teachers-in-the-making: Advocates, classroom teachers, and transients. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.
Varghese, M., Morgan, B., Johnston, B., & Johnson, K. (2005). Theorizing language teacher identity: Three perspectives and beyond. Journal of Language, Identity and Education, 4, 21-44.
ZainadinyMofrad, E. (2016). Exploring the professional identity of the Iranian English teachers: the case of English institutes of Iranshahr. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 6(4), 843-848. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17507/tpls.0604.23
)