“It Is Utterly Out of My Expectation”-A Case Inquiry of Teacher Identity of an EFL Teacher in a Chinese Shadow School Setting
Though teacher identity is currently receiving an increasing amount of attention in the literature on teacher education and teacher development, little information is available about the richness, fluidity and individuality of EFL teacher identities in various L2 settings. This preliminary case inqu...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.760161/full |
| _version_ | 1819021942608363520 |
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| author | Feng Wang Jingwen Guo Bin Wu Zhong Lin |
| author_facet | Feng Wang Jingwen Guo Bin Wu Zhong Lin |
| author_sort | Feng Wang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Though teacher identity is currently receiving an increasing amount of attention in the literature on teacher education and teacher development, little information is available about the richness, fluidity and individuality of EFL teacher identities in various L2 settings. This preliminary case inquiry has echoed that comment by exploring qualitatively how language teacher identity features in the participant's categorization of herself as a professional during her school-to-work transition at a shadow school in hinterland China. Drawing on semi-structured interviews and reflection essays, the triangulated data were analyzed with thematic analysis in order to find categories of enacted identities and key factors that impacted Jane's teacher identity formation. The results indicate four identities existed: an attendant, a firefighter, a coolie and a tramp. The fundamental predicaments hovering over the green employer encompass an array of contextual factors, including (1) overwhelming anxieties for potential early student leavers; (2) overhuge workload and fluid working schedule; (3) endless non-teaching related commitments; (4) lack of career prospect and development ladder. The results of the study contribute to the understanding of the complex and dynamic nature of teacher identity influenced by sociocultural landscapes where language teachers are situated. The research suggests implications for teacher educators and stakeholders on how to transform a novice to a qualified EFL teacher within the ideology and discouraging discourse of a burgeoning privately-owned training market, and on how to mediate green teachers' agency and autonomy against the bottlenecks of their initial years of teaching. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-21T04:15:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-131f7b33b32f4717b0dcd9c53c94f243 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-21T04:15:07Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-131f7b33b32f4717b0dcd9c53c94f2432022-12-21T19:16:20ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782021-10-011210.3389/fpsyg.2021.760161760161“It Is Utterly Out of My Expectation”-A Case Inquiry of Teacher Identity of an EFL Teacher in a Chinese Shadow School SettingFeng Wang0Jingwen Guo1Bin Wu2Zhong Lin3School of Foreign Languages, Xidian University, Xi'an, ChinaKang Chiao International School Xi'an Qujiang Campus, Xi'an, ChinaSchool of Foreign Languages, Chang'an University, Xi'an, ChinaSchool of Foreign Languages, Chang'an University, Xi'an, ChinaThough teacher identity is currently receiving an increasing amount of attention in the literature on teacher education and teacher development, little information is available about the richness, fluidity and individuality of EFL teacher identities in various L2 settings. This preliminary case inquiry has echoed that comment by exploring qualitatively how language teacher identity features in the participant's categorization of herself as a professional during her school-to-work transition at a shadow school in hinterland China. Drawing on semi-structured interviews and reflection essays, the triangulated data were analyzed with thematic analysis in order to find categories of enacted identities and key factors that impacted Jane's teacher identity formation. The results indicate four identities existed: an attendant, a firefighter, a coolie and a tramp. The fundamental predicaments hovering over the green employer encompass an array of contextual factors, including (1) overwhelming anxieties for potential early student leavers; (2) overhuge workload and fluid working schedule; (3) endless non-teaching related commitments; (4) lack of career prospect and development ladder. The results of the study contribute to the understanding of the complex and dynamic nature of teacher identity influenced by sociocultural landscapes where language teachers are situated. The research suggests implications for teacher educators and stakeholders on how to transform a novice to a qualified EFL teacher within the ideology and discouraging discourse of a burgeoning privately-owned training market, and on how to mediate green teachers' agency and autonomy against the bottlenecks of their initial years of teaching.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.760161/fullteacher identityidentity formationEFL teacherprofessional developmentshadow school |
| spellingShingle | Feng Wang Jingwen Guo Bin Wu Zhong Lin “It Is Utterly Out of My Expectation”-A Case Inquiry of Teacher Identity of an EFL Teacher in a Chinese Shadow School Setting Frontiers in Psychology teacher identity identity formation EFL teacher professional development shadow school |
| title | “It Is Utterly Out of My Expectation”-A Case Inquiry of Teacher Identity of an EFL Teacher in a Chinese Shadow School Setting |
| title_full | “It Is Utterly Out of My Expectation”-A Case Inquiry of Teacher Identity of an EFL Teacher in a Chinese Shadow School Setting |
| title_fullStr | “It Is Utterly Out of My Expectation”-A Case Inquiry of Teacher Identity of an EFL Teacher in a Chinese Shadow School Setting |
| title_full_unstemmed | “It Is Utterly Out of My Expectation”-A Case Inquiry of Teacher Identity of an EFL Teacher in a Chinese Shadow School Setting |
| title_short | “It Is Utterly Out of My Expectation”-A Case Inquiry of Teacher Identity of an EFL Teacher in a Chinese Shadow School Setting |
| title_sort | it is utterly out of my expectation a case inquiry of teacher identity of an efl teacher in a chinese shadow school setting |
| topic | teacher identity identity formation EFL teacher professional development shadow school |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.760161/full |
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