An Investigation on EFL Teachers’ Defining their Possible Selves in the Future: Teaching Experience in Focus

محورهای موضوعی : Applied Linguistics

Leila Amanati ¹ , Davud Kuhi ² , Mahnaz saeidi ³

1 - Department of English Language, Tabriz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tabriz, Iran
2 - Department of English Language, Maragheh Branch, Islamic Azad University, Maragheh, Iran
3 - Department of English Language, Tabriz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tabriz, Iran

تاریخ دریافت : 1402/03/05 تاریخ پذیرش : 1402/04/25 تاریخ انتشار : 1402/06/10

کلید واژه: professional identity, Key Words: Identity, Teaching Experience, possible selves,

چکیده مقاله :

Possible selves of teachers are not formed overnight, but it is a continuous process on which different factors such as teaching experience may have a significant impact. This study aimed at investigating EFL teachers’ defining their possible selves in the future with a focus on their teaching experience. In so doing, a survey design was used. ََA total number of 180 (90 males and 90 females) English language teachers from high schools (N=90) in North West area of Iran participated in the study through available sampling. To collect the data, the Expected Self-goals Questionnaire, and The Selves I Fear Questionnaire were used. The results showed that prospective teachers of public schools feared that they seem uninspired and were more task-focused than quality-focused; new teachers feared that they cannot control classes and were more task-focused than quality-focused; and experienced teachers of public schools sought to reach professional development and were more quality-focused than task-focused. Further, it was shown that three categories of teachers’ expected selves were significantly different. Moreover, three categories of teachers’ expected selves were different significantly concerning both expected quality-focused and expected task-oriented dimensions. More specifically, prospective teachers reported lower levels of expected professionalism and higher levels of expected learning to teach than the two other categories of teachers. The results of the current study may shed light on our knowledge of EFL teachers’ possible selves as well as the effect of teaching experience on the construction/reconstruction of EFL teachers’ possible selves.

چکیده انگلیسی:

خودهای ممکن مدرسان یک شبه شکل نمی گیرد، بلکه فرآیندی مستمر است که عوامل مختلفی مانند تجربه تدریس ممکن است بر آن تأثیر بسزایی داشته باشد. این مطالعه با هدف بررسی تعریف خودهای ممکن در آینده در بین مدرسان زبان انگلیسی با تمرکز بر تجربه تدریس آنها انجام شد. برای انجام این کار، از طرح نظرسنجی استفاده شد. جامعه هدف پژوهش، کلیه مدرسان زن و مرد زبان انگلیسی بود که در دبیرستان های دولتی ایران تدریس می کردند. از این جامعه آماری، تعداد 180 نفر (90 مرد و 90 زن) مدرس زبان انگلیسی از دبیرستان های شمال غرب ایران به روش نمونه گیری در دسترس در پژوهش شرکت کردند. برای جمع‌آوری داده‌ها از پرسشنامه اهداف خود انتظاری و پرسشنامه خودی که من از آن می ترسم استفاده شد. برای تجزیه و تحلیل داده‌های جمع‌آوری‌شده، از آمار توصیفی و تحلیل واریانس چندمتغیره استفاده شد. نتایج نشان داد که مدرسان آینده‌ مدارس دولتی می‌ترسیدند که بی‌الهام به نظر برسند و بیشتر بر وظیفه متمرکز هستند تا کیفیت. مدرسان تازه کار می ترسیدند که نتوانند کلاس ها را کنترل کنند و بیشتر بر وظیفه متمرکز بودند تا کیفیت. و مدرسان باتجربه مدارس دولتی به دنبال دستیابی به رشد حرفه ای بودند و بیشتر بر کیفیت متمرکز بودند تا وظیفه. علاوه بر این، نشان داده شد که سه گروه مدرسان مورد مطالع از لحاظ خود انتظاری به طور معناداری متفاوت بودند. علاوه بر این، سه گروه مدریان در دو بعد کیفیت محور و وظیفه محور به طور معناداری با یکدیگر متفاوت بودند. نتایج مطالعه حاضر بر دانش ما از خودهای ممکن مدرسان زبان انگلیسی و همچنین تأثیر تجربه تدریس بر ساخت / بازسازی خودهای ممکن مدرسان زبان انگلیسی می افزاید.

منابع و مأخذ:

Amiri Shayesteh, L., & Baleghizadeh, S. (2022). Construction and validation of Iranian EFL teachers’ perceptions of professional development questionnaire. Language Related Research, 14(1), 113-143. http://dx.doi.org/10.52547/LRR.14.1.5

Beijaard, D., Meijer, P. C., Morine-Dershimer, G., & Tillema, H. (Eds.). (2005). Teacher professional development in changing conditions. Springer.

Beijaard, D., Meijer, P. C., & Verloop, N. (2004). Reconsidering research on teachers’ professional identity. Teaching and teacher education, 20(2), 107-128.

Chen, D., Tigelaar, D. E., & Verloop, N. (2016). The intercultural identities of nonnative English teachers: An overview of research worldwide. Asian Education Studies, 1(2), 9-19.

Conway, P. F., & Clark, C. M. (2003). The journey inward and outward: A re-examination of Fuller's concerns-based model of teacher development. Teaching and teacher education, 19(5), 465-482.

Coşgun, G. E., & Savaş, P. (2023). Professional identity development of English teachers: A data-driven model. Review of Education, 11(1), 123-136. https://doi.org/10.1002/rev3.3394

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, P. (2006). The personal and professional selves of teachers: Stable and unstable identities. British educational research journal, 32(4), 601-616.

Hamman, D., Gosselin, K., Romano, J., & Bunuan, R. (2010). Using possible-selves theory to understand the identity development of new teachers. Teaching and teacher education, 26(7), 1349-1361.

Hersi, M. A. (2018). Teachers’ professional identity construction :  A narrative inquiry of non-native English speaking teachers in Saudi Arabia.

Karimi, M. N., & Mofidi, M. (2019). L2 teacher identity development: An activity theoretic perspective. System, 81, 122-134.

Kumaravadivelu, B. (2012). Language teacher education for a global society: A modular model for knowing, analyzing, recognizing, doing, and seeing. Routledge.

Mahendra, A. W. (2020). Constructing Identity: Experiences of Indonesian ESP Teachers in a Language Institute. English Language Teaching Educational Journal, 3(3), 229-240.

Mahmoudi-Gahrouei, V., Tavakoli, M., & Hamman, D. (2016). Understanding what is possible across a career: Professional identity development beyond transition to teaching. Asia Pacific Education Review, 17, 581–597.

Markus, H., & Nurius, P. (1986). Possible selves. American Psychologist, 41(9), 954-969.

McMillan, J. H. (2000). Fundamental assessment principles for teachers and school administrators. Practical Assessment, Research, and Evaluation, 7(1), 8-29.

Motallebzadeh, K., & Kazemi, B. (2018). The relationship between EFL teachers’ professional identity and their self-esteem. Cogent Education, 5(1), 144-156.

Nagatomo, D. H. (2012). The impact of gender on the professional identity of seven female teachers of English in Japanese higher education. Ochanomizu University, 8, 213-226.

Nazari, M., & Molana, K. (2020). “If I go back, I would never tell the manager that I am stressed out”: Novice TESOL Teacher Identity Development. The Journal of AsiaTEFL, 17(4), 1488-1496.

Nguyen, N. T. (2008). Inconsistency of knowledge and collective intelligence. Cybernetics and Systems: An International Journal, 39(6), 542-562.

Oyserman, D., & Fryberg, S. (2006). The possible selves of diverse adolescents: Content and function across gender, race and national origin. In C. Dunkel & J. Kerpelman (Eds.), Possible selves: Theory, research, and application (pp. 17–39). Nova Science Publishers.

Parsi, Gh., & Ashraf, H. (2020). The relationship among EFL teachers’ critical thinking, professional identity and teaching experience. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Language Research, 7(1), 144-154.

Riahipour, P., Tavakoli, M., & Eslami Rasekh, A. (2020). Curriculum Reform and Iranian EFL Teachers' Professional Identity: A Marathon of Change!. Two Quarterly Journal of English Language Teaching and Learning University of Tabriz, 12(26), 435-463.

Rots, I., Ruys, I., Defruyt, S., & Aelterman, A. (2013). Differentiated instruction in teacher education: A case study of congruent teaching. Teachers and Teaching, 19(1), 93-107.

Sadeghi, M., & Sahragard, R. (2016). A questionnaire and model of role identity for Iranian English language teachers: A structural equation modeling. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 7(6), 1153.

Sancar, R., Atal, D., & Deryakulu, D. (2021). A new framework for teachers’ professional development. Teaching and Teacher Education, 101, 103-107.

Urzúa, A., & Vásquez, C. (2008). Reflection and professional identity in teachers’ future-oriented discourse. Teaching and teacher education, 24(7), 1935-1946.