Exploring the Possible Selves of Pre-Service English and Filipino Language Teachers: Insights into Language Teacher Preparation

Abstract

Despite the growing interest in understanding the complex nature of possible selves among pre-service language teachers, an in-depth exploration into its intricacy and how this can directly inform language teacher preparation remains relatively scarce. Using qualitative-descriptive research design, this study provides a comprehensive analysis of the possible selves of pre-service English and Filipino language teachers, specifically focusing on identifying their hoped-for selves and feared selves as future language teachers. The participants were 20 pre-service language teachers from a state university in the southernmost part of the Philippines, evenly divided between Bachelor of Secondary Education-English and Bachelor of Secondary Education-Filipino, who were selected using purposive sampling technique. Data were collected through a reflective journal, an unstructured questionnaire which explored the participants’ experiences with 40-session practice teaching, and an experiential learning course which ran for 10 weeks. The reflective journals were analyzed thematically following an AI-assisted inductive thematic analysis procedure. The analysis revealed a complex panorama of pre-service English and Filipino language teachers’ possible selves, highlighting a myriad of their hoped-for and feared selves. The findings enhanced theoretical understanding of possible selves in language teacher education and further propounded the critical need for a multifaceted approach to language teacher preparation.