The construction and reconstruction of ESL student teachers’ professional identity

Raja Nor Safinas Raja Harun

doi:10.24815/siele.v6i1.13073

Raja Nor Safinas Raja Harun

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.24815/siele.v6i1.13073

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Abstract

This study explores the construction and reconstruction of ESL student teachers’ professional identity at a teacher education university in Malaysia. A number of 23 student teachers were required to upload a journal entry in the e-portfolio to reflect upon themselves as prospective teachers when they were doing a pedagogical course in semester 5. Upon completing their teaching practice in semester 7 and while doing seminar reflective as a course in their final semester, the student teachers were asked to revisit their journal entry on their identity and to compare and contrast if their views have changed or remained the same after their teaching practice experiences. A content analysis was used to study the transformation of identity through journal entries. The study reveals that the student teachers were more realistic and practical as opposed to being idealistic in forming their professional identities after the teaching practice. There were many situational factors which have affected such changes. This study implicates the need for teacher education programs to provide platforms and learning to teach experience that would assist the student teachers formation of professional identity as prospective teachers.

Highlights

There has been a growing interest in the studies of teachers’ professional identities in research on language teacher education and teacher development for the last decade (Kano & Stuart, 2011, as cited in Jurkunas, 2015; Pennington & Richards, 2016; Duff & Uchida, 1997, as cited in Varghese et al, 2005)
During the first week of their ‘Seminar Reflective’, the student teachers were required to revisit their entry in the e-portfolio on how they see themselves as prospective teachers which they have reflected while they were in semester 5
They were asked to reflect on how they see themselves as prospective teachers after having their teaching practice experiences

Summary

Introduction

There has been a growing interest in the studies of teachers’ professional identities in research on language teacher education and teacher development for the last decade (Kano & Stuart, 2011, as cited in Jurkunas, 2015; Pennington & Richards, 2016; Duff & Uchida, 1997, as cited in Varghese et al, 2005). This is partly due to the focus that researchers have given to the teachers’ beliefs in conceptualizing their practices. Many scholars have indicated the importance of professional identity as a basis for teachers to be viewing themselves and others by creating a sense of belonging within the professional development and recognition (Komba et al, 2013)

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