Translating Teacher Funds of Identity into Curricular Proposals for the EFL Classroom: A Model for Student-Teacher Innovation and Professional Development

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis article describes the progress and findings of a research project, organized in the context of a university Masters course in Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL), which aimed at translating the student-teachers’ (STs) funds of identity into worthwhile curricular proposals for the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) subject. The first part of the research involved 38 STs in three workshops through which they became aware of their own funds of identity, expanded their own teacher identity, and finally designed curricular proposals that incorporated their funds of identity as valuable pedagogical resources. The second part of the research took place during the two-month practicum that the STs completed in regional high schools, during which period the professional development (if any) that the STs had undergone was collectively and qualitatively assessed in relation to their ability to put into practice their own innovative EFL proposals in real classroom settings.