Iranian English Language Teachers Research Articles

Consumerist discourses on social media and language teacher educator identity tensions

AbstractThis study investigates the impact of social media discourses, espoused by neoliberal and consumerist ideologies, on a language teacher educator's (LTE) identity negotiation. Through a collaborative case study, it examines Hassan's (the second author) experiences with social media in the Iranian English language teaching (ELT) context over three years. The data consist of extensive email discussions and four online meetings between the authors over one year. The analysis of Hassan's narratives reveals dominant social media discourses emphasizing sameness, omniscience, and commercialized luxurious lifestyles. These discourses often equate social media visibility with professional qualifications, pressuring Hassan to conform to trends that conflict with his sense of professionalism and authenticity. Hassan's emotional struggles and identity tensions led to critical reflection and ongoing negotiation of his professional identity. The findings underscore the need for professional development programs that support LTEs in navigating the pressures of self‐branding while maintaining their professionalism. Additionally, the study calls for further research into the long‐term effects of social media on professional identity and well‐being across diverse cultural and institutional contexts.

Reconceptualising ELT research pedagogy in the Iranian higher education context

ABSTRACT One of the significant drawbacks of the English Language Teaching (ELT) Ph.D. programme in the Iranian ELT setting is the insufficiency of the research courses offered in the current curriculum, which do not adequately address the Ph.D. candidates needs, and this issue was not tackled in the field. Therefore, adopting a qualitative approach, this research aimed to investigate the possibilities and challenges of reconceptualising ELT higher education research pedagogy from a content-oriented into a learning-oriented approach from ELT Ph.D. candidates’ and instructors’ perspectives. To do so, 20 ELT Ph.D. candidates and eight ELT university instructors of both genders were selected from different Iranian universities based on convenience sampling as the participants. The context under investigation is that of Ph.D. candidates researching into ELT. This study employed an individual semi-structured interview as the instrument for gathering data. The data were analysed using the descriptive qualitative content analysis method, and the results showed that increasing the research methodology courses, changing the research instructors’ conceptions, decreasing the instructors’ workload, and specifying funds for escalating instructors’ motivation are the possibilities of tackling the current challenges from the ELT instructors’ views. In addition, the results indicated that from the ELT Ph.D. candidates’ views, adding a fieldwork course to the ELT curriculum, designing and implementing criteria for instructors’ performance evaluation, decreasing the number of Ph.D. candidates, and holding the extracurricular activities are the possibilities of tackling the current challenges. The findings may hold some implications for policymakers, curriculum designers, ELT instructors, and ELT graduate students.

A perezhivanie perspective of the interconnection between language teacher autonomy and emotion: making a case for emotional autonomy

ABSTRACT Purpose Although theory and research on language teacher autonomy and emotion have substantially grown in recent years, little research has examined their intersections. Drawing on the theoretical standpoint of perezhivanie and situated within a narrative inquiry design, this study explored Iranian English language teachers’ autonomy and emotion. Design Data were collected through narrative frames and semi-structured interviews from 10 teachers who taught English at a private language school. Findings Data analysis revealed four themes as to the teachers’ autonomy and emotion: (1) emotion as a strong determinant of teachers’ autonomy in the past, (2) autonomy as a strong determinant of teachers’ emotion in the present, (3) emotion-autonomy as refracting resilience, and (4) emotion-autonomy nexus refracting identity development. Value Drawing on the findings, we conceptualize the teachers’ emotion and autonomy through the term we propose in this study as ‘emotional autonomy’, defined as how autonomy and emotion intersect to shape teachers’ past, present, and future discursive narratives, memberships, and professional performances. Based on the findings, we provide implications for teacher educators to better attend to the interconnection of autonomy and emotion in teacher professionalism.

Exploring Iranian English language teachers’ hope: an ecological perspective

PurposeThe present study explores five Iranian English language teachers’ hopes by drawing on an ecological approach as its conceptual underpinning.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from narrative frames and semi-structured interviews.FindingsAnalyses of our data highlighted how teacher- and student-related factors caused fluctuations in teachers’ hopes. In addition, our findings indicated that while teachers’ past teaching experiences increased their hope, teachers’ lack of agency and economic inflation were among the most significant factors that decreased teachers’ hope in their profession.Originality/valueThis study is one of the first studies in the field of language studies with an ecological perspective on language teachers' hope.

Exploring the potential of generative AI in democratizing English language education

This study investigates the transformative potential of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), particularly ChatGPT, in addressing educational challenges faced by Iranian English language teachers (N = 23). Drawing on qualitative data from focus group sessions, semi-structured interviews, and reflective essays, the study reveals five key themes: accessible learning materials, personalized learning experiences, addressing ideological influences, overcoming technological barriers, and combating isolation from global trends. The findings highlight GenAI’s capacity to provide diverse and up-to-date learning materials tailored to individual learners' needs, address ideological biases, and facilitate cross-cultural communication. Moreover, GenAI offers personalized professional development opportunities for teachers, bridging the digital divide and empowering teachers with diverse levels of digital literacy. By integrating GenAI into English language instruction, teachers can overcome longstanding challenges, foster critical thinking, and promote intellectual freedom and open-mindedness among students. The study demonstrates GenAI’s potential to promote inclusive education by providing tailored learning experiences that accommodate diverse cultural backgrounds and learning needs.

Intersections of social justice and emotion labor among English language teachers: A perezhivanie inquiry

In light of the recent growth of research on social justice and emotion labor in TESOL teacher education, the present study aimed to fill a gap regarding the intersections of these two constructs. Thus, the study explored emotion labor and social justice among Iranian English language teachers through the theoretical lens of perezhivanie. Data were collected from narrative frames and semi-structured interviews as situated within a narrative inquiry methodology. Data analyses showed that the teachers' perezhivanie included not just how contextual demands and institutional expectations impeded effective actualization of social justice, but the latter itself became a source of emotion labor for the teachers through discourse, culture, and ideology. The findings highlight that inasmuch as social justice is a constructive purpose in educational work, it should equally be understood and enacted cautiously because it has the potential to become a source of emotional challenges and professional conundrums for teachers. We provide implications for teachers and teacher educators to contextualize social justice based on situational particularities so that teachers’ perezhivanie is featured more by emotional transformation than by emotion labor.

Ecological Intersections of Religious Ideology, Agency, and Identity: Voices of Iranian English Language Teachers

Parallel with the growth of research on the role of religious ideologies in teachers’ professional lives, the present study drew on an ecological perspective and explored how religious ideology (i.e., Islamic principles) intersected with Iranian English language teachers’ agency and identity. The study was methodologically situated within a narrative inquiry methodology, and data were collected from narrative frames and semi-structured interviews. Data analyses revealed that Islamic principles intersected with teachers’ agency and identity in three major ways: Islamic principles as a humiliating cult, agency-demolishing nature of ideology, and resisting Islamic ideologies. The study shows that, on the one hand, ideology can serve as a source of humiliation and harm to teachers’ agencies and identities. On the other hand, teachers also influence ideology by not only showing resistance, but practicing certain instructional initiatives that raise students’ awareness of the destructive nature of Islamic principles. The study concludes with implications for teachers on how to communalize their agentic initiatives so that they can construct their identities in more constructive ways.

Contributions of significant others to second language teacher well-being: a self-determination theory perspective

Abstract The present study explores the contributions of significant others to 10 Iranian English language teachers’ well-being by drawing on self-determination theory. We define significant others as individuals who play a key role in the emotional dynamics that teachers experience and serve as the impetus for those emotional experiences. Data were collected from questionnaires, narrative frames, and semi-structured interviews. Analyses of the data revealed that significant others contributed to the teachers’ competence (becoming more agentic), autonomy (alignment and emotion labor), and relatedness (interpersonal emotionality) in relation to their well-being. Our findings indicate that significant others define teachers’ relational well-being through shaping their identities, agencies, and emotions in interpersonal interactions and relationships. We also discuss implications for pre-service and in-service teachers as well as for teacher educators, and emphasize the need to develop a more nested understanding of well-being and the myriad of factors influencing it.

From virtual assistant to writing mentor: Exploring the impact of a ChatGPT-based writing instruction protocol on EFL teachers’ self-efficacy and learners’ writing skill

Language teaching is a highly emotional profession that can affect the teachers’ well-being and learners’ achievement. However, studies have yet to explore the potential of positive psychology interventions and artificial intelligence (AI) tools to promote the psycho-emotional aspects of second language (L2) teachers and learners. Further, studies regarding the effectiveness of AI in promoting the learners’ language skills could have been expansive. Responding to these gaps, researchers chose ChatGPT, an AI-powered chatbot capable of generating natural and coherent texts, as a potential tool to foster positive emotions and interactions between Iranian English language teachers ( n = 12) and learners ( n = 48) in the L2 writing context. We operationalized ChatGPT in a three-phased writing instruction protocol (CGWIP): (1) a planning phase, where teachers used ChatGPT to brainstorm ideas and generate outlines for each session; (2) an instruction phase, where teachers used ChatGPT to engage the learners in writing process, analyse and reflect on their drafts, and (3) an assessment phase, where teachers used ChatGPT to simulate IELTS writing exam and provided detailed and constructive feedback to the learners. We further tested the effectiveness of CGWIP on teachers’ self-efficacy and learners’ writing skills before and after a 10-week instruction program. The Independent Samples t-test results showed that CGWIP significantly enhanced teachers’ self-efficacy compared to the control group. Also, the results of One Way ANCOVA revealed that CGWIP significantly improved learners’ writing skills and that these effects persisted over time. The study implied that the protocol can nurture teachers’ efficiency by helping them in various aspects of L2 writing instruction, including brainstorming, revising, providing feedback, and assessment, which in turn, improves learners’ writing skills.

A qualitative inquiry of minimalistic mindset outcomes on Iranian English language teachers’ well-being

Language teaching is a tense occupation wherein countless negative stressors such as students’ misbehaviors, low income, assessment issues, and personal conflicts might threaten the well-being and happiness of teachers. Thus, cultivating a flexible mindset responsive enough to tackle various stressors has become a promising research scope. In this vein, minimalism, as a worldview that helps people reduce unwanted and excessive distractors, might be a possible solution that would possibly reduce the teachers’ life and occupation stressors and cultivate their well-being-related strengths. However, the concept has been ignored in educational domains. Therefore, the present exploratory study sheds light on the minimalistic mindset of 34 Iranian English language teachers, recruited through purposeful sampling method and partook in an interview. Their answers were analyzed through thematic analysis to see whether minimalistic mindsets of teachers contribute to their welfare or not. The analyses of the qualitative data signaled that the findings would contribute to the educational psychology and language education literature by suggesting that teachers with minimalistic worldviews towards life are less stressed and concerned about distractors and are more prone to value inner peace, tolerance, and rapport in their personal and professional life.

“I wonder who I am when my assessment ideas are not respected”: a case-study inquiry into the role of institutional policies in English language teachers’ assessment identity

ABSTRACT Although assessment is a significant part of teachers’ professional careers, there are few documented studies on language teachers’ assessment identity. This study drew on a case-study design and examined the role of the institutional context in Iranian English language teachers’ assessment identity. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, and stimulated recall interviews. Data analyses indicated that local top-down policies highly constrained the teachers’ assessment identities, assessment emotions, and assessment agencies. These policies pressured the teachers to develop an assessment adaptability system, experience little professional support, and face tensions in constructing their identities as assessors. The findings are discussed in light of contextual exigencies that complicate developing an effective assessor identity in contexts where top-down educational policies substantially and constantly sanction teachers’ professional career pathways. Based on the findings, we provide implications for policymakers and teacher educators to help teachers develop identities that feature investment in positively contributing to educational accountability.

Investigating Iranian English language teachers' wellbeing across their career stages.

This study aims to investigate the wellbeing of Iranian English as Foreign Language (EFL) teachers across their career stages in terms of teaching experience. In this regard, the study categorized teachers into three groups based on their experience: novice, experienced, and highly experienced. Using a quantitative and cross-sectional survey design, this study employed a validated scale to measure psychological wellbeing, positive perception about self and life, goal setting and time management, and positive relationships among teachers. Using a convenience sampling procedure, 182 teachers participated in the study, representing varying age ranges, teaching experience, and employment status. The data was collected through an online survey within a month and underwent descriptive and inferential statistical analyses using SPSS software. The results revealed significant differences in the wellbeing of language teachers across experience groups. More specifically, novice teachers scored lower in various wellbeing dimensions than experienced and highly experienced teachers. These findings emphasize the importance of considering career stages when investigating teachers' professional wellbeing. The findings also contribute to a deeper understanding of the relationship between teaching experience and wellbeing, with implications for supporting the EFL teachers' wellbeing and informing educational policies and practices. The study results are discussed, and the related implications are provided for running professional development courses to enhance teachers' wellbeing.

The Plausibility of Applying Dogme Language Teaching Approach in Iranian EFL Classes from Teachers’ Perspective

Over-dependency on manufactured materials and fixed syllabuses in language classrooms hamper both teachers and students from achieving communicative ability. In the Dogme language teaching approach or unplugged teaching, teachers do not rely on these predetermined procedures and they have the freedom to choose the class activities based on the situation of the classroom. This study was an attempt to investigate Iranian English language teachers’ perspectives on the possibility of the application of the Dogme approach as an unplugged teaching methodology in Iranian high school English classes. 100 Iranian EFL teachers took part in the study. The teachers were given a questionnaire aiming to reveal their opinions about the general principles of the Dogme language teaching approach. Then, a semi-structured oral interview was conducted. The analysis of their responses led to the conclusion that the Dogme approach was generally unknown by many Iranian teachers. Only a few teachers applied this approach in their classes. Therefore, it is suggested that the Dogme approach should be introduced and integrated into mainstream English as a foreign language program in Iranian contexts through workshops and in-service classes.

Examining the relationship between teachers’ creativity and students’ critical thinking in the context of EFL learning in Iran

The present study aimed to investigate the possible relationship between teachers’ creativity and students’ critical thinking among intermediate English as a foreign language learner in Iran. The study involved 100 university students majoring in English translation and teaching English as a foreign language and three of their teachers. The researchers recruited participants randomly and used two instruments, Honey’s critical thinking questionnaire, and Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT) to collect data. The findings revealed that there was a moderate positive correlation between teachers’ creativity and students’ critical thinking, indicating that teachers who are more creative tend to promote critical thinking skills in their students. The study has several pedagogical implications, including classroom instruction for enhancing critical thinking skills among students. Moreover, the study highlights the importance of promoting creativity among English language teachers to facilitate critical thinking skills in their students. This can be done through teacher training programs that emphasize creativity and critical thinking. Additionally, the study suggests that creating a classroom environment that encourages creativity and critical thinking could lead to expected effective learning for students. In conclusion, this study adds to the existing literature on the relationship between creativity and critical thinking and provides insights for English language teaching in Iran.

Enhancing language teachers’ skills for intercultural instruction: affordance of collaborative reflection

ABSTRACT This study investigated the effects of collaborative reflection (CR) on Iranian English language teachers’ intercultural instructional practice. The data were gathered by observing the classroom instruction of four novice and experienced teachers before and after eight CR sessions. The result revealed that CR was an effective tool for improving teachers’ ICC skills and practice as it enabled them to notice cultural episodes of the lessons and teach ICC productively based on the principles and models learned from CR. Nonetheless, although CR was beneficial for all teachers, the novice ones took more advantages from the CR sessions.

Official policies of English language education in Iran: ‘policy as discourse’ in national documents

ABSTRACT Considering the uncontested global status of English today, overt and covert policies of English language teaching (ELT) have shaped a significant area of broader national language (education) policies. In this study we investigated nine major national policy documents to portray the overall official ELT policies in Iran. The documents were explored through qualitative content analysis in search of manifest statements and conceptual categories that provided educational policy directions. Adopting a view of policy as discourse, we coded statements directly related to ELT and those related to language education, as well as generic statements about all subject areas, which were interpreted to include the teaching and learning of English. The discursive climate of the overall official Iranian ELT policy appeared to be mainly shaped by policy directions focusing on Islamic values, Iranian Revolutionism, and character and morality, along with some language-teaching specifics. The findings may indicate that beyond issues of policy incompleteness, the Iranian official ELT policy may be suffering from policy indeterminacy. We argue that in contexts like Iran, more coherent ELT policies may be needed to account for both the ideological nature of English and its practical applicability in the world today.

“To promote justice is to care”: Pedagogy of care and socially-just instruction among Iranian English language teachers

Despite the growth of research on emotions of care and social justice over the past decades, little is known about how these two significant dimensions of language teachers’ professional practice intersect. The present study drew on data from 10 Iranian English language teachers to unpack the intersection between care and social justice. The analysis of qualitative data collected from open-ended questionnaires, narrative frames, and semi-structured interviews revealed three major themes in relation to care and socially-just instruction: (1) care as a prerequisite for promoting social action, (2) institutionalizing social justice beyond discourse through collective care, and (3) care as a tool for resisting social injustice(s) in order to transform education. Our findings revealed that effective delivery of socially-just instruction is highly defined by the pedagogy of care that teachers invest in order to resist the dominant injustices. Based on the findings, we provide implications for teacher educators to run professional development courses that have as their cornerstone focal attention to dimensions of care and social justice.

English Language Teachers’ Maxims in Evaluating Materials: A Case Study from Iran

While research on second language teacher cognition (SLTC) has significantly developed over the past three decades, this line of inquiry has not paid adequate attention to material development/evaluation as compared to the key role that materials play in teachers’ daily practice. In response to this gap, in this study we adopted the theoretical stance of teacher maxims as part of SLTC, and explored eight Iranian English language teachers’ maxims in relation to material evaluation. Data were collected from a researcher-adapted questionnaire and semi-structured interviews, and analyzed based on content analysis. Data analyses revealed that the teachers evaluated their implemented material in light of both positive and negative aspects, with the positive sides being more pedagogical and the negative dimensions being more institutional and sociocultural. Additionally, the teachers’ maxims indicated that materials should not only serve pedagogical issues, but they should also embrace emotions and sociocultural particularities so that educational stakeholders, especially students, develop socio-educational capitals. Based on the findings, we provide implications for teacher educators to run professional development courses that embrace personal, interpersonal, and sociocultural particularities in the courses to enhance teachers’ awareness of the role materials play in their SLTC growth

The ecology of language teacher assessment literacy: Insights from emotional critical incidents

Despite the substantial growth of research on language assessment literacy (LAL), the emotional side of LAL has been under-researched. In response to this gap of knowledge, the present study explored Iranian English language teachers’ LAL through the lens of emotional critical incidents (CIs). Drawing on an ecological lens as embedded in a case-study design, data were collected from narrative frames, classroom observations and post-class discussions, and semi-structured interviews. Data analyses revealed three personal, institutional, and sociocultural ecologies that shaped the teachers’ LAL-related emotional CIs and the associated sense-making, practice, and perceptions about assessment. In particular, we found that the emotional side of LAL is defined by agency, emotion labor, the need for voice, and broader discourses of assessment in Iran. Based on the findings, we provide implications for running professional development courses that build on teachers’ LAL and account for emotions as a key component of such courses.

Virtual supremacy and electronic imperialism: the hegemonies of e-learning and computer assisted language learning (CALL)

ABSTRACT Many people consider the Internet to be refreshingly democratic; everybody appears to have a ‘voice,’ and there is much sharing of ‘open’ content. The use of the internet for the learning/teaching of languages often seems particularly apt: People from different countries practice a language as they interact online, at the same time deepening their understanding of other cultures and ways of life (Stockwell [2018]. ‘Teaching Culture in Foreign Language Classes.’ Foreign Language Education Research 22: 11–23.). This is an intriguing scenario; however, it doesn’t always play out in real life, since in truth technology is neither neutral nor unequivocally democratic, and people are often exposed to various forms of virtual supremacy and electronic imperialism. This study attempts to elucidate the lived experiences of Iranian academia with regard to the hegemonies of e-learning, by examining how these hegemonies are operating in the Iranian English Language Teaching (ELT) community under the guise of Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL). Various ELT stakeholders were interviewed, and recurring themes identified under the six categories of linguistic, technological, economic, educational, sociocultural, and sociopolitical hegemonies of e-learning. It is hoped that this and similar studies will help develop the awareness that is a prerequisite to achieving equity and social justice in digital education.