Professional Identity of English Teachers in Higher Vocational Colleges from the Perspective of Pedagogy

Author(s):  
Yunika Upa ◽  
Concilianus Laos Mbato

Being a non-permanent English teacher in a remote area is not easy. The non-permanent teachers have to face many challenges. Without having resilience, the teachers can not survive to teach in the area. This study investigated the factors that influenced the resilience of the non-permanent English teachers in building a professional identity in the remote areas of South Sulawesi. The mixed-method explanatory sequential experimental design was used by involving non-permanent English teachers at five schools in the remote area of Tana Toraja, South Sulawesi Province. The RSA Scale questionnaire and interview were used to find out what factors influenced teachers’ resilience. The results showed that the challenges faced by non-permanent English teachers made them resilient teachers. Personal resources and contextual resources seemed to play a major role in their growth of resilience. The high resilience of teachers shapes their professional identity, which makes them stay afloat and think that teaching is their calling. This study suggests implications for the education of policymakers and the government in Indonesia, and also for future researchers who are interested in a similar topic may conduct further studies with a broader context


2019 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 182-198
Author(s):  
Bin Ai ◽  
Lifei Wang ◽  
Alexander Kostogriz

Abstract In the Chinese higher education sector, Business English, a newly emerging discipline, has attracted great attention, and since it was approved officially in 2007, about 400 universities and colleges have offered this degree course to students. Among in-service Business English teachers, some of them have transferred from teaching English for General Purposes. Business English teachers face many changes and challenges to their professional identity, yet few scholars have looked into the identity construction of these teachers. Using critical narrative as a method, this paper closely examines the identity construction experiences of the first author and two other Business English teachers. It is found that the participants, including the first author himself, have endured identity negotiations and various challenges in turning from a teacher of English for General Purposes to a teacher of Business English. These teachers’ experiences and their perception of identity construction and professional development throw light on the changing pedagogy and practice of Business English in Chinese universities.


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