Becoming international teachers of English: A sociomaterialist analysis of teacher identity (re) formation over time

Abstract

This paper investigates the identity formation of two ‘non-native’ teachers of English over time. It shows how their identities became shaped through past teaching experiences and then postgraduate study in the UK, highlighting how these experiences were inter-linked. It also examines how postgraduate study opened-up new future identity possibilities and the implications of these. The study applies a narrative methodological framework to analyse teachers’ short stories gathered through interviews and focus groups. Using actor-network theory as a theoretical lens, the stories teachers shared were analysed to show how both social and material actors may be significant in teacher identity formation.