ERIC Number: EJ1188969
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018-Oct
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-2324-805X
EISSN: N/A
The Impact of Reflective Practices of English Language Teachers on the Development of a Sense of Agency
Tutunis, Birsen; Hacifazlioglu, Ozge
Journal of Education and Training Studies, v6 n10 p107-116 Oct 2018
Language teaching has undergone many changes for several decades and is still changing within this complex dynamic system. Teaching is recognized as both individually practised and socially shaped phenomenon with lots of constraints imposed by the society. The concept of agency has been theorized from an interdisciplinary approach incorporating academic disciplines of sociology, philosophy, anthropology, management, economics and the related fields. The aim of this paper is to address this gap in the literature by examining the experiences of language teachers working with young learners. There is limited research literature that specifically addresses the practices of teacher agencies in language teaching. However, Johnson (2009) for example, based on Vygotsky's (1958) sociocultural theory, suggests to take a sociocultural approach in teacher education to acknowledge both social forces and the individual experiences that shape language teaching. A qualitative pilot study was conducted with 30 language teachers working in disadvantaged neighborhoods in Istanbul, Turkey with the purpose of finding out their reflective practices on the development of a sense of agency. The data was analyzed and interpreted from the basis of "professionalism and teacher identity" and provisional insights are provided for policy makers, teachers, administrators and leaders at various levels in schools and faculties of education that we believe will contribute to the literature on teacher agencies and professionalization in the field of second/foreign language teaching.
Descriptors: English Teachers, English (Second Language), Reflective Teaching, Individual Power, Foreign Countries, Professionalism, Professional Identity, Disadvantaged Youth, Teacher Attitudes, Barriers, Beginning Teachers, Creative Teaching, Elementary School Teachers, Preschool Teachers
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Turkey (Istanbul)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A