Non-native English Teachers’ Well-being: TESOL Teachers’ Big and Small Stories about the Presence of Meaning in their Lives within the Discourse of Sanctions

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Lorestan University, Iran

Abstract

Combining teachers’ big and small stories through a hybrid lens, the present study sought to examine the presence of meaning, as a component of well-being, in Iranian English language teachers within the discourse of sanctions, which could shape their positionality towards TESOL. Two themes were extracted: the emergence of critical hope and a shift towards plurilingual practices of agency. While challenging social injustice and colonial projects such as native-speakerism, critical hope created the possibility of transformation as it enabled teachers to evaluate their position towards the existing situation, acknowledge their relative agency, and implement new pedagogical practices. Valuing plurilingual identities of non-native teachers centered on the possibilities of empowerment and resilience fostering teachers’ agency within the discourse of sanctions and othering. Sanctions were turning points that helped participants negotiate different kinds of teacher identity through the fluid and context-based use of diverse linguistic repertoires and re-visit their conception of TESOL.

Keywords

References

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Iranian Journal of Language Teaching Research
Volume 13, Issue 1
March 2025
Pages 105-121

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History

  • Receive Date: 03 January 2024
  • Revise Date: 04 October 2024
  • Accept Date: 09 March 2025

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