Becoming Researchers: A Narrative Study of Chinese University EFL Teachers' Research Practice and Their Professional Identity Construction

Autor/in	Xu, Yueting
Titel	Becoming Researchers: A Narrative Study of Chinese University EFL Teachers' Research Practice and Their Professional Identity Construction
Quelle	In: Language Teaching Research, 18 (2014) 2, S.242-259 (18 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1362-1688
DOI	10.1177/1362168813505943
Schlagwörter	Foreign Countries; English (Second Language); Second Language Instruction; Second Language Learning; Language Teachers; College Faculty; Professional Identity; Research Methodology; Interviews; Teacher Attitudes; Teacher Researchers; Mentors; Faculty Publishing; Teacher Educators; Cooperation; Empowerment; Academic Achievement; Personal Narratives; China + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Ausland; English as second language; English; Second Language; Englisch als Zweitsprache; Fremdsprachenunterricht; Zweitsprachenerwerb; Language teacher; Sprachunterricht; Fakultät; Research method; Forschungsmethode; Interviewing; Interviewtechnik; Lehrerverhalten; Lehrerforschung; Teacher education; Education; Lehrerausbildung; Lehrerbildung; Co-operation; Kooperation; Schulleistung; Erlebniserzählung
Abstract	This article reports on a narrative study of university EFL (English as a foreign language) teachers' research practices and their identity construction as researchers in China. Drawing upon data from narrative frames among 104 teachers and in-depth interviews with four teachers, the study reveals that teachers' increased research engagement, as well as mixed attitudes towards and external drives for research, are mediated by their mixed contexts of supporting policies and practical constraints. It also recounts four scenarios of teachers' identity construction as researchers and explores the reasons why their identities as researchers are more or less fragmented at different times, which may be attributed to academic competence signaled by research interests and publications, institutional and peer support in the workplace, and the professional life cycles in which they are involved. It concludes with implications for promoting research and teachers' becoming researchers as paths for empowerment and professional excellence through joint efforts from university administrators, mentors, teacher educators and teachers. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: http://sagepub.com
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10