Speakers
Abstract section 5: References
Aung, K. T. T., Mar, A. A., & Briscoe, P. (2021). English language teachers’ perceptions and experiences of conferences. Journal of English Language and Linguistics, 2(2), 123–145. https://doi.org/10.62819/jel.2021.122
Barkhuizen, G. (2023). Language teacher mindset and teacher identity. The Language Teacher, 47(5), 8. https://doi.org/10.37546/JALTTLT47.5-1
Lave, J. (1991). Situating learning in communities of practice. In L. B. Resnick, J. M. Levine, & S. D. Teasley (Eds.), Perspectives on socially shared cognition (pp. 63–82). American Psychological Association.
Norton, B. (2013). Identity and language learning: Extending the conversation (2nd ed.). Multilingual Matters. https://doi.org/10.21832/9781783090563
Tajeddin, Z., & Yazan, B. (Eds.). (2024). Language teacher identity tensions: Nexus of agency, emotion, and investment. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003402411
Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practice: Learning as a social system. The Systems Thinker, 9(5), 2–3.
Abstract section 4: Outcomes/results
The findings suggest that recipients of the Transportation Grant believe that participation in PanSIG is important for both their personal and professional development as language teachers. They wrote about how the grant allowed them access to a supportive and encouraging community of professionals, which many began to identify with over the course of the conference. The ability to socialize with (other) professionals played a key role in developing this sense of community. Recipients were largely encouraged by the experience, and were inspired to contribute to the field in the future, a key part of identity formation (Norton, 2013).
Abstract section 2: Contribution/research questions
From a discussion at lunch during PanSIG 2025, the researchers became interested in what makes PanSIG special among the many professional development opportunities in Japan. From there, three key research questions emerged: How do Transportation Grant recipients experience PanSIG as a CoP? What identity narratives are revealed in their reflections on participation? How do these experiences contribute to participants’ developing teacher identities? Professional development event planners in Japan may be especially interested in the answers.
Abstract section 3: Content/method
Publicly available reports from PanSIG Transportation Grant recipients between 2023 and 2024, published in the following year’s conference handbook, were analyzed. The researchers conducted a qualitative thematic analysis of the reports, iteratively hand-coding emerging themes related to communities of practice, professional development, and developing language teacher identity. These reports were chosen as they represent data-rich, autobiographical narratives and allow for an inductive approach to reveal participants’ authentic feelings.
Abstract section 1: Relevance
Drawing on recent research frameworks of emotions, community, and identity in language teaching (Aung, Mar, & Briscoe, 2021; Tajeddin & Yazan, 2024), this study analyzes PanSIG Transportation Grant recipients’ reports to discover how these participants experience PanSIG as a site of professional (and personal) development. Communities of practice (CoP) (Lave, 1991; Wenger, 1998) can play an essential role in the development of language teacher identity. In analyzing the reports, we began to see them as identity narratives (Barkhuizen, 2023). These narratives reveal how participation in the CoP we call PanSIG contributes to the development of teacher identity.
| Title | PanSIG: Supporting language teacher community & identity |
|---|---|
| Commercial Promotion | No |
| Language | English |
| Teaching Context | General |