Speakers
Abstract section 3: Content/method
A duoethnography was chosen since it allowed the researchers to analyse, compare and reshape their perceptions and beliefs through reflection and dialogue (Lowe & Lawrence, 2020; Norris et al., 2016). Data were collected online between the researchers by reflecting on the themes related to their journeys to becoming English teachers, living in Japan and working in Japan. This reflective dialogue enabled them to identify additional themes to deepen their research.
Abstract section 2: Contribution/research questions
This presentation seeks to describe a duoethnography exploring two researchers' identities as Latin American English teachers in universities in Japan. Based on their contexts, their objective was to identify how they developed their professional identity across different stages of their careers and migration journeys and how their community became an essential part of it.
Abstract section 1: Relevance
Non-native English-speaking teachers (NNESTs) often face ongoing challenges in negotiating their professional identity, sense of belonging, and legitimacy within the global field of English language teaching. While issues such as native-speakerism, institutional hierarchies, gender and communities have been widely discussed, the perspectives of Latin American women teaching English in Japan remain underrepresented in the literature. This unexplored context raises questions about how their linguistic, ethnic, and gendered identities shape their professional experiences.
Abstract section 5: References
Hashimoto, N., & Rakhshandehroo, M. (2023). Native-speakerism in higher education through the eyes of non-Japanese NNESTs. JALT Postconference Publication, 2022.
Lowe, R. J., & Lawrence, L. (Eds.). (2020). Duoethnography in English language teaching: Research, reflection and classroom application. Multilingual Matters.
Norris, J., Sawyer, R. D., & Lund, D. (2016). Duoethnography: Dialogic methods for social, health, and educational research. Routledge.
Abstract section 4: Outcomes/results
As a result of this research, participants revealed that experiences of having their professional legitimacy questioned were most often located within academic and institutional spaces. They recognized their role as NNEST in shaping students’ multilingual identities and challenging native speaker ideologies (Hashimoto & Rakhshandehroo, 2023). They acknowledge that communities of practice are seen as transformative sites for identity construction, professional confidence, and research engagement. Through the duoethnographic process and its dialogic reflection, peer support, and research partnering, their professional identities gradually shifted toward seeing themselves as legitimate researchers, thus framing their experiences as valid sites of knowledge production.
| Title | Community's Role for Identity Construction: A Duoethnography |
|---|---|
| Teaching Context | College and university education |