Speaker
Description
Who gets to teach English in South Korea, and what determines who is viewed as a legitimate English teacher? This presentation synthesizes findings from a program of research on transnational English teachers in Korean ELT. It examines how teachers negotiate professional identity and legitimacy within a system shaped by native-speaker ideologies, racialized hiring practices, and institutional and regulatory constraints. Drawing on multiple case studies of practicing and pre-service teachers, the findings show that legitimacy is shaped not only by qualifications and teaching ability but also by nationality, race, legal status, and institutional policies. Participants' narratives illustrate how structural inequalities influence access to employment, professional recognition, and career development while requiring teachers to negotiate tensions between their identities and dominant expectations of who counts as a "legitimate" English teacher. The presentation argues for more equitable hiring practices, inclusive teacher education, and policy reforms that recognize the diverse expertise of English teachers across national and linguistic boundaries.
Dr. Meerbek Kudaibergenov serves as an Assistant Professor at the Institute for Language Education & Research, Seoul National University of Science & Technology (SeoulTech), South Korea.