ERIC Number: EJ1481097
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025-Sep
Pages: 31
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0039-8322
EISSN: EISSN-1545-7249
Available Date: 2025-01-15
Language Teachers' Developmental Trajectories as Materials Developers
TESOL Quarterly: A Journal for Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages and of Standard English as a Second Dialect, v59 n3 p1719-1749 2025
Language teachers are increasingly expected to develop teaching materials in many contexts. This trend necessitates greater understanding of how language teachers develop their professional practices as materials developers. Applying an ecological perspective in combination with Wenger's theory of Communities of Practice, the present study examines the developmental trajectories of language teachers participating in a materials development community. Adopting a narrative case study approach, this study collected interview data, policy documents, meeting minutes, and personal materials that four language teachers used for developing materials. The findings show that these language teachers' developmental trajectories as materials developers were not linear and were mediated by individual beliefs and policy requirements upon entering the community; their knowledge and skills and the power relations they experienced during the materials development process; and their beliefs and power relations at the end of the project. These findings suggest that language teachers need individualized support and resources at various points throughout their participation in a materials development community to develop their professional practices throughout the process.
Descriptors: Language Teachers, Material Development, Teacher Developed Materials, Communities of Practice, Teacher Attitudes, Educational Practices, Power Structure
Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www-wiley-com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-us
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: 1School of Foreign Studies, Tongji University, Shanghai, China; 2School of Education, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

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