A Narrative Inquiry into Jordanian EFL Preservice Teacher Identity Development

This narrative inquiry examines the teacher identity development of four female Jordanian English as a Foreign Language preservice teachers in a preservice teacher education program at a Jordanian public university. This study used Gee’s (2000) Four Ways to View Identity and Kolb’s (2015) Cycle of Reflective Practice to investigate the development of teacher identity. This study considered two relevant research questions: 1) What stories do Jordanian EFL PSTs share about developing their teacher identity?; and 2) What critical incidents do Jordanian EFL PSTs recount about re/shaping their teacher identity as they engage in self-reflection and social interactions with peers and mentors? Using narrative inquiry, they shared their stories of how they made sense of and formed their professional identities during their diploma program. As preservice teachers in a nine-month professional teacher diploma program, their stories reflect a complex and diverse set of experiences during their coursework and teaching practicums while engaging in the unique cultural context of Jordan’s educational landscape. Their intertwined narratives of identity development attests to the power of teacher-student, preservice teacher-teacher educator, and mentor bonds. Gee’s (2000) and Kolb’s (2015) frameworks were used to construct a rich narrative of their teacher identity development. This study presents the “rich nuances of meaning” in the stories these participants chose to tell as they reflected on the construction of their teacher identity (Kim, 2016, p. 36). The critical incidents in their narratives provides insight into the impact on teacher identity development in a Jordanian context. The entire cycle of participant recruitment and data collection was challenging due to a tight timeframe of under two months. This narrative inquirer assembled their stories through multiple interviews. The first set of interviews ran just over an hour, while the second set of interviews ranged from fifty minutes to an hour. Participants were also asked to annotate a timeline and emoticon stickers that served to frame their interviews which conveyed critical moments in their identity development. Narrative analysis and analysis of narratives were used to examine the participants’ lived experiences. Data collection included interviews, interviewee annotated timelines using emoticons, and reflective journaling, which were analyzed to identify recurring themes. Member checking and data triangulation were also used to ensure the trustworthiness of the findings. When woven together, what emerged was an understanding of participants’ experiences and critical incidents that contributed to the development of their teacher identity. Major findings emerging from this study suggest that teacher identity is evolving through a dynamic interplay of emotions, mentor support, institutional expectations, and reflective practices. Several key thematic stories emerged from these narrative stories: 1) Emotional Struggles, featured in their lived experiences, first marked by self-doubt culminating in self-assurance; 2) The role of Mentor Feedback demonstrated the impact of either negative or positive encouragement that shaped teacher identity; 3) Institutional Challenges, be it school culture, administrative ethos, or social expectations, influenced teacher identity development; and 4) Reflection as a transformative tool, emphasized the power of self-reflection as participants conceptualized and redefined their identity over time. This study concludes by offering specific actionable items prioritized according to the findings of this study, for the Jordanian Ministry of Education and the preservice teacher education program leads in the four public universities to act on. The findings herein contribute to the body of knowledge and theory internationally. At the local level, this study will also benefit policy and practice in Jordanian preservice teacher education by providing a blueprint for reshaping the program as a whole.